Jabra Speak 510 MS Wireless Bluetooth Speakerphone – Outstanding Sound Quality, Portable Conference Speaker for Holding Meetings Anywhere - Certified for Microsoft Teams

I have a reputation among friends, associates, family for doing a deep dive and researching the field when choosing new products. I like to understand the differences between products, state of the art, etc., and generally be an informed buyer. I've also been in "tech" for more than 35 years, with roles from hands on through CIO and CTO, so I've got a lot of experience researching and choosing products, whether for one person or thousands. In short: I tend to be a picky shopper. I researched the field here, and think I've found a winner.At this point in my career, I'm traveling weekly, and I'm meeting -- either in person or remote -- with numerous people each week. Conference calls are the norm, and may involve dozens of people, conference rooms with poor equipment, offices with dreadful 15 year old "speakerphones", hotel rooms, working from my home office, etc. One of the most frustrating experiences is trying to participate in a mission critical conference call when 1) I can barely hear or understand the folks at the other end, and 2) they can't hear and understand me unless I lean over a mic and raise my voice. Cell phone "speakerphones" may be acceptable in an emergency, but haven't proven adequate for routine use.I had recently research Bluetooth speakers for use primarily as audio / music listening speakers (for use, e.g., with Google Play Music from my phone). I researched and auditioned many: Bose, Cambridge, JBL, Shark, Amazon, Phillips, Anker, Jambox, etc. I narrowed it down to those with speakerphone capability, thinking I'd satisfy that need along with the media speaker requirement. After a LOT of research and live auditions, I settled on Nyne Bass, and couldn't be happier with it -- as a media speaker - truly amazing in all respects: sound is stunningly good - even outdoors, and both battery life and bluetooth handling are excellent. Unfortunately, it's only mediocre when turning a phone into a speakerphone, and often quite disappointing -- and I've tried out colleague's products like Jambox for the same purpose, and also found them disappointing. So -- I went on the hunt for a "real" business quality Bluetooth speakerphone.After much research, I homed in on Jabra, and the 510+ looked most promising after reading a LOT of reviews. Buying via Amazon Prime, I knew I had no risk, so I place the order -- and had the package on my desk about 36 hours later. Once again -- kudos to Amazon Prime and the vendors that work with Amazon in this program.The product is perfectly packaged, and beautifully made. It appears to be about 4.5" in diameter, and about 1.25" high when sitting flat on a desk or table. It is a gorgeous, professional grade piece of tech with excellent fit and finish and features. It comes with a neoprene zipper case, the USB cord wraps around the body and tucks into a groove that also holds the cable end in place. Incredibly well thought out and executed.This model can be connected to a phone or laptop via bluetooth, and to a laptop via USB cable. It doesn't come with its own charging brick, but the USB cable can charge from any standard 1A or higher brick. It takes a while for a full charge, but once charged, I can use it all day and into the night, and the charge is only partially depleted.Sound quality is absolutely spectacular for the purpose. I can place this on a table or desk in a room with a dozen people at distances from 3 ft to 15 ft or more, and they are all picked up and easily understand by people at the other end of the call. What comes out of the speaker is superb as well: I'm often on the receiving end of a conference call with two dozen people, all different sound environments and volume levels, and half a dozen international accents -- and this speaker yields clear audio rivaling $400 or $500 Polycom and Cisco equipment (no exaggeration). This is so good, in fact, that I've taken to turning it on when sitting in my office at my current client's site, and using it in favor of the brand new Cisco equipment installed there. It's a better experience.The controls around the perimeter are all touch controls -- no physical buttons to degrade, and they work perfectly. Power, answer / hang up, volume up/down, bluetooth (on/off/pair), mute, battery (to check battery charge level). There are a serious of LEDs around the perimeter of the speaker that are almost invisible when off, but light up as needed to indicate function, e.g., Bluetooth connected, power on, volume level and battery life (number of lights on out of ten around the perimeter), etc. Audio prompts walk you through pairing, connection status, etc -- and these can be turned on and off via preferences.The firmware is easily upgradeable via the USB cable and downloadable PC application. I haven't had need to use the app yet, but it provides deeper control over options and connection to services like Lync. This also provides support for soft phones: this "510+ MS edition" is optimized for Microsoft products like Lync -- the other 510+ is, I believe, aimed more at other soft phone products like Cisco.All in all: a beautifully designed, engineered and implemented product. Every now and then you trip across a gem that defines state of the art in its category - and I believe this qualifies. As you might guess, I'm delighted with this product.

Great sound quality - makes hybrid working a breeze. Portable and super easy to use.

I bought this to replace an Emeet Luna that did not live up to my expectations, and this Jabra is exactly what I was looking for. I needed one of these devices--Emeet Luna or Jabra Speak 710--to do three things: (1) connect to my computer for use with Webex, (2) connect to my mobile phone for higher quality phone conversations, and (3) transition between these uses seamlessly. Though Emeet Luna is one-third the cost of Jabra Speak 710, the lower price of the Emeet is irrelevant to me because it did not accomplish the three things I was looking for. Jabra Speak 710 did.The biggest short fall on the Emeet was with number 3. Even when I had it connected to computer through the USB, connecting it to my phone would disconnect it from the computer, and vice versa. So I had to keep the Emeet connected to my computer, and if I wanted to use it for a phone call, I had to go into my phone settings and connect it to the phone manually. Besides being a pain to do this every time I needed to make a call, I simply couldn't get it connected to the phone fast enough before answering when people called me. Additionally, the Emeet would shut off when I put my computer to sleep and would not turn back on automatically when I woke the computer up. So every day, I had to turn the speaker on by holding down the button on the speaker. That's all to say that the Emeet did not give me the experience I expected and simply didn't work for what I needed it.I also had an issue with number 1, because the Emeet would cut out and have static and interference during video calls (something I’ve never had an issue with using other speakers, including the now the 710).Jabra Speak 710, on the other hand, stays connected to my computer (through the USB) and my phone (through Bluetooth) at the same time. When I turn off my computer (or put it to sleep), Jabra Speak 710 automatically shuts off and disconnects from my phone. This is perfect because when I shut off my computer, I’m done working and don’t need the speaker phone anymore. The next day when I turn on my computer, Jabra Speak 710 automatically turns on, connects to the computer, AND connects to my phone. So I can use it for a video conference, and as soon as I get off the video conference, if someone calls me, I can hit the answer-phone button on the Jabra Speak 710, and boom, it’s like I’m talking on my speaker phone back in the office.A few other small distinguishing characteristics that also help explain the difference in price. Jabra Speak 710 is much higher quality. It looks better and feels better to use. The Speak 710 has a nice stand so that the speaker can face you. The speaker on the 710 also seems ten times better than the Luna; I actually enjoy listening to music on it, whereas the Luna did not sound good for music.In short, make sure you’re getting something that will actually meet your needs.Another caution about the Luna: I got a card with it offering a $10 gift card for writing a review. Whatever the intent of these types of things are, people tend to write five-star reviews when trying to get the gift cards, sometimes even when the product doesn’t deserve it. So I bet the Luna is overrated, and it certainly seemed that way to me.

I have been trying to figure out whether the MS version or the UC version is required for WebEx usage. I now have both to test and they both work the same way; the mute button when pressed in WebEx synchronizes with the speaker red LED ring and vice-versa. When you press the mute button on the speaker itself it also shows the mute icon on-screen for both the MS and the UC variants (309 and 409 models.) The MS that I just bought was $78 cheaper than the UC for some reason, so if using WebEx either version will work fine as far as I can tell.For the review:1. Sound quality / realism is excellent. Not muffled, high fidelity very loud but easily adjustable to lower volumes.2. Size is perfect, kickstand is awesome.3. USB works great, and I use it that way 99% of the time. Rare use of BT works great too.4. Price is high, but if you work on conference calls / WebEx all day, it ends up being worth it for the stability and clarity (I bought a second one for my wife.)5. Music...not good enough. No bass, not stereo. Get a Marshall Stockwell II!

I would have given it a five star instead of a 4 if it had a small stand on the back. I have been using this for several months and it works great. Easily connects to different technology and its usb. We’ve connected it to the PlayStation 5 but usually it’s attached to my laptop for work meetings. Definitely worth the buy!