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JBL Portable

Harman International Industries · 56,453 ratings · ★ 4.7

4.7
★★★★★
56,453 ratings
5 ★
48,514 (86%)
4 ★
3,812 (7%)
3 ★
1,501 (3%)
2 ★
685 (1%)
1 ★
1,950 (3%)
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Top complaints - extracted from 14 negative reviews

Recurring phrases mined from 1-2★ reviews. The bigger the percentage, the more users have the same problem. Fix the top 2-3 in your version and you have product-market fit on day one.

1
"speaker"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★ "Buggy. Constantly fails to find speaker. The JBL app so frequently fails to find my Flip 7 that I cannot even classify the Flip 7 as having an EQ." - GuyWBailey
2
"cannot"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★ "Buggy. Constantly fails to find speaker. The JBL app so frequently fails to find my Flip 7 that I cannot even classify the Flip 7 as having an EQ." - GuyWBailey
3
"speakers"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★★ "Thought this was to connect. Was excited to connect multiple speakers from JBL. Yet doesn’t another worthless app. Maybe it works if you buy exactly the same versions of the speakers." - Zivux
4
"worthless"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★★ "Thought this was to connect. Was excited to connect multiple speakers from JBL. Yet doesn’t another worthless app. Maybe it works if you buy exactly the same versions of the speakers." - Zivux
5
"works"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★★ "Thought this was to connect. Was excited to connect multiple speakers from JBL. Yet doesn’t another worthless app. Maybe it works if you buy exactly the same versions of the speakers." - Zivux
6
"equalizer"
3 negative reviews mention this · 21% of all complaints
★★★★★ "Buggy. The equalizer option almost never works" - thomas0825

📋 All 14 negative reviews

Every 1-2★ review we fetched. Use the copy button to grab them all for your own analysis (paste into ChatGPT/Claude with a prompt like "summarize core user problems, group by theme, ignore bugs, focus on missing features").

★★★★ GuyWBailey 6/25/2026 v6.9.12
Buggy. Constantly fails to find speaker
The JBL app so frequently fails to find my Flip 7 that I cannot even classify the Flip 7 as having an EQ.
★★★★ MP2333 6/17/2026 v6.9.12
Does Not Work
I’ve tried to daisy chain speakers through this app for years and it’s always the same result. Works well for 5 minutes then falls apart. Goes in and out and not workable.
★★★★ Ronnie ham 6/17/2026 v6.9.12
Quality
Poor sound quality
★★★★ pejman portavakoly 6/13/2026 v6.9.12
A Frustrating Step Backward in Design and Compatibility
My experience with this product has been largely overshadowed by poor design choices and a lack of foresight regarding ecosystem integration.
First, the visual interface-specifically the equalizer display-is a major letdown. It lacks the dynamic, precise response one would expect from a modern device. It feels like a missed opportunity; it could have been an engaging, high-quality visual tool, but instead, it feels primitive and uninspired.
More importantly, the complete lack of backward compatibility is baffling. It is unacceptable that the system cannot integrate with models from even just a year ago. This 'planned obsolescence' approach forces users to abandon perfectly good hardware, showing little respect for the consumer's investment or environmental sustainability. It is clear that long-term compatibility is not a priority for this brand. I expected a much more cohesive and user-friendly experience."
چند
★★★★ Angel-A V 6/13/2026 v6.9.12
JBL Mini
I received this mini last July for my birthday. I used it three times last summer and then put it away. I pulled it out a month ago could not get it to turn on. Could not get it to charge finally after 20 attempts start charging and turn on I found out that it needed an update so I thought issue I did the update seem to be working. OK now it’s back to turning off in the middle of songs and the app. Connected to the JBL says that it’s got 100% charge so I don’t understand what’s wrong with it and unfortunately it’s past the return date so I’m stuck with.lemon. This is the second JBL I have had issues with. I don’t believe I will be recommending them.
★★★★ Bong chance 6/13/2026 v6.9.12
Trash
Keep turning off.
★★★★ Quenks 6/8/2026 v6.9.12
App Doesn’t connect to Charge 5
My iPhone is connected to the Charge 5 speaker but the App doesn’t connect. Already powered down/up the phone and the speaker. Reinstalled the App and the result is always the same. Worthless App.
★★★★ pissedoffcistomer 6/1/2026 v6.9.12
Absolutely
Worthless
★★★★ Moneytight 5/28/2026 v6.9.12
Can’t access equalizer.
The pictures in the app clearly shows an equalizer function (2nd picture labeled “Adjust”). I do not see and I cannot adjust anything to do with an equalizer. All the app does, as far as I can tell, is show battery level and allow easy connections for multiple speakers. That all. No other functions. Seems like a useless app. Very disappointed.
★★★★ makeabetterapphahaha 5/22/2026 v6.9.12
Awful
Never ever wants to work
★★★★★ CrisTatum_23 6/20/2026 v6.9.12
Go 3
No puedo unir mi go3 con otras JBL
★★★★★ Zivux 6/20/2026 v6.9.12
Thought this was to connect
Was excited to connect multiple speakers from JBL. Yet doesn’t another worthless app. Maybe it works if you buy exactly the same versions of the speakers.
★★★★★ a stack of pennies 6/19/2026 v6.9.12
Horrific privacy policy
The speaker is pretty good. The app is also good. However, the privacy policy you have to accept to use the app (and thus the full feature set of the speaker you paid for) is horrifically invasive.
★★★★★ thomas0825 6/16/2026 v6.9.12
Buggy
The equalizer option almost never works

Sentiment summary

93%
Positive (4-5★)
3%
Neutral (3★)
5%
Negative (1-2★)

✓ Strong positive sentiment - clone path is harder, users like the existing app.