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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Pictures
    2. Style
    3. Portability
    4. Build Quality
    5. Controls
    6. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Frequency Response Accuracy
    2. Raw Frequency Response
    3. Soundstage
    4. Dynamics
  6. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. Voice Assistant
    3. App
  7. Connectivity
    1. Wired
    2. Bluetooth
    3. Wi-Fi
  8. Comments

Bose Home Speaker 500 vs Bose SoundLink Home

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Bose Home Speaker 500
Bose SoundLink Home

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Nov 28, 2024 07:50 PM

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Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Nov 28, 2024 05:55 PM

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Bose Home Speaker 500 Picture
Bose SoundLink Home Picture

Variants

  • Home Speaker 500 (Luxe Silver)
  • Home Speaker 500 (Triple Black)
  • SoundLink Home (Cool Gray)
  • SoundLink Home (Light Silver)

Our Verdict

Bose Home Speaker 500

Bose SoundLink Home

The Bose SoundLink Home and the Bose Home Speaker 500 are both, you've guessed it, home-focused Bluetooth speakers from Bose. But there are some important differences. The Speaker 500 doesn't have a battery, so you have to plug it in to work. It's also a lot larger than the Home, so it gets noticeably louder and puts out a bit more mid-bass punch. On the other hand, the Home is battery-powered and portable but a bit quieter. Each speaker also takes a slightly different approach to voice assistants. The Speaker 500 has built-in support for Alexa and Google Assistant but won't work with your phone's voice assistant. The Home is the exact opposite.

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Luxe Silver
Home Speaker 500
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Cool Gray
SoundLink Home
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Triple Black
Home Speaker 500
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Light Silver
SoundLink Home
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Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 

7.3
6.3

Soundstage 
 

8.7
5.1

Dynamics 
 

7.2
5.8

EQ 
 

Bass/Treble
No

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.9
7.2

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo  

Bose Home Speaker 500 Style Photo
Bose SoundLink Home Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show Text 

Portability 
 

4.3
9.1

Dimensions Photo  

Bose Home Speaker 500 Dimensions Photo
Bose SoundLink Home Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

226 in³ (3,702 cm³)
87 in³ (1,428 cm³)

Weight 
 

4.9 lbs (2.2 kg)
2.0 lbs (0.9 kg)

Power Source 
 

AC Only
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

No
Yes
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

6.7
6.4

Build Quality Photo  

Bose Home Speaker 500 Build Quality Photo
Bose SoundLink Home Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Good

Water Resistance 
 

No
No

Dust Resistance 
 

Unspecified
No

Impact Resistance 
 

Unspecified
No

Floats In Water 
 

No
No
Show Text 

Controls 
 

8.0
8.8

Controls Photo  

Bose Home Speaker 500 Controls Photo
Bose SoundLink Home Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2  

Bose Home Speaker 500 Controls Photo 2
Bose SoundLink Home Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Great
Good

Feedback 
 

Great
Good

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

No
Yes (Physical)

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Yes
Yes (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

Bose Home Speaker 500 In The Box Photo
Bose SoundLink Home In The Box Photo
Show Text 
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.9
7.2

Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Slope 
 

-0.62
0.10

Std. Err. 
 

3.50 dB
2.11 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

55.0 Hz
57.4 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

17.0 kHz
18.5 kHz
Show Text 

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Binaural Recording @ 1m 
 

Binaural Recording @ 2m 
 

Soundstage 
 

8.7
5.1

Directivity Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Directivity Index 
 

2.41 dB
5.46 dB

Stereo 
 

Yes
No (mono)
Show Text 

Dynamics 
 

7.2
5.8

Dynamic Range Compression  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

90.5 dB SPL
86.1 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

2.19 dB
3.82 dB
Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

0.0
5.2

Battery Life 
 

N/A
4.5 hrs

Charge Time 
 

N/A
2.8 hrs

Power Saving 
 

No
Yes

Charging Port 
 

No Battery
USB-C

Battery Powered 
 

No
Yes
Show Text 

Voice Assistant 
 

10
5.7

Alexa 
 

Built-in (Wi-Fi Only)
No

Google Assistant 
 

Built-in (Wi-Fi Only)
Yes (Requires Smartphone)

Speakerphone 
 

No
Yes

Siri 
 

No
Yes (Requires Smartphone)

Voice Assistant 
 

Yes
Yes

Voice Activation 
 

Yes
No

Microphone Mute 
 

Yes
No

Far-Field Performance 
 

Excellent
Excellent

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

Excellent
Excellent
Show Text 

App 
 

7.7
0.0

App Picture  

Bose Home Speaker 500 App Picture
Bose SoundLink Home App Picture

App Name 
 

Bose Music
No App

iOS 
 

Yes
No

Android 
 

Yes
No

EQ 
 

Bass/Treble
No

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

No
No

Party Mode 
 

Yes
No

Multi-Room 
 

Yes
No
Show Text 
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

Yes
No

USB Audio 
 

No
Yes

Other Ports 
 

Yes
No
Show Text 

Bluetooth 
 

8.2
7.9

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

4.2
5.3

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

57 ms
186 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

88 ms
194 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

195.2 ft (59.5 m)
334.6 ft (102.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
2 Devices
Show Text 

Wi-Fi 
 

8.1
0.0

Wi-Fi Version 
 

Unspecified
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi Frequency Band 
 

2.4GHz & 5GHz
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 
 

Yes
No

Apple AirPlay 
 

Yes
No

AirPlay Latency 
 

45 ms
N/A

Google Chromecast 
 

Yes
No

Chromecast Latency 
 

N/A
N/A
Show Text 

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Luxe Silver
Home Speaker 500
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Cool Gray
SoundLink Home
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Triple Black
Home Speaker 500
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Light Silver
SoundLink Home
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Bose Home Speaker 500

Bose SoundLink Home

Comments

  1. Comparison

Bose Home Speaker 500 vs Bose SoundLink Home: Main Discussion

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