JBL Spinner BT - Bridging the Generation Gap

Vinyl isn't just back; it's dominating. All data shows physical album sales continue to break records - sorry about the dad pun - and that trend is unlikely to slow down any time soon.

Despite this, there are a lot of people out there who have absolutely no idea why you would buy a record or what you would do with it if you did. My youngest daughter is one of those people. She's 20.

Her: "So this is all people had to listen to music with?"

Me: "Yes, pretty much. Then came cassettes, then CDs, then bluetooth and streaming."

Her: "What's a cassette?"

How quickly they forget.

Let's just say, when I brought an actual record player home, she was pretty intrigued.

The JBL Spinner BT is not an earth-shattering innovation. In fact, I first reviewed a bluetooth turntable back in 2021.

In saying that, the concept has really grown on me - especially since my reliance on smart speakers for my entire home sound system has become all-encompassing. 

Thanks to Wi-Fi and bluetooth connectivity, not to mention regular advances in wireless charging, the thought of plugging something into something else to make it work seems decidedly archaic.

Especially to daughter.

Her: "You mean, you have to connect it to another thing to listen to it?"

Me: "Well, yes. But this one connects via bluetooth. No wires."

Her: "What did they used to plug into?"

Me: "An amp."

Her: "What's an amp?"

I give up.

In fact, because of smart speakers and Hi-Res streaming services, to be honest, I get how the idea of reintroducing any separate components into the mix seems a little superfluous.

However, there's one thing that can't be denied. Records are cool.

The covers, the sleeves, the tactile experience of placing them gently on the turntable, lining up the tonearm and dropping the needle - it doesn't get more retro than that.

And it's those retro feels JBL is hoping to cash in on with the Spinner BT - released late last year along with its excellent new range of vintage-looking Authentics speakers.

In fact, I've paired the turntable with the Authentics 500 - my favourite speaker of 2023 - for this review. Pairing couldn't be easier; press the Bluetooth button on the Spinner BT, press the bluetooth button on the speaker and the rest happens automatically. At that point, you can use the smart capabilities of the Authentics 500 to adjust the volume via Alexa or Google Assistant.

I say pairing couldn't be easier... but that's not quite right. The Bluetooth button on the Spinner BT is tiny and it's tucked around the back of the turntable, in the middle of the panel with the power button, pre-amp switch and RCA output terminals. That's fine, except it's at the back; not particularly accessible and too small to find easily by touch. Why isn't it a big, friendly button on the front like the two speed controls?

Perhaps JBL's design team thought that would ruin the minimalistic, retro look of the turntable, which I admittedly find very pleasing indeed. The dark colour scheme of the MDF plinth and smoky dust cover are only contrasted by the dim gold colour of the JBL logo on the front and the aluminium platter. (There's also a version with orange logo and platter, although this is currently unavailable in New Zealand)

JBL walks a fine line between entry-level user-friendliness and advanced audio features. I found the setup instructions easy to follow, although I've read some user reviews complaining they were a bit complicated. Sadly, these same users were also surprised to discover the Spinner BT needs to be connected to some kind of speaker system to be heard. Why on earth were they buying a turntable in the first place?

Anyway, the fiddliest bit of setup is probably pulling the drive belt into place, using the attached ribbon to pull it over the drive mechanism. The cartridge ships with stylus already in place, meaning the only thing you have to do is insert it into the tonearm.

Balancing the tonearm using the counterweight and anti-skate control might also seem a bit daunting at first but again, as long as you follow the instructions it shouldn't pose too much of a challenge.

The result is fantastic. Or at least, as far as I can tell it is. I don't really know what separates a $3000 turntable from a $749.95 one like this - I'm far too deaf to be an audio expert that discerning. All I know is I'm sitting here listening to the landmark Fat Freddy's Drop album, Blackbird on my JBL Tour Pro 2 TWS earbuds and I'm loving every moment.

I'm not even in the same room as the turntable and the connection is flawless. Without getting too bogged down in the various bluetooth connection protocols offered by the Spinner BT and whatever device you're connecting it to, while it's still true that precious analogue signal created by needle on vinyl is being digitally compressed and unpacked the moment you listen wirelessly, the technology has come a long way in a short time and surely it's only the true hi-fi snobs who would have a major issue with the sound quality here.

It's not all fun and games. The Fat Freddy tracks tend to run a little long which means there are only two songs on sides A, C and D of this double-disc masterpiece. So now I have to get up, go back to the other room and flip the disc. What a delightfully first-world problem.

Less delightful is the lack of an auto-return function - you can set the turntable to stop automatically at the end of each side but the tonearm doesn't return itself to its rest and there's certainly no auto-start either. That's not good enough when there are far cheaper devices on the market with those automations built in.

But the most annoying design omission by far is the lack of multi-connectivity. You can only pair with one device at a time which means fiddling around for that little, inaccessible bluetooth botton every time you want to swap from speaker to headphones. Again, I'd expect a little better for 750 bucks.

That being said, I can't help loving the way this device looks... blending in perfectly with my oh-so-retro JBL Authentics 500 speaker. The combination is the perfect mix of old-school aesthetics, smarts peaker useability and traditional JBL audio know-how.

Am I going to let my daughter use it? Are you crazy? She can have a listen though.

        

Click here for more information and pricing on the JBL Spinner BT.

Quik - Now on Mac

For years now I've been repeatedly impressed by Quik, GoPro's companion app which is not just a convenient way to keep your camera(s) up-to-date and adjust settings. More importantly, it's a brilliantly-designed, on-device video editor.

Not only can you use Quik to import video and picture files from your camera but you can access A.I.-suggested edits from GoPro's cloud storage and of course, edit your own package of action-packed highlights.

Quik may not offer all the bells and whistles some other editors do but it's remarkably efficient and I'm always amazed at how quickly it can generate new, shareable videos on-the-go.

Although when I first started using Quik on my phone, GoPro also had a desktop app of sorts, that quickly went away, leaving a gap for those of us who wanted to bring our raw action vids home and craft them into something a little more polished.

Now, some considerable time later, GoPro has reintroduced its desktop app - at least for MacOS anyway...

The Mac version of Quik is not at all what I was expecting. If, like me, you were hoping for a powerful alternative to other desktop video editors, complete with the ability to mix and match multiple shots from different cameras adding a variety of transitions along the way... that's not what this is.

Instead, the desktop version of Quik is almost a carbon copy of the mobile app. This has certain advantages but also means quite a few restrictions.

On the plus side, just like the mobile version, when you have your GoPro set to "Auto Upload," any footage you shoot is zapped up to GoPro's cloud servers as soon as you put your camera on to charge. These files are then available for import and editing in Quik as soon as they are uploaded.

Of course, it's even more efficient to plug your camera straight into your Mac. It will then instantly appear within the app, with files ready for action straight away.

However, the other advantage of uploading your footage to the cloud is you'll get an A.I.-generated highlights package sent back to you. Again, just like the Quik app on your phone, this auto-edit will be waiting for you in the "Suggestions" tab. This will include music, filters and transitions and not only is it immediately ready to share but you can also edit it yourself if you're not entirely happy with what the A.I. has come up with.

I've found these suggested highlights make a useful starting point, kind of like a catalyst for you to craft a final product from - a bit less daunting than staring at the blank slate of a whole new project.

Not that is ever really much of an issue when using Quik. From the moment you import your raw footage - and remember, that doesn't just have to be images and video you've shot with a GoPro - you can easily create a complete edit, with music and titles.

You can choose a specific length and Quik will auto-edit your shots accordingly. Another feature I really like is "Beat Sync" - this trims your clips to change in time with your music track.

As always, Quik offers a selection of different "Themes" you can force your footage to fit with - this means music, filters and transitions will all follow a certain style.

But perhaps Quik's neatest trick is the way it syncs between devices. Your GoPro subscription means wherever you log in - on phone or on Mac - your edits, files and suggestions will all be there waiting for you and you can pick up right where you left off.

That's all fantastic. And it means you can create a genuinely professional-looking (and sounding) video in minutes - not hours.

However...

That convenience comes at a cost. Control. Because this is technically a GoPro review, that means an obligatory Extreme Dog Walking video. As I just suggested, I crafted my latest instalment by waiting to see what the A.I. came up with then taking out a few shots, adding others and creating some titles. Have a look and see if you can spot the main issue.

No, my issue is not how unflattering the GoPro Chesty harness looks on me. I filmed this short vid using three different cameras. Unfortunately, using Quik, there's no easy way to intercut between each one, even in the edit. This is why even the A.I. chose to use shots from the stationary camera, followed by footage from my chest-cam and finally the unique on-dog perspective offered by the camera attached to Jerry himself.

If I'd been putting this video together using a different video editor, I'd obviously switch perspectives in real-time - not run shots from each camera sequentially. But the only way to do that in Quik is to import multiple copies of the raw media into the edit file and edit shots out of each one. There's no real splicing option here, you see?

In any other editor I've used, you'd simply cut the footage where you want and move it into place on the timeline - usually dragging it with the mouse or perhaps cutting and pasting it. That option simply doesn't exist in Quik which means it would never be my first choice for multi-camera editing.

It's all very odd because the latest GoPro HERO 12 Black gives you the option of syncing timecodes between multiple cameras when you're on location - not a tool that would be of much use in Quik.

There's also no way to strip the audio track off your clips which also limits how much intercutting you can do. Usually, you'd use the audio from your best shot under all the rest - again, it's not an option here. However, at least you can choose the original audio, music or a mix of both in each section of your video.

Don't let these limitations put you off. They're there to make life easy, so you don't get bogged down worrying about which technical editing tool you need for every shot. Quik is definitely still the easiest and most efficient way to get your GoPro footage looking slick and up online - especially if you've only been shooting with a single camera.

Why not use it like I do? As a catalyst. It might give you a taste of video editing and end up being the gateway to a more advanced movie-making hobby.

    

Click here for more information on Quik.

D-Link Aquila Pro AI - A Whole New Form of Mesh Wi-Fi

If you're still suffering from Wi-Fi dark spots at your place, it's past time you did something about it and invested in a mesh system.

While many of us now take it for granted, some people may still not understand the benefits of extending their home coverage using a single network name (or SSID) spread seamlessly over two, three or even more Wi-Fi access points positioned around the house.

Even relatively small homes can pose Wi-Fi connectivity issues, especially if those houses are multi-storey, contain a large number of electrical appliances or are constructed of a lot of concrete and steel. That's when it becomes necessary to extend your Wi-Fi coverage beyond the source router and in recent years, mesh technology has meant you can do this seamlessly, without creating a new network for every access point.

D-Link has been offering home mesh Wi-Fi solutions for about as long as anyone and now it has refined that solution to be as environmentally friendly, aesthetically-pleasing and as compact as possible.

The Aquila Pro AI AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 smart mesh system is certainly eye-catching. Available in both two and three-unit packs, each station resembles some kind of small stingray, with its extremely flat profile curving up into "wing-like" shapes on each side.

The small size of these units combined with the white and light-grey-blue colour scheme means they're quite inconspicuous in most places around the house. In fact, the unusual, curvy shape almost gives the impression of some kind of arty ornament - much more so than the square or rectangular boxes of D-Link's previous mesh networking routers.

Mysteriously, D-Link has rebranded its home-mesh systems three times in as many years. We started with COVR AX, evolved to Eagle Pro AI and now it's the turn of Aquila Pro AI instead. Those other systems are still available and if I'm completely honest, I'm still not sure of all the differences between them.

What I do know is instead of one, unifying D-Link app to set them up with, each rebrand has meant a whole new app to download and this year is no different. Unfortunately, the Aquila Pro AI app is no more efficient than its predecessors and setup seems to take a very long time as you wait for the units to power up, then reboot once you've named your network and assigned the appropriate passwords.

At least the second (and third) unit pairs automatically out of the box and what I like about these routers is unlike some other options out there, there's no master unit with more ports etc. - each router is identical and whichever one you pick up, power up and set up first becomes the primary device.

This also means you have four Gigabit ethernet ports available on each unit, wherever they are around the house. Effectively, you can now have up to twelve devices hardwired into your home network for the utmost reliability. I recommend a hardwired LAN connection for streaming devices like PCs, smart TVs, gaming consoles and set-top boxes and the Aquila Pro AI is the perfect system to accommodate these gadgets in several rooms around the house.

The unique ray-wing design isn't just aesthetic - it's built that way to accommodate the five redesigned internal antennae - including an extra one dedicated solely to the 5GHz band to increase the range where previous models have struggled a bit - especially once you hit walls, floors and ceilings. D-Link has labelled this "360° Spherical Coverage" and while I don't think this quite means you can expect good reception from an Aquila Pro AI router stashed in the basement if you're on the second floor, I certainly had no connection issues with my two-unit review set all around my large, four bedroom home.

This is because the D-Link website claims 465sqm of coverage for the Aquila Pro AI 2-pack, and a whopping 650sqm with three units.

D-Link promises up to 3Gbps of performance, although I certainly haven't managed to get anywhere near that as my internet connection is somewhat choked by my house's now-obsolete data cabling from my UFB cabinet in the garage. I'm never going to get more than 1Gbps but to be fair, that would be more than enough for most activities in my house.

However, in my testing, I never got anything like that fast and I'm really confused by the results. I think this might be something to do with the various auto-optimising features built into the Aquila Pro routers - the "AI" part of the equation if you will. Because a speed test is not a particularly taxing activity in itself, my theory is the router is only dedicating the bandwidth it needs to get the job done.

Using the Aguila Pro AI app, you can adjust the priority for each connected device manually, via the QoS settings but I actually think the routers did a better job when you just left them to their own devices.

The important thing is they work and work well.

In saying that, what's really interesting about these new devices is they still use the same Wi-Fi 6 protocol as the previous two generations - D-Link has yet to make the leap to Wi-Fi 6e or even Wi-Fi 7 - although to be fair, there are very few devices capable of Wi-Fi 7 just yet but regardless, while these routers are fast enough today, they're perhaps not very future-proofed.

What they are doing to preserve the future is being constructed from post-consumer recycled materials - for me, this alone is not a reason to choose the Aquila Pro AI system over any other but in a close contest, why wouldn't you help the environment if you can?

Perhaps a better reason for going with these ones is they just look so cool - they definitely perform as advertised and they're really very small. So if you're looking for whole-home coverage but you're a bit short on shelf-space, the powerful and reliable 360° spherical output of the Aquila Pro AI might be just the ticket.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the D-link Aquila Pro AI AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 smart mesh system.