| Price(2.5/5): |  |
| Design(5/5): |  |
| Features(4.5/5): |  |
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The AS851 is the most advanced and the most powerful from the fideo line of Philips Android docking stations. This dock is (as are all Fidelio line docks) designed to work with Android powered devices that charge on micro USB cable and your music playback is done through the built in bluetooth A2DP or the Advanced Audio Distribution Profile but that means you can connect any device that supports this connection and basically play music from anywhere in your house in the bluetooth range.
The device itself has the dimensions of 6.2 inches x 16.57 inches x 5.5 inches (15.7 cm x 42 cm x 14 cm) and it weighs about 7.7 pounds (3.5 kg) so it is not a tiny alarm clock dock but a full fledged speaker docking station that also has two 3 inch (7.6 cm) diameter speakers with 15 W power output each and that means the total power output 30W and that is not a small number considering this is an Android smartphone docking station. The device itself is greatly designed and looks amazingly stylish. The whole front side is covered with perforated speaker cover that is in black color and matches the overall black theme of this device. The whole backside is basically made from glared plastic so it is a massive fingerprint magnet but at least you won’t be fiddling there a lot as all you need to listen and charge to your Android smartphone can be found in the front. But so that you know then at the back side there are two giant subwoofer holes for those 15W speakers and in the middle there is an external USB power port so you will be able to charge a second device. Then there is also the electrical plug and a 3.5 mm auxiliary port so that you are able to play music with devices that do not offer Bluetooth connection but also from your Android if you want a little better music quality.
Underneath the dock you have a semicircle shaped padding materials that I guess don’t allow this dock to slide on your desk as well as absorbs the speaker vibrations. And of course under there is also the Philips logo and some information about the model and serial number.
But getting back to the front – at the middle of the dock in the bottom half there is a philips patented and designed docking mechanism called the “FlexyDock” that basically is a docking mechanism that allows you to mount any Android powered smartphones and even some smaller tablets. This docking mechanism is able to slide, adjust each sides support tilt and also rotate that micro USB port to support any positioning of the charging port on any Android smartphone.
Underneath that docking mechanism are the physical control buttons for On/Off, Bluetooth connection and also the volume up and down buttons.
If we talk more about the sound and the quality of it I must say that the loudness is extreme and you most certainly would not want to play it to its loudest all the time. This dock also has 5 band built in equalizer and Pure digital sound processing so the sound that comes out sounds crisp and full of bass and low vibration tones. But if you are a music expert you will notice that the quality is not perfect because lets face it a music played through bluetooth connection will never be as good as the real deal but that can be somewhat fixed if you plug the 3.5 mm AUX cable in the back. But even then the overall sound will not be the best one as still this is just a docking station not some powerful home entertainment center.
Then there is the remote that allows you to control various aspects of this dock and your music playback but don’t expect nothing fancy as it is working through that Bluetooth connection and that has a very limited bandwidth. But you will be able to perform basic function from a distance and that is great.
Overall this dock is a great Android docking speaker but I feel that the price is a bit too much for a toy for your phone and those other Fidelio line docks are better suited for the everyday use, but if you have the money to spend then of course this is in all ways better than those other Fidelio line Android speakers.
