GPO Brooklyn 1980S-Style Portable Boombox - CD Player, Cassette Player, FM Radio, USB, Wireless Bluetooth Speaker - Silver

First of all, let me start by saying that I am from that era where having a huge “boom box” was as normal as having an iPhone is today. So I was literally blow away as I was unboxing this unit. I’ve brought other radios on Amazon that were advertised as being a “boom box”, but found myself deeply disappointed when the package arrived. I knew from the mere size of the package that it was not what I was expecting. When I unboxed the item, it was so cheaply made that it appeared to be toy like. Needless to say, I would immediately return it. This GPO Brooklyn 1980s- Style Portable Boombox took me back to the days! I honestly had to sit there for a minute with this huge smile on my face because I was overwhelmed by the size, the aesthetics and it’s overall presents of this unit. What’s crazy is I’ve actually wondered in the past why it was so difficult to find an “old school boom box” with today’s technology and I finally found one that “hands down” that meets the mark. I’ve spent a lot of money on Amazon, just like anyone else who uses Amazon as their primary source to shop, but this is for me one of those purchases that I personally couldn’t be happier with. That’s a pretty strong statement, but it’s true. However, when your getting all this great technology in a portable unit there’s going to be some compromise somewhere. In this case, The volume wasn’t as loud as I was expecting, but it’s definitely decent. It really sounds great! You definitely won’t be disappointed enough to send it back because overall with all it’s great features it’s the best “boombox” on the market right now. And trust me, I’ve done my research. Lastly, I have to say, they really have absolutely excellent customer service. Those guys are awesome! I had an issue with the power cord and contacted customer service. They took care of it expeditiously. So if you’re looking for a boombox I promise you will not be disappointed with this unit. There’s no other “boombox” on the market right now that I found that not only simulates the “boombox” from the 80s, like this one, but is also at such a decent price. I would have actually paid more. I would definitely recommend this item to anyone and give it five stars! For the price, it’s a steal!

I shopped extensively for a boom box similar to the ones I grew up with. It had to have a tape player and either turbo bass or EQ. The GPO Brooklyn offered the most options, had a tape player and EQ, and I watched a pretty good review of it on YouTube. I decided to take a chance on it. Although the price was an issue (I saved up tips from work to buy it, so it’s not like I’m rich), now that I purchased the item, I’m not at all surprised about the cost. It’s worth it. The manufacturer really did the memory of classic boom boxes a solid. The sound is great - the stereo honestly gives the fabulous throaty retro sound we grew up with in the 80’s and 90’s. Love the chunky buttons! The machine is very heavy but seems to be well built. It’s not meant for carrying but makes a great center piece to gatherings and transports easily. Battery works great. All of the features were tested and have been extensively used since purchase, with no issues. Also the fact that it survived Amazon’s seriously pathetic job of packing it in a shipping box for transport (sending the product in a WAY oversized shipping box with only a single piece of brown paper as packing material? I mean, come on, Amazon!) I was honestly surprised it worked at all and didn’t arrive in a hundred pieces. Definitely solid. So - five stars for the product. I absolutely love it. One star to Amazon for crappy packing for shipping. If you’re on the fence about buying a boom box for your GenX retro flashback music needs, look no further than the Brooklyn. It’s a time machine. All I had to do was pop in a cassette and suddenly it was 1987 all over again.

Sorry boys and girls but if you're seeing a negative trend in the reviews, there’s a reason. This unit is literally manufactured only as a facade. The entire body and construction of this boom box, aside from dials and speaker face that are directly on the front, are of extremely brittle, low quality plastic. This is a show-piece and even at that it fails. The knob configuration for volume, tuning, setting selection, etc is completely incoherent. What appears to seems some sort a faux “output level” display is just a plastic sticker thing that blinks (mine wasn’t even on when I unboxed it, it was sticking to the speaker upside down). The carrying handle seemed robust enough, but I’m sure it has to be as this thing weighed a ton. There is no storage in the back at all for the charger apparatus that comes with the boom box. The re-chargeable battery is one of the super low-quality kinds that looks like the ones in RC cars from the 90s that runout of power in like 15 minutes. Didn’t try any tapes or cds out of fear that this sub-par radio would either eat them or chew them up. Overall max volume was barely on par with modern small potable Bluetooth speakers. The tuning knob was clunky and imprecise. If this was going to be your working in the garage and washing the car radio, it’d be a very lousy experience. Money was no object in my hunt for a great boom box, but this is an absolute joke. For this price I expected something far superior that what I received. I am going to continue my hunt for a high quality retro boom box.

I have been procrastinating writing this review. If I was into Youtube I'd post a video of my review to give more details on it. Since I don't here goes. NOTE: I think it matters that this opinion I'm giving out my history is relevant. I am over 50yrs old and was brought up in the 80's analog music that was available and I still play cassettes more than I do the faulty digital compressed music they have today. Analog is the only way to hear music in my opinion. I have experienced what it's like to play and own really, REALLY good cassettes, players and recorders. I own several dual Technics Cassette players for my receiver which I think is still the BEST recording devices to record my music in my little studio. Still have several Sony yellow sports walkmans that work! So I am comparing this 'Boombox' with what was available in the past that is still in working condition. I bought this box because of the look and that the belts were brand NEW. It seems to have a stereo recording and playing heads. The sound is Great as you can adjust the sound with the Treble and Bass knobs. (cheaply made but work) I also enjoy the in and out features it has on the left side of the box. I use my condenser microphone going into it and then I export it from the Line Out to my recorder tape deck and the sound is Great! Does the job. Mine came in a box and the right antenna holder plastic was broken... not a big thing to me. Now the not so nice things... It seems the company across the ocean didn't have anyone from the 80's 'Teach' them before making this. They don't know and understand the following things fully. A 'Tape Counter' is not a timer to tell you how long you have been in the 'Tape' function on the boombox. The use of a tape counter is so you can (while it ONLY works after pressing the PLAY button) visually see where you are on the tape. Example: if you find a song on a cassette you like and want to go back to it during editing or playing reasons you can reset the counter and any time after you are playing the tape you can rewind back to that same point on the tape. This boombox does NOT do this. I have NO idea what they were thinking when they added this feature. I have modded mine with a simple strip of scotch tape that I have covered with a black marker to cover this ridiculous window. Total example of failure. There is no reason to have this when playing tapes. The Visual levels is also not needed. Any visual graphic app on any marketplace that can hear sound can work better as I have my old 4 inch phone attached to this box and it looks sooo much better. I turn this feature OFF obviously. I have noticed that the volume knob goes up in volume if I put any small pressure to the sides of it. Should it do this? I don't think so. Another thing I don't understand is that why oh why couldn't they have added a STEREO light in the radio tuner display?? I have tried to tune to any FM stations and I have no idea if it's in Stereo. Doesn't sound like I can get any stations in stereo. I bought this for the Cassette deck and the CD player, Bluetooth, input/output features and USB editing features are Great! I can 'tip my hat' to GPO for these all working. This is why I bought it. It is worth the $$ IF the other features would be working correctly but for what it's worth it's not worth the hard earned money I make. The good features I use every day all work but is far from being Perfect. GPO needs an 80's 'advisor' before they try to create anything that matches something from the past. Oh and about the rechargeable battery??... this was a BIG plus for me!! I LOVE the fact that you do NOT have to take the HUGE bulky D size batteries from the old Boomboxes. My fix is to charge it up good over night when I got it and then simply unplug it and I'll plug it back in when I know I'll be going portable like on the beach. But for now it is always plugged in. One final note is about the 'toy' feeling and looking plastic cassette keys. The cassette deck is not an Auto-Reverse which can be a plus on this technology but at the end of a tape when it has the Auto-Stop can wake your relative out of a coma! It is so loud! It's not a simple -click- but a BANG!! The sound is as loud as a bullet going out of a pistol! I modded it by adding 2 white 1 sided pads to the top of the play and record keys. It has lowered the DB's slightly to a relative accepting level. Summarize is that it's a good box. Heavy and durable which Rocks! If they need any 80's 'Advice' on audio or video technology - let me know! My VCR's are still working too. Live LONG ANALOG Physical Media!! Love it!

I'm no audiophile, and I'd argue if you are an audiophile, you probably aren't in the market for a boombox. Being GenX I have very fond memories of these sound systems and the GPO certainly looks the part. I bought this for my teenage son, whose audio experience to date has been bluetooth headphones and a tablet or phone. He loved the retro factor but it immediately took on the same role as the exercise bike my wife bought me a year ago. It looks great, and that's pretty much it. I don't use the bike. The boy doesn't use the boombox. So I took it for myself. My kids have never seen a cassette deck. I went to play them some Whitesnake, and nothing, no lights, no sound. Boy had left it unplugged and unused for weeks. I asked him to get the AC adapter, and he looked at me like I was speaking Latin. After he figured out what I was asking, his answer was very clear. He lost it. Here is the happy customer part. So at this point, due to my sons misplacing the power cord; (we looked for hours, no dice.) I reached out to GPO and explained that MY boombox was now effectively a big, silver, brick. I asked if they could refer me to an alternative AC adapter, or if I could obtain a replacement from them. One week later I received a package, and lo and behold, a new adapter from GPO. No cost for the replacement, no cost for shipping. I'm very happy. Happy with GPO. Happy with MY boombox. Happy with the sound. Still not so happy with my son. Or, my children's lack of appreciation for Whitesnakes, "Slow and Easy". Big fan of the GPO Brooklyn.

CD player doesn’t open. Can’t get CD out. Cassette doesn’t have plastic cover. I’d like a new one.

I tried disregarding the reviews and was happy at first when I got it but overtime I started to notice little things like all of my CD-R even ones i just burned started acting weird. just today I tried to play my Ice Cube CD barely any scratches wouldn't play past Track 3. It was skipping on other CDs that were new like my SZA Ctrl. Certain tapes wouldn't play so that was weird. Overall this boombox looks great and sounds great but is very cheaply made and your CD’s playing properly is hit or miss. Compare that to my old boombox thats from 2010 thats old that can play all of these fine its not worth it. GPO has potential, the presentation and sound down pact now they just have to avoid cutting corners and make their products with better quality. Overall skip this get another boombox!

I am in absolute love with this boombox. When it arrived and I opened the box it took my breath away. So gorgeous. The aesthetics are indeed a throwback to the 80s & breakdancing era but with a mordern edge to it. I love that the radio tuner is turn dial and not digital. It has so many player capabilities and comes with everything except a remote, which I would only want so I don't wear out the buttons when I play the USB option. The sound is clear and smooth and bass levels hit just right. And if you want louder you could always add speakers. Thank you so much to the designer of this boombox. It is exactly what I wanted and more.🤗

Lo básico, no sirve la casetera, está mal ajustada, tienes que meter una calza de papel para que se escuche....ridículo Y hasta ahora no he recibido reembolso alguno...

Wer hier ein Gerät mit einem Power Bass vermutet, sollte sich ganz schnell von diesem Gedanken verabschieden. Der Bass verschlimmbessert nur den Sound ... beste Einstellung (nach meiner persönlichen Erfahrung!) ist: volle Höhen und Bass auf Nullstellung. Aber das war auch nicht der Kaufgrund, sondern die Tatsache, dass ich von allen möglichen Geräten (Kassette, CD, Radio, Bluetooth, Plattenspieler oder anderen Mediaplayern) direkt auf einen USB-Stick aufnehmen kann!!! Oder auf Kassette. Ich nutze das hauptsächlich, indem ich über Bluetooth von meinem iPhone 8Plus über eine Radio-App (Radio.FM) Songs einspiele und sofort auf USB-Stick digitalisiert bekomme. Für meine Mutter habe ich z. B. ihre alten Kassetten digitalisiert und auf CD gebrannt. Als Nächstes werde ich meine Schallplatten "sichern". Bisher stand mir ein Bose ® SoundLink Mini für die reine Musikwiedergabe zur Verfügung. Toller Sound, natürlich nicht zu vergleichen. Aber Aufnehmen war nicht, nur Abspielen. Es ist wirklich eine Sache, vor einer schwarzen kleinen Box zu sitzen und seine Songs zu hören und eine ganz andere Sache, sich vor diesem toll aussehenden Gerät wohl zu fühlen. Meine Oldies klingen halt ganz anders, allein die Ausstrahlung dieser Boombox mit den flackernden Lichtern der LED-Anzeige erinnert an die alten Zeiten der Radiokassettenrecorder! Und ich mit meinen 58 Jahren weiß, wovon ich rede ... ich habe damals diese Atmosphäre geliebt, jetzt habe ich sie wieder! Deshalb von mir volle Punktzahl.

I'll start off by explaining my first purchase of the GPO Brooklyn Boombox from Amazon UK. I purchased the GPO Brooklyn and when I received it through Amazon the radio system worked good, but I then noticed that the Liquid crystal display on your left (the larger one) that shows the data was extremely dim. Looking directly at it you could not see the data, the luminosity from this LCD was barely visible so there was a fault with this LCD Display. This radio system otherwise worked very well on every setting. FM radio worked well but the tuning dial was a little loose on this one, but that was just a minor issue that I had no problem with. The DAB radio worked great for me and I had no problems with that. The CD player worked a charm also, It worked very well. The bluetooth worked as it should and I had no problems with that either. The tape-deck worked great I found, I was very impressed with the tape-deck in all honesty, it seemed robust and smooth to click with the press buttons. AUX worked as it should, USB for MP3 worked fantastic. So, with the problems I had was majorly with the LCD data display as it was so faded I could not read the data information, so a fault was there in that LCD Display, the CEO said they will be checking the LCD's with manufacturing, but the LCD problem I had is rare. I contacted GPO Retro - Official Manufacturer and explained my problems and they sent me out a brand new radio straight from the factory and fully tested. This new system replacement is the real deal, it is perfect in every way, not one problem at all and this is why I have left it so long to add my comment as I wanted to test it on every level for stability and it holds up very well. All in all, I love this radio system personally and I am very happy that 'GPO Retro' made a great effort to bring back the nostalgia of old with 21st century electronics technology with the GPO Brooklyn, It's a really beautiful music system, and it has everything. Connecting my smart-phone to the bluetooth to listen to thousands of music stations around the world is great, it really adds a new dimension of freedom and so many world music stations, and the audio is beautiful. Michael

Pues lo cierto es que es muy bonito estéticamente pero también tiene un precio desmesurado para esos acabados tan malos (mucho plástico y algunos fallos de diseño)

Le GPO Brooklyn Boombox est un radio-cassette portable reprenant le look rétro des radios Boombox des années 80, mais avec des fonctionnalités et une connectique moderne. La radio cassette portable GPO Brooklyn Boombox est ainsi équipée d'un lecteur cassette, d'un port USB, d'une platine CD, d'un tuner FM, DAD/DAB+, d'entrées lignes et d'un récepteur Bluetooth. Bonne nouvelle, les grosses piles du modèle original, ont été remplacées par une batterie rechargeable pour pouvoir se ballader à l'extérieur avec ou à brancher sur secteur à la maison. Bref, il est l'appareil à avoir ou à offrir à un nostalgique des années 1980 !