Sonos Roam price, release date, rumors, and leaks

Sonos Roam price, release date, rumors, and leaks
Sonos is one of the most well-known audio companies in the world and seems to be ready to launch a new portable Bluetooth speaker after details of the so-called Sonos Roam leaked. Using an online source that spoke to The Verge, the Sonos Roam will be available on April 20 for €169 (around €120 / AU €220) - and with a Sonos launch event on March 9, we don't have to go back. wait. too long to see if these claims are legitimate. Along with the price and release date, the source also revealed press photos of the new Sonos portable speaker, corroborating previous reports that the brand is considering releasing a smaller, cheaper version of the Sonos Move, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. . Connectivity A subsequent leak revealed even more details about the upcoming smart speaker, including some key features. Meanwhile, an earlier Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filing spotted by The Verge described a device that uses a wireless charging dock, but requires less power than the company's Move speaker. We've known for some time that Sonos is launching a new product this month. Sonos CEO Patrick Spence revealed during an investor call that the brand will launch a new product in March, and while we initially thought it might be the first Sonos headphone, everything points to a Sonos Roam announcement on March 9. While the company has yet to confirm details of Sonos' next speaker, there are a few features we can glean from the latest leaks and the FCC filing, plus a lot we'd like to see follow up from Sonos. . -aloft.

Come to the point

Sonos Roam release date

Sonos has yet to confirm the existence of a new wireless speaker, but a recent leak from someone with "first-hand knowledge" of Sonos Roam suggests it will launch on April 20, 2021. We expect to hear an announcement from Sonos before then, after the CEO of the company revealed that a new product will arrive in March. This is according to a conference call between Spence and investors. In the call, which was transcribed by Seeking Alpha, Spence said the company remains committed to launching "at least two new products per year" and that "we are excited to introduce our new product next month." The FCC's application for a new Sonos speaker also suggests that a release date may be imminent. Details of the original Sonos Move leaked shortly after its FCC filing (model number S17) was discovered, so the new Sonos Roam (S27) could follow a similar path.

Sonos Roam Price

According to the source behind the latest leaks, the Sonos Roam will cost $169 (around $120 / AU$220). While the sticker price is still a bit steep for a portable Bluetooth speaker, the Sonos Roam might actually be the cheapest Sonos speaker on the market, beating out the $179/AU$179 Sonos One SL. It's also cheaper than Sonos' first portable smart speaker, the Sonos Move, which costs $269 / £399 / AU$399, a price that puts it firmly at the top of the Bluetooth speaker market; but it wins that award with its array of Sonos intelligence and powerful audio. Sonos products are generally very expensive, and while this is often justified due to their fantastic audio performance and multi-room capabilities, it means that joining the corporate ecosystem is out of reach for many. It's a shame that the Sonos Roam is likely to remain quite expensive, but if it doubles as both a smart speaker and a Bluetooth speaker, it could still represent excellent value for money.

Exclusive: It's Sonos Roam, available in April for €169 https://t.co/7NGKfKS4Jb pic.twitter.com/FIBEjW3S8TM March 4, 2021 Learn more

Sonos Roam design

The Sonos Roam will apparently be available in two colors (black and white), like the company's other products. It should be much smaller than Sonos' previous portable Bluetooth speaker, the Sonos Move, with a (sort of) cylindrical construction reminiscent of the Ultimate Ears Boom 2. How big will it be? According to The Verge's report, the Sonos Roam measures 6.5 x 2.5 x 2.5 inches and weighs around 1 pound, slightly resembling a stage monitor speaker thanks to its rounded triangular shape. At the top of the speaker is a control panel with buttons for adjusting your music playback, which appears to be made of a rubbery material. While it's hard to say for sure from the photos alone, it could indicate that the speaker will come with a waterproofing (something the report confirms). The original Sonos Move has an IP56 rating, which means it can withstand a layer of sand or dust, as well as a drop in a swimming pool, but upgrading it to an IP67 rating for the Sonos Roam in would be a serious contender for the waterproof speakers. of water. . like the UE Wonderboom 2 and JBL Flip 5. The leaks we've seen so far suggest that the Roam is fully protected against water and dust. There doesn't appear to be a carrying handle, which could lead to portability issues, though if the Sonos Roam is as light and compact as the report suggests, that won't be much of a problem.

New Sonos Speaker Features

Like the Move, it seems the Sonos Roam can connect to your Wi-Fi network when you're at home, work like any other regular Sonos speaker, and when you're out and about and pair with your phone, just like a regular phone. Bluetooth speaker. However, the Sonos Roam is said to be able to work over both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, so you could transfer playback to your wired Sonos system when you get home, using a feature ostensibly called Sound Swap. Another popular feature is the ability to control an entire Sonos Wi-Fi system over Bluetooth via Roam, so you can connect to all your speakers via Bluetooth, without the need for the Sonos app. The Sonos Roam would also have the same Auto TruePlay functionality as the Sonos Move, so you'll be able to adjust its audio output according to the acoustics of the room you're in. Additionally, the speaker will be completely waterproof and will last up to 10 hours per charge, according to The Verge. When it's time to charge, the Sonos Roam will ship with a charging cable inside the case, but the source claims a separate charging station will also be available to purchase for €49 (around $35). €/AU€60) . Test charts in the FCC filing show that the speaker will come with a wireless charging station and offer Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) connectivity. This means that it will be the first speaker to support Wi-Fi 5. The presentation also reveals that the new speaker will consume less power than the Sonos Move, confirming that it will be smaller. Making a smaller version of the Sonos Move makes sense. At nearly 3kg, while the current Move speaker can be easily lifted, you won't want to carry it around for long. However, size is a necessity due to the large speaker magnets that power the sound, and it's a fair trade to ensure audio quality is delivered. You can expect a smaller version to include smaller drivers and perhaps less powerful sound as a result.

JBL Flip 5 bluetooth speaker

The new Sonos speaker could be a rival to the JBL Flip 5 (pictured). (Image credit: JBL)

Sonos Roam: what we want to see

While the details of the new Sonos speaker are still unclear, we can still come up with a list of some features we'd like to see from the Sonos Move successor. Better resistance to dust and water. For starters, we'd be happy with an improvement in the water and dust resistance rating, especially if the new speaker is going to be more portable than its predecessor. The original Sonos Move has an IP56 rating, which means it can withstand a layer of sand or dust, as well as being dropped in a pool. Raising it to an IP67 rating would make it a serious contender for waterproof speakers like the UE Wonderboom 2 and JBL Flip 5. Home theater compatibility We'd also like to see a new Sonos speaker that can be used as part of a system home theater, especially if it is cheaper. It's not possible to use two Sonos Move speakers as rear channels for your system, which Sonos says is due to timing issues and the risk of a directional soundtrack losing focus if the speakers are placed incorrectly in a room. It's a shame, because having a wireless speaker that's portable and can be used to boost your TV's sound is certainly compelling, and we'd have thought Sonos' Trueplay technology, which uses built-in accelerometers to detect movement, might be able to address this. . Bluetooth 5 upgrade Another feature we would welcome is an upgrade to Bluetooth 5, which would allow for pairing over longer distances and a more stable connection. The current Sonos Move only supports Bluetooth 4.2, which is now a bit outdated. More Color Options Finally, we'd like to see a few more color options for the new Sonos speaker. The launch of a mini portable speaker is a great opportunity for Sonos to play around with different color palettes and finishes, though based on the company's preference to date for a black and white aesthetic, we're not sure that's likely. and the recent The Verge Report suggests that the Sonos Roam will also stick to this color scheme. Today's best deals on the Sonos Arc, Sonos Move, Sonos One and Sonos Beam Soundbar

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