Sonos Play: Third Sonos speaker wants to play outside

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At the beginning of spring, speaker manufacturer Sonos is pushing outdoors with a third model. The battery-powered Sonos Play can be controlled remotely from a home network via Bluetooth, and according to protection class IP67, it can also be used in environments where it is dusty and splashes. Near the house, it also receives streams via WLAN and seamlessly integrates into any speaker network of the manufacturer, optionally in continuous operation via a power outlet. This means the Play shares the application profile of the hybrid speakers Roam and Move.

Unlike them, the Play can also be grouped via Bluetooth instead of just via WLAN with compatible boxes. Sonically, it should be closer to the Move 2, as it shares similar sound hardware with it: two tweeters and one midwoofer are housed in both casings. The Play adds two passive bass radiators, which could make a greater impression in the lower frequency range.

The Play will start pre-sale on Tuesday at a price of 350 euros and go on sale at the end of March. The same timing applies to the Sonos Era 100 SL, a variant of the speaker priced at 200 euros without the SL suffix, which lacks microphones for voice assistants.

Sonos Play as the golden mean

The Sonos Play is aimed at those who find the mono sound of the smaller Roam 2 too centered and too thin (contains a tweeter and a midwoofer) but cannot reconcile the price of the previous luxury model, Move 2 (500 euros), with their budget. Whether the sound of the Play is sonically positioned below the Move according to its price or performs audibly better given the better bass equipment, a test will have to show.

Sonos keeps everything tried and tested when it comes to the battery. The manufacturer rates the runtime at 24 hours for both larger models. The newcomer recharges just like the two previous Move generations via the included inductive charging station or via the USB-C port on the back. This can also charge smartphones in reverse – like a power bank. In addition, the battery can still be replaced by the user.

On the other hand, Sonos has reinforced the weather protection on the Play compared to the Move 2 (IP56). Furthermore, the manufacturer attaches a carrying strap to the Play housing ex works, which facilitates transport during mobile use. New is the Bluetooth grouping. At the push of a button, the Play can be connected to three additional devices to form a group. This applies not only to other Plays, but also to Move 2 units, as Sonos emphasizes in a media briefing to heise online. Previous Bluetooth speakers from the brand were incapable of this, not even the Move 2.

In addition to Bluetooth, the Play can be fed like other Sonos speakers via Spotify Connect and AirPlay 2 from Apple devices or via the Sonos app, which offers interfaces to various music, radio, and podcast services. The built-in microphones automatically adjust the sound of the Play to the surrounding environment (Automatic Trueplay), if desired. They also respond to voice commands from Amazon Alexa and Sonos Voice Control.

Sonos Era 100 SL: Solid sign of life

The Sonos Era 100 SL has a few fewer tricks up its sleeve due to the lack of built-in microphones. Room calibration using Sonos' Trueplay method is done with the microphones of an iPhone or iPad. The speaker does not respond to Sonos Voice Control. Alexa commands are issued via smartphone or a separate smart speaker. This is not a problem if you use the SL as a rear speaker for a TV system or don't care about voice services anyway.

The sound (two tweeters, one midwoofer) and connections (Bluetooth, WLAN, jack connection via adapter) of the SL correspond to what the original version released in 2023 offers. This is a rather quiet sign of life for the product line that Sonos launched loudly with the Era 100 and Era 300. Fulfilling fan wishes for a larger 500 model seems to be a long way off. The surprising choice of name for the new Play model even suggests a return to the earlier Play speaker series.

Era breather

According to Jeff Derderian, Vice President Hardware, the manufacturer is taking a breather and regrouping after the previous trouble with the system split and more recent trouble with a botched app relaunch and subsequent change of CEO. They would rather not return to the Play series. The Era era is not over. “We are in a phase of reorientation. There are many ideas. There will definitely be more to come,” says Derderian.

The focus is currently on system maintenance rather than radical innovations, emphasizes the Sonos VP. However, he considers the most important software issue to be closed. “Our goal was to bring the app back to the old level of performance and reliability. We are there now.”

(afl)