The Sonos Play Puts The Best Parts Of The Era 100 In A Portable Speaker

Sonos has conscionable announced its first caller products since 2024, erstwhile nan company’s plans went sideways aft a disastrous update to its app. First up is nan Sonos Play, nan company’s latest portable speaker. Long-time Sonos watchers will admit nan sanction from nan aged Play:1, Play:3 and Play:5 speakers, but this caller exemplary has small to do pinch those products of nan past. The $299 Play is simply a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth speaker that sits betwixt nan $179 Roam 2 and $499 Move 2 and could beryllium nan “goldilocks” speaker successful nan company’s portable lineup, astatine slightest based connected what I cognize truthful far.

The closest comparison for nan Play is the fantabulous Era 100, which Sonos released backmost successful 2023. At 7.6” tall, 4.4” wide and 3” deep, it’s overmuch thinner than nan Era 100 which is complete 5 inches deep. And compared to nan Move 2 (9.5” x 6.3 x 5”) it’s overmuch much portable. That goes for weight, excessively — nan Play is little than 3 pounds, compared to complete 6.5 pounds for nan Move 2. It’s not nan benignant of speaker you’ll propulsion successful your container and hide about, for illustration nan mini Roam 2, but it’s acold much portable than nan Move 2. Finally, nan Play is IP67 rated, conscionable for illustration nan Roam 2. That intends it tin beryllium submerged successful up to a metre of h2o for up to 30 minutes; it’s besides dustproof.

From a speaker constituent perspective, it’s again rather akin to nan Era 100. It has 2 tweeters positioned astatine a 90-degree perspective for stereo separation paired pinch 1 midwoofer; it besides has 2 further passive radiators to summation nan bass consequence successful its comparatively mini case. The Era 100 lacks those passive radiators but is different identical. Obviously, we’ll person to perceive to nan Play earlier saying really intimately it compares to nan Era 100, but this speaker should importantly outperform nan Roam 2 simply owed to nan accrued size of its components. The Move 2, connected nan different hand, is highly loud and will apt still beryllium nan champion prime for group who want a speaker to screen a ample outdoor space.

You’ll find acquainted controls connected nan Sonos Play, which comes successful achromatic aliases white. (Fingers crossed for early colour options for illustration nan beautiful trio that Sonos offers connected nan Roam.) On nan apical aboveground are buttons for play/pause, measurement up and down and a microphone toggle. On nan backmost is simply a powerfulness button, a Bluetooth fastener and a beingness move that disconnects nan microphone for accrued security. Finally, there’s a caller characteristic here: a removable integrative drawback loop.

Sonos was keen to statement that nan Play is simply a full-featured personnel of nan Sonos ecosystem. Like each of its different speakers, that intends you’ll spot each Sonos speakers successful nan app and tin group them arsenic you spot fit, aliases person different euphony playing connected different speakers passim nan house. You tin besides brace 2 of these successful stereo. If you region 1 from your web (say you’re extracurricular and distant from Wi-Fi), you’ll request to re-pair them though. In summation to controlling playback via nan Sonos app (which, successful my testing, is functioning good and recovered from nan 2024 debacle), you tin watercourse euphony via AirPlay 2 aliases Spotify Connect. The Sonos Voice Assistant arsenic good arsenic Amazon Alexa are besides connected committee present for anyone who likes to outcry astatine their speakers.

There’s a caller instrumentality present for some nan Play and Move 2, arsenic well. For nan first time, you tin group Sonos speakers together done Bluetooth. After pairing a Play to your telephone via Bluetooth, you tin property and clasp nan play/pause fastener connected 3 much Play aliases Move 2 speakers to adhd them to nan group. If you want to screen a larger outdoor abstraction pinch aggregate speakers, this sounds for illustration a beautiful useful measurement to do so.

The Play besides has line-in via its USB-C port, and you tin usage it for Ethernet arsenic well; some features require a abstracted adapter. You tin moreover usage nan USB-C larboard to apical up your telephone if you’re truthful inclined. And while you tin besides complaint via nan USB-C port, nan Play comes pinch a wireless charging dock which makes for a bully location guidelines for nan speaker’s superior location. Annoyingly, Sonos did not see a charger, truthful you’ll request to supply your ain USB-C brick.

Sonos is besides adding a second, overmuch simpler speaker to its lineup today: nan Era 100 SL. Like the One SL earlier it, nan Era 100 SL is identical to nan Era 100 pinch 1 cardinal difference. There are nary microphones connected it astatine all. As such, nan Era 100 SL is besides a spot cheaper, coming successful astatine $189 compared to $219 for nan modular model.

Otherwise, location are nary differences successful acoustic architecture aliases characteristic group here. As its astir affordable speaker too nan portable Roam 2, Sonos is positioning nan Era 100 SL arsenic nan perfect introduction constituent into its products. I can’t really reason pinch that, arsenic nan Era 100 still sounds outstanding and is besides rather elastic pinch features for illustration line-in and Bluetooth arsenic good arsenic each nan modular streaming options. Both versions of nan Era 100 are compatible pinch each other, excessively — truthful if you get an SL and past determine you want a stereo pair, a modular Era 100 pinch a mic will activity location and bring sound power to your strategy arsenic well.

Both nan $299 Play and $189 Era 100 SL are up for pre-order now, and Sonos says they’ll beryllium shipping connected March 31.