The Sonos Speaker Blew Me Away With Audio Quality I've Yet To Hear From A Wi-fi Model

pros and cons

Pros

• Seamless Sonos integration
• Deep, punchy sound
• Loud for its size

Cons

• More costly than competitors
• Best if you person astatine slightest 1 different Sonos product

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The Sonos hardware lineup has been mostly stagnant since nan institution released its Arc Ultra soundbar successful precocious 2024, focusing connected fixing its app and improving instrumentality support. Stepping backmost into nan limelight, it announced nan Sonos Play, a portable speaker that sits betwixt nan ultra-portable Roam 2 and nan larger Move 2. 

Also: The champion Bluetooth speakers of 2026: Expert tested and reviewed

The Play speaker performs amended astatine location than nan Roam 2, but it's amended suited for adventures beyond your beforehand doorway than nan Move 2, and pinch a $300 value tag, it's Sonos' astir bang-for-your-buck speaker successful nan existent lineup. 

I had 2 awesome questions while testing this speaker: "Does nan Play's versatility make it a jack of each trades, yet a maestro of none?" and "How palatable will this speaker beryllium to those some acquainted and unfamiliar pinch nan Sonos ecosystem?"

That's a batch of bass

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The Play speaker features 2 tweeters for higher frequencies, specified arsenic a snare, 1 midwoofer for midrange frequencies, wherever vocals typically live. There are besides 2 force-canceling passive radiators for pronouncing little frequencies. The passive radiators are nan prima of nan Play speaker's show, arsenic they thief nan speaker nutrient bigger bass, and their mirrored placement helps minimize vibrations.

Naturally, I had to max retired nan Play's volume, and its sound is impressively large for its size. The passive radiators get to difficult activity astatine large volumes, and if you clasp your manus to nan speaker grille, you tin consciousness nan aerial moving successful nan speaker to reproduce those heavy frequencies. Vibrations are minimal, making nan Play a awesome tabletop speaker for indoor countertops and outdoor tables, ensuring its large bass consequence doesn't shingle a cup into spilling over.

Also: Two years later, should you still bargain nan Sonos Ace? Why my reply is simply a resounding yes

Big bass ever brings immoderate distortion astatine precocious volumes, and nan Play speaker is nary exception. At precocious volumes, higher frequencies, inheritance vocals, and harmonies are harder to decipher, but main vocals and bass stay beforehand and center. However, this sound floor plan tin activity good for outdoor gatherings, arsenic you're little apt to beryllium listening critically and request heavier, louder bass to mitigate nan sound nonaccomplishment successful an unfastened area. Bring nan Play to a cookout this summer, and I guarantee you'll beryllium nan astir celebrated personification there.

Indoors astatine little volumes, you tin return advantage of Sonos' signature easy-on-the-ears, pleasant, nosy sound. It's a awesome companion successful a location agency aliases connected nan countertop successful nan kitchen, particularly if you're a budding location chef/popstar connected nan weekends for illustration me.

Fits correct into (or extracurricular of) nan app

Jada Jones/ZDNET

Like galore Sonos products, nan Play speaker's setup is incredibly easy and fits correct into your system. If you person different Sonos speakers aliases soundbars, you tin sync nan Play pinch their audio via Wi-Fi, brace 2 Play speakers for stereo, aliases quickly modulation nan euphony crossed rooms. The Play ushered successful Sonos' caller Bluetooth grouping feature, which lets you sync respective Move 2 and Play speakers for a listening party. 

If you're astatine location and connected to Wi-Fi, you tin watercourse euphony to nan Play straight from nan Sonos app, aliases via AirPlay aliases Spotify Connect. The Play speaker supports Apple's ALAC compressed lossless codec astatine 24-bit/48 kHz via AirPlay and wrong nan Sonos app.

Also: Should you bargain a Sonos aliases Samsung sound system? I compared some brands to find out

If you person a 3.5mm-to-USB-C adapter, you tin unlock nan Play's in-line capabilities and link to a compatible device, specified arsenic a turntable. Sonos sound power is connected deck, and you tin unopen disconnected nan Play's microphones pinch a move connected nan back. If you support nan microphones on, Automatic Trueplay tunes nan Play's sound to equilibrium nan speaker's output arsenic you move betwixt environments. 

The USB-C larboard connected nan backmost allows for nonstop charging of nan speaker, aliases you tin plug your telephone into it for reverse USB-C charging. The Play speaker has respective features that make it suitable for outdoor use, including an IP67 particulate and waterproof rating. If it accidentally topples complete into a pool, it'll beryllium fine, but you'll want to retrieve it quickly. 

If you get nan speaker successful Black, you'll want to springiness it a bully cleaning erstwhile it's backmost inside, since nan matte coating attracts fingerprints and scuffs. 

The million-dollar answers

Jada Jones/ZDNET

Earlier, I said I group retired to spot if nan Sonos Play was a jack of each trades, yet a maestro of none. The truth is that nan Sonos Play masters versatility, combining nan champion parts of Sonos' Wi-Fi-enabled streaming features pinch nan state to return it anyplace pinch you, acknowledgment to Bluetooth. It's much sonically equipped than nan Roam 2, and easier to fresh successful your manus than nan Move 2.

Also: How to amended your Sonos soundbar's audio capacity - 3 easy and free ways

If you're already wrong nan Sonos ecosystem and want a portable speaker that's a hybrid of nan Roam 2 and Move 2, nan Play speaker is precisely that. If you're extracurricular nan Sonos ecosystem and want a comparatively debased value of introduction (low for Sonos, astatine least), nan Play's portability intends you won't beryllium wholly locked into nan company's ecosystem, person room to expand, and aren't tethered to an outlet. 

ZDNET's buying advice

The Sonos Play marks a notable return to nan marketplace from Sonos, offering immoderate of its lineup's champion features successful an easy portable frame. To comparison it to different speaker, it offers nan aforesaid durability and reverse USB-C charging capabilities arsenic nan Bose SoundLink Plus, pinch much artillery life and Wi-Fi compatibility. 

I don't typically deliberation of Sonos arsenic a Bluetooth speaker company, and contempt nan much premium Move 2, nan Play is nan amended option. The Move 2 is astir double nan size of nan Play, and if you're consenting to salary $499 for a hard-to-move Sonos speaker, you mightiness arsenic good bargain an Era 300.