Sonos’ new Smartspeaker Roam costs 180 euros
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With the Roam, Sonos has introduced its smallest smartspeaker to date, which can also be used on the go. It can be used both via WLAN and Bluetooth at the same time and looks a bit reminiscent of a UE boom.
The Sonos Roam can be seen as a smaller, lighter and smarter variant of the Move announced in 2019. The new speaker will go on sale from April for 179 euros. It’s inside, it should be able to do that.
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Sonos Roam: the smart speaker for everywhere
The Sonos Roam in white. (Image: Sonos)
“With the Roam, we wanted to give our customers the opportunity to take the unique Sonos sound with them wherever they go,” explains Patrick Spence, CEO of Sonos. Compared to the first portable speaker, the three-kilogram Sonos Move (test), it weighs less than 500 grams and, at 168 by 62 by 60 millimeters, is roughly the size of a UE boom speaker.
The manufacturer is convinced of the sound quality: “For a small, mobile speaker, the Roam offers rich and authentic sound, thanks to its intelligent design. The Roam is unique in its category because it actually behaves like a perfectly tuned speaker and not like a megaphone, ”says Emily Lazar, Grammy-winning sound engineer and member of the Sonos sound board.
The Sonos Roam in black. (Image: Sonos)
For the sound, the IP76 waterproof housing, which is reinforced with silicone caps, contains two class H amplifiers, an adapted Racetrack midrange and a tweeter. Furthermore, a “highly efficient driver” is integrated, which is supposed to ensure higher performance and range. According to Sonos, the sound of the speaker can be customized using an equalizer. In order to optimize the sound to the respective room in which it is set up, it automatically adapts to the True Play function – as with the Move, no iPhone or iPad is required for this. It is supported both in the WLAN network and in Bluetooth operation.
Sonos Roam supports seamless playback via Bluetooth and WiFi
In contrast to the Move, the Roam can be operated with WLAN and Bluetooth at the same time. It seamlessly changes the connection as soon as its own WLAN network is within range, writes Sonos. On the way, the connection is automatically established via Bluetooth with a known smartphone.
Another new convenience function, according to Sonos, is the so-called “sound swap”: a longer press on the play / pause button on the speaker enables the music playback to be switched to the closest speaker in the Sonos system. This makes it easy to transfer the sound from room to room. The Roam also supports seamless Bluetooth streaming throughout the system: every speaker in the Sonos system can be grouped with the Roam via the S2 app. This is also not possible with the Move. While the Roam can be integrated into a loudspeaker group, it cannot be used as part of a surround system – this is only possible with the Sonos SL, for example. After all, two roam speakers can be combined to form a stereo pair. Not unimportant for Apple users: The Roam also supports Airplay 2.
The Sonos Roam in black. (Image: Sonos)
The Roam can not only be operated via the app and the classic Sonos buttons. Like many Sonos speakers, it supports the Alexa and Google Assistant voice assistants. Far-field microphones are integrated for a more precise recognition of the voice commands.
Sonos promises a battery life of ten hours with continuous music playback, in automatic sleep mode it should last up to ten days. The Roam can be charged via a USB-C cable and a 2.1 ampere USB power supply unit or a wireless Qi charger. The manufacturer itself offers a separate, wireless charger that costs just under 50 euros.
According to the manufacturer, the Roam is available in black (Shadow Black) and white (Lunar White) Sold price of 179 euros. The market launch will take place on April 20th.
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