Sonos replaces the One, adds a spatial audio speaker to lineup | Tech Ology

The Sonos One wasn’t damaged, however that doesn’t imply the corporate’s is above fixing it. Over two generations and some variants, the compact speaker has develop into one of many firm’s hottest. Actually, it’s been an enormous win for a agency whose portfolio may give off a whiff of inaccessibility, in comparison with different linked dwelling audio system.

It sounds nice at a $179 worth level, and has accordingly develop into a well-liked alternative for dwelling sound techniques, eating places and retail shops. However six years after the unique Sonos One launch, the corporate is successfully calling an finish of life to the product to make manner for the Period 100. The older mannequin will stick round for a bit, nonetheless, as a result of — very similar to the brand new HomePods — the brand new speaker isn’t backward appropriate with its predecessor, when it comes to making a stereo pair.

Like Apple, Sonos says variations in {hardware} make the 2 techniques uneven and subsequently incompatible, when it comes to pairing. The upshot (or, slightly, one of many upshots), is that — not like the Sonos One — the Period 100 does stereo as a standalone. That’s a a lot welcome breakthrough, clearly.

The brand new speaker sports activities a pair of angled tweeters and a bigger mid-woofer than its predecessor. The on-board microphones are used for echo canceling, voice management and Trueplay tuning, which measures the structure of a room and distance from a wall to optimize the sound. There’s additionally a bodily change on the gadget to close off energy to the mic, so it’s not listening whenever you don’t need it to be.

The on-board LED gentle will let you understand if the mic is on and provide up connection and mute standing. Buttons on prime of the system embrace play/pause, skip, replay, voice assistant mute and the power to pair or unpair units. Across the rear is a connector that can be utilized as an auxiliary line or ethernet port with the fitting adapter.

At 7.18 x 4.72 x 5.14 inches, the Period 100 is a bit bigger than the Sonos One (6.36 x 4.69 x 4.69 ) in all dimensions. At 4.44 kilos, it’s additionally 0.36 kilos heavier. That’s in all probability to be anticipated, given the upgraded internals right here. Apart from, I’d say that also qualifies the system as “compact.” Evaluate that to the second-gen HomePod’s 6.6-inch peak and 5.60-inch diameter, for instance.

The Period 100 is joined by the Period 300, Sonos’ first foray into spatial audio. I’ve expressed some skepticism on the function up to now. You may learn an interview I did with Sonos CEO Patrick Spence, the place we talk about the tech in a bit extra depth, together with why the corporate determined solely certainly one of its two new audio system would function it.

I requested a bit about spatial audio’s branding drawback, and whether or not being related to headphone monitoring is working in opposition to the tech. He instructed me, partly:

As you’ve skilled [the speaker], it’s completely different than a headphone expertise, the place you’re transferring your head and perhaps you’ve obtained the display screen over right here. There are some issues that I believe have delighted individuals but in addition freaked out some individuals, when it comes to that have with headphones. It’s somewhat bit extra gimmicky. Spatial out loud is basically about filling the room and making you are feeling such as you’re on the middle of it. The appropriate use of spatial is basically out loud, versus headphones.

I additionally assume, as recording engineers and artists began to be taught what Spatial is all about, a few of the early mixes weren’t nice, when it comes to lacking issues like vocals or lacking a middle. Folks can have tried that and never had an important expertise. I might encourage these individuals to provide it one other pay attention.

It’s true that a variety of trendy music is being blended with spatial audio in thoughts, and numerous streaming providers, together with Apple and Amazon Music, are embracing it (Spotify can’t actually be bothered, it appears). The Period 300 appears to be like completely different from the 100 exactly as a result of its embrace of the know-how. The speaker sports activities six amplifiers pointed in several instructions to accommodate that sense of sound in three-dimensions.

There are 4 tweeters (ahead, two sides and up) and two woofers. Just like the 100, it’s appropriate with Wi-Fi 6 (thoughts, the HomePod is at present caught on Wi-Fi 4 as a result of chip limitations), in addition to Bluetooth 5. Each audio system are additionally appropriate with AirPlay 2 to stream content material from iOS units operating 11.4 or later. The 300 is bigger than the 100 at 6.30 x 10..24 x 7.28 inches and greater than twice as heavy, weighing in at 9.85 kilos.

Each techniques have an eye fixed on sustainability, with diminished energy consumption and repurposed supplies (the packaging can be made up of absolutely recycled paper). Simply in time for lots of proper to restore laws, they’re each designed to be extra repairable, due largely to a discount of adhesives.

Spence once more:

After we had been first bringing out our merchandise 20 years in the past, we had been like, “how do you construct this stuff so that they’ll make the sound you need?” So we had to make use of issues like adhesives. We’ve been capable of give you methods and innovations that enable us to disassemble these merchandise. It comes into our considering extra broadly about what we’re constructing and the way you reside as much as the regulation of the land, however even earlier than that, we had been already beginning to use recycled supplies. We had been already beginning to use issues that enable it to be extra simply repaired.

The Period 100 and 300 begin transport on March 28, priced at $249 and $449, respectively.