Sonos launches new portable speaker called Sonos Play

Sonos, a brand known for pricy but good speakers (and other audio equipment), has mostly been in the spotlight recently due to its botched mobile app, which came out in July 2024 and was so bad that it took the company many months to fix.

Now, finally, Sonos is back to what it does best: Producing high quality speakers (amazingly, the company hasn't launched any speakers since May 2024, if you don't count the Sonos Arc Ultra soundbar). Even better, Sonos' new speakers won't burn too big of a hole in your pocket.

The first one on the menu is Sonos Play, a portable speaker that sits in between Sonos' ultra-portable Roam 2, and the hefty Move 2. Having reviewed the Move 2, I can tell you that something like Play was sorely needed; as great as it sounds, the Move 2 isn't all that portable.

Sonos Play is a portable, waterproof speaker with 24-hour battery life, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi support, a line-in jack, button controls, and a voice assistant. It offers stereo sound thanks to its dual, angled tweeters, and two bass radiators taking care of the lower sound frequencies. It also weighs 1.3 kilograms; this doesn't make it the lightest portable speaker out there, but it's a lot better than Move 2's 3 kilograms.

The other new Sonos speaker is called the Sonos Era 100 SL, and it's almost the new entry-level device in Sonos' lineup. I say almost, because at $189 it's still $10 pricier than the portable Sonos Roam 2, but it should technically offer more in terms of sound.

The Era 100 SL is a cheaper version of the Sonos Era 100, which remains a part of Sonos' lineup. It also has stereo sound, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support, a line-in connector, and on speaker controls, but it lacks voice control. Both speakers look very similar and have dual tweeters and a woofer, so you can expect pretty much the same performance. The Era 100 SL is, simply put, the Era 100 for people who don't need voice control.

Sonos Play will become available on March 31 with a price tag of $299 (€349 in Europe). The Sonos Era 100 SL is coming on March 26 for $189 (€199 in Europe).