Sonos' collaboration with IKEA continues to flirt at the odder edges of the smart home, and the new IKEA Symfonisk table lamp speaker (Gen 2) is a perfect example. Like the original, launched back in 2019, it's a Sonos speaker and an IKEA lamp in the same footprint, combined with the relative affordability the Swedish furniture-maker is infamous for.
Sonos' original Beam wowed with just how much home theater audio it packed into its tiny footprint, and now the Beam (Gen 2) is adding Dolby Atmos to the mix. A little more expensive at $449, and a lot smarter inside, this new Beam sees Sonos double-down on targeting an audience that wants surround sound but doesn't want to be surrounded by speakers. There, with some qualifications, the surreptitious soundbar succeeds.
IKEA and Sonos have revealed a new version of their Symfonisk lamp speaker, upgrading it with more flexibility around design and more choices for bases and shades. The original Symfonisk table lamp was launched in the first wave of Sonos and IKEA's collaboration back in 2019, effectively combining a connected speaker in the base with a simple lamp on top.
Sonos has revealed its newest soundbar, with the next-generation Beam (Gen 2) keeping the compact footprint but adding Dolby Atmos support and more. The updated version follows on from the larger Sonos Arc, with HDMI eARC support and 3D audio from a single box, though at a much more attainable price.
More than a year ago, speaker company Sonos filed a lawsuit against Google, seeking to have certain Google products blocked from import into the US over alleged patent infringement. Fast-forward several months and a preliminary finding on the matter has been revealed: the ITC has sided with Sonos, but this is only an initial decision.
Sonos is exploring the potential of its own voice assistant, offering an alternative to Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant, with one big advantage over its existing voice control feature. Sonos speakers launched in the past few years have distinguished themselves by including support for either Google or Amazon's voice tech, user-selectable rather than preconfigured like most smart speakers.
For a while it seemed like IKEA and Sonos' Symfonisk collaboration had stalled, but the new Symfonisk Picture Frame is a reminder that, much like artwork, unusual tech can take time to create. Packaging a connected Sonos speaker into a piece of wall art, it bypasses the traditional aesthetic associated with home audio for something that - depending on your decor - will either be more or less surreptitious than anything else from Sonos' line-up.
IKEA's SYMFONISK Picture Frame speaker has arrived, and if you didn't know it hid wireless music talents behind the abstract art, you'd be forgiven for not realizing Sonos' involvement. Third addition to the SYMFONISK range, the new Picture Frame speaker joins the Bookshelf Speaker and Table Lamp Speaker as some of the most affordable ways to add Sonos to your home.
Sonos and IKEA have returned with another surprisingly affordable speaker, but the SYMFONISK Picture Frame hides its music in plain sight. In the process it has added a new element of design to the partnership though, as excited as I am for more attainable connected speakers, I can't help but feel that neither company has quite closed the loop on this third product.
Sonos and IKEA have revealed their latest SYMFONISK speaker, and while we may have already seen the new wall-mounted model there are some key details the two companies have confirmed today. The picture frame style is the speaker most obviously intended to be wall-mounted that we've seen from Sonos or IKEA so far, aiming to blur the distinction between a piece of art and a piece of music hardware.
Swedish furniture brand IKEA enjoys both popularity and notoriety of its minimalist design, DIY assembly, and, more recently, integration with IoT technologies. Unlike makers of smart home products, IKEA incorporates Internet-connected features in tasteful and sometimes bizarre ways. Its newest attempt might be to sell you an IKEA Symfonisk picture frame that isn't really a picture frame but more like an art deco that happens to house an invisible Sonos speaker inside the frame.
Sonos may be looking smaller for an upcoming audio product launch, with a new Sonos earbuds design seemingly previewed by US patent filings. The audio company has recently expanded its portfolio, adding a new and more affordable point of entry to its streaming audio ecosystem in addition to a new automotive partnership.