Sonos is known for its high-quality home speakers, but according to some new leaks, the company is getting ready to dive into the portable Bluetooth speaker market too.
An image of what's said to be the Sonos portable Bluetooth speaker has leaked out. The device was seen passing through the FCC recently, and as noted by The Verge, Sonos describes it as "a high-performance wireless speaker and part of the Sonos sound system. The device's primary function will be for streaming with Wi-Fi, but also features Bluetooth audio streaming and Bluetooth Low Energy, used for simplified setup."
Shortly after the FCC filing was spotted, an actual photo of the upcoming Sonos speaker was shared by Zatz Not Funny! that shows a cylindrical speaker with Sonos branding. More details about the speaker were then revealed by a source speaker to The Verge, including the news that it'll support Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant like the Sonos One. The device charges on a base station, but when away, you can plug it in via USB-C to recharge it.
The portable Sonos speaker is also said to have an integrated handle to help you carry it, which should be helpful since it's said to be both taller and wider than the Sonos One. For reference, the Sonos One is 6.36 x 4.69 x 4.69 inches (161.45 x 119.7 x 119.7mm). It's said that the speaker will support Apple AirPlay 2 and work like any other Sonos speaker in Wi-Fi mode.
When you flip the switch on the back to go into Bluetooth mode, though, you won't be able to use the Sonos app and the speaker will work like any regular Bluetooth speaker. Hands-free voice commands through Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are unavailable in Bluetooth mode.
One other notable feature of this portable Sonos speaker is Auto Trueplay. Sonos speakers include a feature called Trueplay that lets you tune your speaker by walking around your room with your phone's microphone pointed toward the speaker. With Auto Trueplay, though, this Sonos speaker will use its built-in voice microphones to tune itself. This feature will allow the speaker to retune itself for a new environment when you move it.
Sonos is one of the best-known speaker companies, but so far it's avoided making a portable Bluetooth speaker, which is a popular accessory with smartphone owners. Now it looks like Sonos is finally ready to dive into the portable speaker market. That's exciting news because more choice is always a good thing, and Sonos is known for quality speakers, so it'll be good to have another high-quality Bluetooth speaker on the market.
Sonos is hosting media briefings on August 26 and 27, so it's possible that this portable Sonos speaker will be announced around that time.