Sonos, the specialist for wireless speakers, now wants to be in light luggage, in the backpack for example or in the picnic basket. An outdoor model of the brand has been around for some time. It’s called Move, but it’s not really mobile. Its 3 kilograms of live weight on the carrying handle are more suitable for movement radii within the limits of the home plot. The new one, called Roam, should go further into life. It weighs just 430 grams and measures just under 17 centimeters in length, so it can compete in these disciplines with many Bluetooth speakers that are on the move for fresh air use.
The small Sonos costs 179 euros, so significantly more than many other Bluetooth models, but it can also much more. His name indicates it. For the roam, Bluetooth is only one of the possible radio transmission routes. If it comes close to the home Wi-Fi, it automatically connects to this radio network and, if other Sonos models also appear in the household, becomes part of a multi-room network. The elegant network change also works the other way around as soon as the speaker leaves the house.
The roam has the shape of a triangular column with rounded edges, a cover with countless fine holes lets the sound outwards. The speaker can play music standing or lying down. Rubberized feet and a non-slip floor area give support. Sonos also makes the control surface at the head end from the same material. Below are the usual elements: push buttons for volume, to start or interrupt the music program, and to mute the built-in microphone that receives spoken text for the control systems of Amazon and Google. The soft interfaces protect against dust and splashing water. The device is even supposed to survive a fall into the pool. However, we have spared him this test.
