Sonos Era 300 and Era 100 Smart Speakers Revealed in Marketing Images

Popular speaker company Sonos is preparing to launch new high-end "Era" smart speakers to compete with Apple's HomePod range, and The Verge has obtained marketing images of the products as well as some rough pricing information ahead of their release next month.

sonos era300white
The Era 300, shown in the picture above, will be the new Sonos flagship speaker, designed to highlight music in spatial audio. Other features will include USB-C line-in, Wi-Fi 6 support, Bluetooth playback, and AirPlay 2 support. The Verge's Chris Welch says the Era 300 is expected to be priced "in the ballpark of $450."

The size of the Era 300 is said to fall in between the Sonos One and Sonos Five, and includes a total of six drivers that direct sound forward, left, right, and up. A stereo pair of Era 300s, when used with either the Arc or second-generation Beam, will deliver rearward surround sound including upward-firing audio.

sonos era300atmos

Era 300 can be stereo paired as rear surrounds with the Sonos Arc and Beam (Gen 2)

Despite the Era 300 being designed for spatial audio, the Dolby Atmos songs in the Apple Music catalog are "unlikely to be supported at this time," according to Welch, which suggests that Apple and Sonos have yet to reach an agreement. "This could always change in the coming weeks or by the time the Era 300 hits shelves," he adds.

The Era 100, shown below, has a rounder shape and won't come with upward-firing drivers, as it's not geared for spatial audio like the other product. Welch calls the new speaker "an evolved Sonos One with (ideally) better performance," thanks to the addition of a second tweeter for true stereo sound and an enlarged mid-woofer for more bass.

era100white
Like the other new speaker, the Era 100 features Wi-Fi streaming, ‌AirPlay‌ 2, Bluetooth, and USB-C. The Era 100 is expected to cost around $250 and is likely to replace the Sonos One, which currently sells for $219.

Both speakers are expected to include Sonos Voice Control and Amazon Alexa voice assistants, but support for Google Assistant may be lacking. Welch says Sonos will separately sell a line-in adapter for USB-C audio and a "combo adapter" for plugging in over Ethernet, as there's no built-in jack on either speaker.

sonos era100black

Sonos Era 100 in stereo pair connected to turntable via line in

Sonos has reportedly set a late March release schedule for both speakers, which will be available in white and black colors, while the company is also said to be planning to launch a device in a brand new product category by the end of the year.

Tag: Sonos

Top Rated Comments

MakeAppleAwesomeAgain Avatar
8 months ago
Wi-Fi 6? I thought Apple had just told us Wi-Fi 4 is great for ‘smart’ speakers because it allows them to target exactly what works best in the entire system. Crazy folks at Sonos for including Wi-Fi 6!
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
User 6502 Avatar
8 months ago

Sorry Sonos we’re all in HomePod now.
No we aren’t.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nozuka Avatar
8 months ago
Era 300 look pretty stupid as rear surrounds on these stands...
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nozuka Avatar
8 months ago

Bit annoyed that the Era 300 will be needed for Atmos surround functionality with the Arc. Pushes the cost of a 5.1.4 system through the roof!
Not sure what you mean. The Arc has Atmos support even alone. You can pair it with a One or Ikea speaker and it won't loose that function.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
H.E. Pennypacker Avatar
8 months ago
Say what you will about Sonos but there isn’t an easier system to set up, use, and the sounds is great. Just because it’s not an Apple product doesn't mean it sucks.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chiromac81 Avatar
8 months ago

Still think Sonos gear is massively overrated and overpriced, in the same way Bose is.

My parents got an LG sound bar (with bass unit and two satellite speakers, all wireless) for 1/3 of the cost of the Sonos equivalent offering. Excellent hardware quality and the sound is top-notch.
Can thier LG soundbar play with rear surrounds and a sub and also play the same audio that's playing in another room??

Didn't think so
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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