Sonos Considered a MagSafe Speaker for iPhone, But Scrapped It

Sonos, known for its range of high-end speakers, considered developing a speaker that would connect to the iPhone via MagSafe, reports The Verge.

magsafe battery pack on iphone
Engineers at the company prototyped a tiny, iPhone-compatible speaker that would attach directly to the device, with music that would play over a Bluetooth connection. According to The Verge, the prototype speaker had a square shape, and it was similar to the look of Apple's now-discontinued MagSafe Battery Pack, but thicker.

Some employees thought the speaker product would resonate with Gen Z, and expected it to deliver good sound regardless of the compact size. Sonos ended up scrapping the project, though, due to "technical limitations, questionable appeal, and a limited target market."

Sonos has been working to expand its product lineup. Last year, Sonos introduced the Sonos Ace headphones that compete with high-end headphones like the AirPods Max, and later this year, it is rumored to be planning to introduce a set-top box similar to the Apple TV.

Popular Stories

imac video apple feature

Apple Unveils First New Products of 2026

Monday January 26, 2026 1:55 pm PST by
Apple today introduced its first two physical products of 2026: a second-generation AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch. Read our coverage of each announcement to learn more:Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More Apple Introduces New Black Unity Apple Watch BandBoth the new AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided...
iPhone 5s

iPhone 5s Gets New Software Update 13 Years After Launch

Monday January 26, 2026 3:56 pm PST by
Alongside iOS 26.2.1, Apple today released an updated version of iOS 12 for devices that are still running that operating system update, eight years after the software was first released. iOS 12.5.8 is available for the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 6, meaning Apple is continuing to support these devices for 13 and 12 years after launch, respectively. The iPhone 5s came out in September 2013,...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Apple Creator Studio

Apple's Next Launch is Today

Tuesday January 27, 2026 2:39 pm PST by
Update: Apple Creator Studio is now available. Apple Creator Studio launches this Wednesday, January 28. The all-in-one subscription provides access to the Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor, and MainStage apps, with U.S. pricing set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year. A subscription to Apple Creator Studio also unlocks "intelligent features" and "premium...
Second Generation AirTag Feature

Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More

Monday January 26, 2026 6:07 am PST by
Apple today introduced the second-generation AirTag, with key features including longer range for tracking items and a louder speaker. For those who are not familiar, the AirTag is a small accessory that you can attach to your backpack, keys, or other items. Then, you can track the location of those items in the Find My app on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and iCloud.com. The new...

Top Rated Comments

slicktor Avatar
13 months ago
Sonos out here doing side quests when the main story needs attention.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mansplains Avatar
13 months ago
What a shame, we need more bluetooth speakers playing in public spaces and nature /s
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LogicalApex Avatar
13 months ago
The iPhone already has pretty impressive speakers for its size and whatnot. Improvements on that would need something larger and more substantial. This wouldn't be it.

Good thing it was scrapped.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
13 months ago

Why do they show the Apple MagSage battery in the picture? Totally different product by a totally different company.
I think they were trying to show "something" that is MagSafe and maybe about the size of what a speaker on the back could plausibly be
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
holmesf Avatar
13 months ago
it's not the dumbest idea. The wife and I go running at night sometimes in the wilderness and the music helps scare off the coyotes and mountain lions and helps make the run more enjoyable. If it were possible to build a better speaker in a package like that I'd buy it.

There is a product that does this made by a company called Chargeworx but the reviews aren't inspiring. The iPhone's speakers are actually pretty good on their own. Doing better needs something pretty high quality.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
13 months ago
Interesting idea

Aside from this idea, which sounds interesting for travel usage in particular, I would still like to see a larger MagSafe speaker dock of some kind, from somebody
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)