Sonos, the multi-room audio pioneer, is said to be set to reveal the Era 300 and Era 100, a new generation of smart speakers ready to take on Apple’s HomePod for the crowning spot in your home.
In a report from The Verge (opens in new tab), the Eros 300 is alleged to bring spatial audio and Dolby Atmos alongside a new design and other major improvements versus the current Sonos lineup. The Eros 100, on the other hand, is likely to replace the Sonos One, a $219 smart speaker with AirPlay 2 that brings a Sonos system into your home for a reasonable price and is a direct competitor to Apple’s latest HomePod.
According to the report, the new Sonos Eros 300 is “a multidirectional speaker built to get the most from spatial audio. Featuring a completely rearchitected acoustic design [it] will offer the richest fidelity of any single speaker that Sonos has ever released.”
These new Sonos speakers are likely to release later this year at a competitive price point to take on the new HomePod.
So what about the HomePod?
Apple released the 2nd generation HomePod last week and the current consensus is that it’s great to have the larger HomePod back in contention for when you’re looking for the best smart speaker for your home. With the news of an upgraded Sonos lineup on the horizon, there are many reasons for those less involved with the Apple eco-system to wait it out for direct comparisons.
It could be even more interesting if these new Sonos Eros 300 and 100 speakers ship with Matter compatibility, the upcoming connectivity standard that will unite your smart home. If that were to happen and you could pair Sonos equipment with your new HomePod 2 then things could be very exciting for the music in your home in the not-so-distant future. Until then, the new HomePod is available for $299 and reviews are looking pretty positive.
