Sonos Beam - Review
Last June Sonos released their new creation: the Sonos Beam. Basically, it is a smart speaker that takes the best of this technology and fits it in a small package that doesn't make justice to its capabilities.
It's no secret that home automation technology evolves at a fast pace, especially in all related to audio, video and entertainment. A few years ago there was no actual need to keep releasing smart products constantly because things were made to last longer, but modern times have changed the rules. So, companies went under a philosophy where rapid device upgrade was a constant, but that's not the way Sonos used to work. What they did was refine their smart speakers line with features that truly took the audio concept to a whole new level.
Despite that, the arrival of big brands like Amazon, Google and their focus on speakers and A/V (Audio & Video) made them realise that they need to step up their game, hence only since last year, Sonos has already released 7 new products. The Sonos family has the Sonos One, Sonos Play:1, Sonos Play:3 and Sonos Play:5, and as for home theatres they have the Sonos PlayBar, Sonos PlayBase and of course the object of this blog: The Sonos Beam.
The Sonos Beam design
The small compact size of this smart speaker is important, as this device - unlike its predecessors - can fit smoothly in front of any smart TV. Now, if you like figures, the Sonos Beam measures 650 x 100 x 68 mm and its size is not the only thing that got smaller, as its price was reduced significantly, compared to Sono´s previous model. Also, the speaker comes with an HDMI port that its older brother lacks completely.
Its design is a perfect combination of two Sonos´s previous releases, the Sonos One and the Sonos Play:5. The setup ain't complex at all, a couple of squares at both sides of the screen to adjust the volume and the play/pause button in the middle, plain simple. Above this setup, there's the speaker´s mic control to turn it on/off. This microphone handles the voice control feature, that initially only supports Amazon's Alexa, but will support Siri and Google Assistant soon. Apparently, Sonos is not planning on backing down from being market-relevant.
Back to its design the overall concept is cutting-edge and provides that future-looking feeling, especially when they choose fabric to cover the opening of the speakers.
The Sonos Beam can be placed either mounted or can just lay in front of the TV, either way, the sound experience is amazing. It only has three channels, but with TruePlay (a fantastic upgrade Sonos released recently, which allows sound to be calibrated according to the room. Sound wise, you get the perfect blend between the Sonos Play:3 and the Sonos PlayBar. Four full-range drivers and a tweeter are in charge to work alongside three passive radiators (bass lovers are going to absolutely love that one) to make a pure perfect sound like you’re in the recording studio.
Then the magic commences as TruePlay takes over, asking you to use your smartphone or tablet to scan room. Once enabled, TruePlay will fill the room with sound for a much better experience. FYI: TruePlay as of now, is only available for iOs devices.
Beam Voice Control
We just discussed ways to control the Sonos Beam, but the best one, hands down got to be voice control. The perfect integration between this device and Amazon's Alexa is incredible because unlike its predecessor - the Sonos One - in addition to controlling the device can also take over some of the TVs functions. Now, in order to accomplish this, you must have either an Amazon Fire TV or a Fire TV Stick. That is, if you want to truly get the most out of this one. If you do have one of those, you probably know that you can use the Beam to search content on both Netflix and Amazon Prime
If this is too much tech for you, then you can just stick to the old voice command for simple tasks like volume adjustments, radio station searches and of course, play/pause options to any audio file you´re listening to.
Now, with that being said and as much as we liked Alexa´s skills, variety is what people want. So now in addition to Alexa, you can also use the Beam, with the marvellous AirPlay 2 which means that SIRI (a.k.a iOS) is also being integrated, the same plans are scheduled for Google Assistant capabilities as well.
Having three types of voice control assistant available might seem like too much, but Sonos´ aim is to captivate buyers as much as possible. We will have to wait and see how the market responds to these strategies with time, for now, you just need to bring the Sonos feel into your day to day living.
Conclusion
Sonos knows who they are competing against in this market and it’s no easy battle to win at all. But they are surely raising the bar with this fantastic set of smart speakers. Small yet classy to fit any living room, cutting edge design, innovative features and sound add ons that truly enhance the sound experience for any occasion and fits almost any budget.