After many months of teases, IKEA has finally come clean with two “Symfonisk” Sonos speakers. And the most interesting aspect may be the low price of entry, given Sonos hardware history.
Pocket Lint has gone hands on with the $99 Sonos-powered IKEA Bookshelf Speaker and classified the sound as “good” or even “great”, in relation to its size, and finds the design “brilliant.” While I haven’t yet seen the speaker in person, I do appreciate what looks to be a fabric speaker grill but the rest of it looks pretty plasticy, with exposed screws when positioned horizontally. Some might find the horizontal or vertical wall mounting capability, with associated cable channels, appealing, but I suspect most US customers will simply drop this on a counter or piece of furniture… unless paired to something like a Sonos Beam for left and right rear channels.
At 99 bucks, they’ll be competing with the voice-capable Alexa as a connected-speaker, also fluent in whole-home audio. On the other hands, this will be the cheapest way to get into Sonos when the IKEA product line launches this summer and eventual integration into the IKEA Trådfri smart home line of products, including lighting and motorized shades.
I’m impressed with the effort IKEA is putting into building partnerships and compatibility into its smart home products — the TRÅDFRI lights are available with their own hubs, but also seem to work well in the Hue ecosystem, for instance. I’m sure some people will use them as a standalone system, but it’s also nice to have a $12.99 bulb option for the laundry room or garage.
Likewise — the SYMFONISK might not have the fit and finish of other Sonos speakers, but it’s nice to have the option of a $100 speaker for, say, a guest bedroom or kitchen or garage. And having it mount out of harm’s way would be particularly attractive in many of those spaces.