I thought I had taken a higher quality system and now I find sonos speaker for sale in Ikea. disgusted ...
I hope at least there are important differences compared to the speakers of the store sonos.
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For sale? Where?? I saw an announcement that said August availability for the IKEA device(s).
Yes from August .... Now the ikea speaker are not available.
I hope.. Never.. 😃
I hope.. Never.. 😃
I would imagine that they will work with the Sonos ecosystem so you can play music in different rooms etc.
But given that ikea is known for a more value offering I am assuming they will be of a lower quality that will probably be of interest to a different type of customer, sure they will be an overlap but there are bound to be differences.
I think it is a smart move and see it more to the way cars are sold. VW Audi group sell Audi, VW, Seat, Skoda etc.... some components are the same, some are not. They are aiming at different customers and markets.
One concern I have with ikea is that given they are volume based and speakers are not their core business, if the speakers do not do as well as they hope, within a specific time, they are more likely to move on. Whereas Sonos is a smart speaker company and they are much more likely to stand by their product as it is their core business.
I am interested to see what ikea offer for areas that I am less likely to be concerned about quality eg bathroom, kitchen etc
But given that ikea is known for a more value offering I am assuming they will be of a lower quality that will probably be of interest to a different type of customer, sure they will be an overlap but there are bound to be differences.
I think it is a smart move and see it more to the way cars are sold. VW Audi group sell Audi, VW, Seat, Skoda etc.... some components are the same, some are not. They are aiming at different customers and markets.
One concern I have with ikea is that given they are volume based and speakers are not their core business, if the speakers do not do as well as they hope, within a specific time, they are more likely to move on. Whereas Sonos is a smart speaker company and they are much more likely to stand by their product as it is their core business.
I am interested to see what ikea offer for areas that I am less likely to be concerned about quality eg bathroom, kitchen etc
I expect a similar experience to the Ikea Tradfri smart LED bulbs that offer compatibility with Philips Hue, but a limited featureset and somewhat reduced performance, in a price range typical for Ikea.
I think it is a smart move and see it more to the way cars are sold. VW Audi group sell Audi, VW, Seat, Skoda etc.... some components are the same, some are not. They are aiming at different customers and markets.
Exactly this. I don't see people driving an Audi being "disgusted" by Skoda cars... It seems a bit snobbish to me...
@sjoop1985 - Yes, totally agree
This may be just another outlet like Costco, Hay and the like.
IKEA certainly has a better reputation than Best Buy that sells Sonos now!
IKEA certainly has a better reputation than Best Buy that sells Sonos now!
Sonos can't live against competition without these kind of partnerships.
The new CEO is doing a good job.
Developing new products and partnerships without making the old speakers obsolete.
I still miss a couple of software features but it is worth it until now.
The new CEO is doing a good job.
Developing new products and partnerships without making the old speakers obsolete.
I still miss a couple of software features but it is worth it until now.
The whole thing seems a little odd to me honestly. I understand the need to sell products to multiple demographics and VW is a good example of that. The difference between that and what Sonos is doing thought is that VW isn't partnering with another company to bring out it's other product lines. Why does Sonos need to partner with iKEA, Sonace, or HAY, to release new products.
The HAY deal sort of makes sense. It appears that part of the cost of producing new colors was paid by HAY, and HAY could then get some advertisement and semi-exclusive rights to sell it. So it's a win win on limited time deal.
The Sonace deal makes sense, since the passive speakers involved could be used with our without Sonos speakers.
I don't quite get IKEA. If the speakers are built into furniture and such, then I it makes sense. However, I've seen articles hinting at wall hanging speakers. Why wouldn't Sonos just make those themselves? Is it about funding for the project? Is it about utilizing IKEAs retail infrastructure?
The HAY deal sort of makes sense. It appears that part of the cost of producing new colors was paid by HAY, and HAY could then get some advertisement and semi-exclusive rights to sell it. So it's a win win on limited time deal.
The Sonace deal makes sense, since the passive speakers involved could be used with our without Sonos speakers.
I don't quite get IKEA. If the speakers are built into furniture and such, then I it makes sense. However, I've seen articles hinting at wall hanging speakers. Why wouldn't Sonos just make those themselves? Is it about funding for the project? Is it about utilizing IKEAs retail infrastructure?
I don't know, maybe Sonos just licensed to IKEA the patents or the audio technology to make them work together.
The wall hanging thing is that they are designed to be a shelf. Well that is in the mock up i've seen in the press
who drives audi pay for audi and honestly the difference with skoda is there. ikea users may have a speaker perhaps better than a play: 1 (I think the speaker reference as it is the cheapest) to a discounted price. What then is the true value of the speakers we have purchased so far?
Hello
I tried to stay out of this discussion but I’m going to have to add my two cents FWIW. My intent is not to insult or belittle anyone’s opinion. That said….Me thinks herein lies “Much Ado About Nothing”. Everyone’s biggest concern IMO appears to be the possible dilution of worth for current and possible future branded Sonos speakers.
In today’s competitive market licensing is the word of the today. Very few products are unique in their entirety; as most are of a homogeneous nature. I own a LG OLED TV. Guess what…the panel in Sony’s OLED is manufactured by LG; yet the Sony brand in most instances commands a higher price point. Do you really think the Sony brand has been hurt by the fact that its OLED panels are manufactured by a company (LG) some might consider being of lesser stature.
With the impending launch of an IKEA speaker with Sonos technology at what point does Sonos start to degrade in terms of quality? Is it the housing, the circuit board, the speaker materials (i.e.cones/magnets), the DAC and list goes on. IMO any of the aforementioned as a stand-alone component does not make a Sonos a Sonos.
Again, IMO what makes Sonos a Sonos is the TECH (firmware/software) that makes it work across your home or business. Any components that are used in a Sonos product can be had at higher or lower price point depending upon the materials used and how they are held together. My point being that’s it not beyond the realm of possibility to produce a speaker that is Sonos TECH Compatible; but at lower price point, if that’s how IKEA intends to market its product.
Think ONKYO receivers that say “Works with Sonos”. Could not an IKEA branded speaker say the same or something similar…such as “Compatible with Sonos”. Compatibility; as I understand it, has nothing to do with the quality of the original brand. That reminds me does not Sonos have a product or two that is compatible with Alexa voice assistant? Last I read Amazon stock has not been hurt by that licensing agreement.
Discussions of this sort are great in terms of starting the conversation. Where I think they become less of a conversation (and somewhat of a detractor) is when speculations are made that can be taken out of context about cheapening the Sonos brand. So, as I said in the beginning… my two cents.:8
Cheers!
I tried to stay out of this discussion but I’m going to have to add my two cents FWIW. My intent is not to insult or belittle anyone’s opinion. That said….Me thinks herein lies “Much Ado About Nothing”. Everyone’s biggest concern IMO appears to be the possible dilution of worth for current and possible future branded Sonos speakers.
In today’s competitive market licensing is the word of the today. Very few products are unique in their entirety; as most are of a homogeneous nature. I own a LG OLED TV. Guess what…the panel in Sony’s OLED is manufactured by LG; yet the Sony brand in most instances commands a higher price point. Do you really think the Sony brand has been hurt by the fact that its OLED panels are manufactured by a company (LG) some might consider being of lesser stature.
With the impending launch of an IKEA speaker with Sonos technology at what point does Sonos start to degrade in terms of quality? Is it the housing, the circuit board, the speaker materials (i.e.cones/magnets), the DAC and list goes on. IMO any of the aforementioned as a stand-alone component does not make a Sonos a Sonos.
Again, IMO what makes Sonos a Sonos is the TECH (firmware/software) that makes it work across your home or business. Any components that are used in a Sonos product can be had at higher or lower price point depending upon the materials used and how they are held together. My point being that’s it not beyond the realm of possibility to produce a speaker that is Sonos TECH Compatible; but at lower price point, if that’s how IKEA intends to market its product.
Think ONKYO receivers that say “Works with Sonos”. Could not an IKEA branded speaker say the same or something similar…such as “Compatible with Sonos”. Compatibility; as I understand it, has nothing to do with the quality of the original brand. That reminds me does not Sonos have a product or two that is compatible with Alexa voice assistant? Last I read Amazon stock has not been hurt by that licensing agreement.
Discussions of this sort are great in terms of starting the conversation. Where I think they become less of a conversation (and somewhat of a detractor) is when speculations are made that can be taken out of context about cheapening the Sonos brand. So, as I said in the beginning… my two cents.:8
Cheers!
Ajtrek1, I respect your point of view but a brand that makes quality and research its strong points must not and does not need these means to sell more speakers. if you lower the price you must also lower the quality and the brand imprinted on the products will always be the same. Would you put the reputation of the brand at risk to sell more? I do not think so or Sonos. will sell more speakers, excellent quality at a lower price and we will watch our play: 1 thinking that maybe I could spend less to get the same performance. today the play: 1 ... tomorrow a speaker of superior class.
Sorry for my english.
Awesome community.
Matteo
Sorry for my english.
Awesome community.
Matteo
I'm not following your logic here. I get that a brand should represent a certain level of quality, but I don't see why a company cannot produce multiple brands with multiple levels of quality. And yes, it does happen where a company produces 2 brands with virtually identical quality but different prices. Those that prefer price over brand take the cheaper option. Those that prefer brand over price take the more expensive option.
Would you put the reputation of the brand at risk to sell more?
How? I am not seeing how people will think less of Sonos because they sell a cheaper version under a different name. Companies do this all the time to cater to different demographics.
I do not think so or Sonos. will sell more speakers, excellent quality at a lower price and we will watch our play: 1 thinking that maybe I could spend less to get the same performance.
Maybe. They may sell more because there are lots of people who don't trust Sonos yet but do trust Ikea. There may be some who buy the ikea because it fits within their price range. There may be some who get the ikea versoin, then decide that they want the more expensive Sonos speakers as well.
today the play: 1 ... tomorrow a speaker of superior class.
This is all hypothetical as we don't know that your scenario of a cheaper ikea speaker that's as good as play:1 will even exist. My guess is that it won't, and these speakers will be significantly different than the Sonos speakers. Either way, I doubt that Sonos is going to risk undercutting their higher end products.
I hope it's as you say! we will see the hw specifications of the new ikea speaker and then we can make comparisons. it will be the hw that makes the difference. Bye to all.
https://www.dday.it/redazione/26960/ikea-sonos-diffusore
here some advances on the Italian site. good translation and reading. 🙂
here some advances on the Italian site. good translation and reading. 🙂
@OettaM
Thanks for the link but it was still in Italian and no translation that I could find. However the pictures (assuming they were of the IKEA model) did shed some light on the subject.
It appears they were making a comparison between the Sonos Play 5 and the IKEA version (understand I'm only guessing). If that is the case one can make the assumption that the components in the IKEA version may be identical to the Play 5 except that the speaker array has been reduced considerably (i.e. Mids x 2 vs Mids x 3/Play 5_Tweeter x 1 vs Tweeter x 3/Play 5_and what appears to be a Bass port on far left).
All said (based on my design assumption by the picture) it's highly conceivable that IKEA could offer a Sonos compatible speaker at a lower price; point without sacrificing component quality. If that comes to fruition I doubt consumers would be confused by an IKEA version of a Sonos Play 5. The packaging alone speaks volumes (pun intended) 😉. The same holds true for any other Sonos speaker that IKEA may try to mimic. Furthermore, I don't see the IKEA version having any detrimental affect on the Sonos brand.
As I alluded to in my original post IMO it was too early to start conversation about Sonos brand degradation due to a hybrid IKEA Sonos-like speaker. Once again..."Much Ado About Nothing" :8
Cheers!
Thanks for the link but it was still in Italian and no translation that I could find. However the pictures (assuming they were of the IKEA model) did shed some light on the subject.
It appears they were making a comparison between the Sonos Play 5 and the IKEA version (understand I'm only guessing). If that is the case one can make the assumption that the components in the IKEA version may be identical to the Play 5 except that the speaker array has been reduced considerably (i.e. Mids x 2 vs Mids x 3/Play 5_Tweeter x 1 vs Tweeter x 3/Play 5_and what appears to be a Bass port on far left).
All said (based on my design assumption by the picture) it's highly conceivable that IKEA could offer a Sonos compatible speaker at a lower price; point without sacrificing component quality. If that comes to fruition I doubt consumers would be confused by an IKEA version of a Sonos Play 5. The packaging alone speaks volumes (pun intended) 😉. The same holds true for any other Sonos speaker that IKEA may try to mimic. Furthermore, I don't see the IKEA version having any detrimental affect on the Sonos brand.
As I alluded to in my original post IMO it was too early to start conversation about Sonos brand degradation due to a hybrid IKEA Sonos-like speaker. Once again..."Much Ado About Nothing" :8
Cheers!
Try Google chrome, as it will translate the doc pretty well.
A few points to make:
- I don't think the finished product will look like this prototype for a few reasons
a. Article is dated from several months back, plenty of time to change.
b. The first picture has speakers of multiple shapes, and different size.
c. The unit has the old style hard buttons, not the current style. That could be by design if the thought is that the old style will be better for the new application. Or it could mean they just slapped on the old buttons temporarily.
d. The speaker is about the size of the play:3, meaning that could just be substituting an old play:3 model that never was developed for this showcase.
- The speaker doesn't have any microphone for voice assistant. That really doesn't mean it won't be on the final product though, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's left off by design for the intended use case and cost reasons.
- As I pointed out, this prototype looks around the size and scope of a play:3, which Sonos no longer sells. And that makes a lot of sense. Sonos stopped selling the play:3 last summer/fall. It was assumed because it either didn't sell well or a 2.0 version was going to be released soon. Does it make sense that ikea wanted the play:3 dropped so that it's version of the speaker would have no competition from older models?
- If it is effectively a play:3 2.0, then it's quite possible the price will be around $250 as the play:3 was. Even if it's as low as $200 without a microphone, it's at a price point where it doesn't really compete with other Sonos products, but just fills the gap left by the play:3.
I'm going to speculate that although it's prototype, the size isn't going to change drastically. It'll essentially be the play:3 replacement. I'm guessing that you'll be able to purchase it in furniture packages as well as stand alone from ikea and from the Sonos site.
Does it make sense that there would only be one new speaker coming from this ikea deal?
A few points to make:
- I don't think the finished product will look like this prototype for a few reasons
a. Article is dated from several months back, plenty of time to change.
b. The first picture has speakers of multiple shapes, and different size.
c. The unit has the old style hard buttons, not the current style. That could be by design if the thought is that the old style will be better for the new application. Or it could mean they just slapped on the old buttons temporarily.
d. The speaker is about the size of the play:3, meaning that could just be substituting an old play:3 model that never was developed for this showcase.
- The speaker doesn't have any microphone for voice assistant. That really doesn't mean it won't be on the final product though, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's left off by design for the intended use case and cost reasons.
- As I pointed out, this prototype looks around the size and scope of a play:3, which Sonos no longer sells. And that makes a lot of sense. Sonos stopped selling the play:3 last summer/fall. It was assumed because it either didn't sell well or a 2.0 version was going to be released soon. Does it make sense that ikea wanted the play:3 dropped so that it's version of the speaker would have no competition from older models?
- If it is effectively a play:3 2.0, then it's quite possible the price will be around $250 as the play:3 was. Even if it's as low as $200 without a microphone, it's at a price point where it doesn't really compete with other Sonos products, but just fills the gap left by the play:3.
I'm going to speculate that although it's prototype, the size isn't going to change drastically. It'll essentially be the play:3 replacement. I'm guessing that you'll be able to purchase it in furniture packages as well as stand alone from ikea and from the Sonos site.
Does it make sense that there would only be one new speaker coming from this ikea deal?
guys, do not worry, it was just to shoot an article about the news that appeared in Italy.
Not worried at all. Should have thanked you for posting that actually. It's good information, and although nothing definitive at all, I do think it gives some hints at what these new speakers might be.
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