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I’m suspicious that a new play 3 is coming. Sonos has been out of stock for weeks!
Sonos has not made any announcements about that. It may mean nothing. It may mean that they just aren't going to sell them from the site anymore. It may mean they are discontinuing the 3 without a replacement. If there is a new product, I'd imagine we won't hear about it until September at the earliest.



If I were to guess, I would guess it means nothing and we'll see stock again soon.
Maybe the 3 is going to disappear. I do not see many people advising a Play3. Its always a pair of play1, a play5 or a pair of play5. So maybe sales are too low.
Maybe. I like the Play 3. I think a stereo pair of 3’s sounds way better than 1’s.
We will see. As others said, Sonos is very silent about new announcements.
Yep. It’s their oldest speaker now. I still think it sounds great without the cost of the 5. Time will tell. I have never seen them out of stock on a product for this long. Maybe they are waiting for retailer stock to go down before introducing a new 3. I hope it’s not eliminated.
I have Play 3s and Play 1s and far prefer the 3s. The Play 1s are OK for surround or in the bath but for me they just aren't that great for listening to for hours at a time.
I've noticed the Best Buys around me have no Play:3s on the shelf, but are stocked on every other Sonos product they carry.
I contacted Sonos about the 3 and said they were not producing them any more, thats why they are not on their site for sale. Even the refurbished were limited with the black version not being available. They said that if I wanted to do a stereo pair, it was better to use 2 one's rather than 2 3's.
And is the Play3 gone for ever (my guess) or will there be a Play3Gen 2?



Dutch Sonos site has white as well as black Play3 in stock, as I just verified.
Sales were probably slow. I hope there is a new version. I still think the 3 sounds way better than a One.
I will personally bet on a Play 3 reboot. I think that leaves too much open space between the ones and the 5. If you don't fill it someone else will.
I will personally bet on a Play 3 reboot. I think that leaves too much open space between the ones and the 5. If you don't fill it someone else will.



Yeah, that's a big price jump. However, my Play 1 stereo pair sounds pretty darn good, and my Play 3 stereo pair is just not appreciably better, especially the highs.
I will personally bet on a Play 3 reboot. I think that leaves too much open space between the ones and the 5. If you don't fill it someone else will.



I don't know, I get what you're saying regarding a space to fill, but since it's a system, not really just individual products, I'm not sure that such a gap is really going to make that much of a difference. As well, the play:3 is in the ball park of a Google Max or the Homepod, but I think getting a stereo pair of Ones is good competition for them. I think there is a market there for those that want more than Sonos One but not all the way to Play:5, but right now, the play:3 is too close the Sonos One. I wouldn't surprise me if a new version comes out prices around $300 or $350, but is an improvement over the play:3 in sound quality....with built in mics and such of course.
The Play 3 is still for sale on the Sonos website at £249/$249. It it were coming towards 'end of life' I would have thought that Sonos would have added it to its 'speaker sets', to quickly reduce stock. I think it’s the only speaker currently not available as a two room set. So it doesn’t seem like a replacement for it, is coming anytime soon.



The Play 3 is definitely dated though, compared to the Sonos One and Play 5 (gen 2) and Sonos Beam / PlayBase, with their touch-controls and AirPlay abilities.



If it were updated and replaced, it would certainly become the 'speaker' to compare to the Apple HomePod and so it would have to sound better and maybe sell slightly cheaper, in order to threaten the market share. Somewhere around the £300/$300 mark I think.



Is the time right for an updated 'Sonos Three'... I’m no so sure it is. Maybe towards the end of the year, or early next year perhaps ?


Is the time right for an updated 'Sonos Three'... I’m no so sure it is. Maybe towards the end of the year, or early next year perhaps ?



I know August doesn't seem like 'end of year', but to hit the Christmas season, you'd really want to have your product in the market by mid-November. And you probably would want to announce the product at least a month in advance before release. So I'd say any product announcements are going to happen in the next 2.5 months or so if something is coming out this year. And of course, we would probably hear some rumors and such in advance of the announcement as we did for the Beam. But I'm not in the marketing/manufacturing/retail business, so what do I know.



As far release early next year, seems like a slow retail season. If it doesn't happen before Christmas, I'd guess the next window would be summer time, kind of like the Beam. I think Summer is fairly good season because people tend to have more free time to buy stuff, preparations for school year/college, and a little bit due to Prime Day. But again, I know little.



In general, I wonder if the IPO has an effect on future product release dates. Pre-IPO, a product could be release with slow sales at first, knowing it's going to improve. Perhaps after IPO, product release have to have a more immediate impact in order to keep investors happy.
There was a comment from the CEO that I saw referenced on either Engadget or 9to5 Mac that said that Sonos was looking to increase the speed at which they were releasing new hardware, I'd assume as part of the preparation for the IPO. I tend to agree with Danny regarding the release time periods, getting new product out in time for the holiday shopping season is fairly important, generally speaking. But I'll share his caveats, as well, I am not an expert in Sonos marketing/release dates.
Because I like thinking about such things...I'd say last year's Holiday season the Apple homepod is a good example. Apple clearly wanted to release the Homepod before Christmas but couldn't for whatever reason. So how many customers would have bought a homepod if it was available, but ended up buying an echo, a Google max, or a Sonos One instead because the homepod wasn't available? Sure, some waited for the homepod because they don't see any substitute for apple, but surely there was a lot of lost business. Those customers that would have bought last Christmas did not buy in the Spring.



Now come this Christmas, will the Homepod really feel like the new product in it's first Christmas season compared to Max and Sonos One that are in their second seasons? Probably not much. If Sonos has a new product out (and they kind of do already do with the Beam) are people going to opt for the new product or the older homepod product...particularly if the new product is cheaper and perhaps has more features?



If I were Sonos and I had the option of releasing a new Play:3 that basically sounds the same, but has Alexa built in, airplay compatible, and upgrade look to match the Beam and Sonos One while hitting this Christmas market this year...versus all that plus improved sound while missing the Holiday season...I definitely would opt for the former. Of course, this is all hypothetical.


In general, I wonder if the IPO has an effect on future product release dates. Pre-IPO, a product could be release with slow sales at first, knowing it's going to improve. Perhaps after IPO, product release have to have a more immediate impact in order to keep investors happy.

Possibly Sonos wanted the IPO out the way, but I would personally see a new 'Sonos Three' as being the main challenge to Apple's new HomePod ... is that an area to start with to really 'impress' new investors? I don’t know if it would have the immediate impact you suggest in that 'competitive' area.



The Beam, on the other hand, 'stands alone' as a 'smart' voice-controlled TV PlayBar capable of surround sound and multiroom wireless audio.. a much better sell to any investor, perhaps?



So I’m not so sure the ‘Sonos Three' will be next off the starting blocks ... but time may prove me wrong. On the face of it though, looking at the current line-up of Sonos Speakers, it is the most obvious (speaker) product in need of update.



It’s difficult with Sonos, as they seem to surprise me with each new release.


Possibly Sonos wanted the IPO out the way, but I would personally see a new 'Sonos Three' as being the main challenge to Apple's new HomePod ... is that an area to start with to really 'impress' new investors? I don’t know if it would have the immediate impact you suggest in that 'competitive' area.



The Beam, on the other hand, 'stands alone' as a 'smart' voice-controlled TV PlayBar capable of surround sound and multiroom wireless audio.. a much better sell to any investor, perhaps?





So I’m not so sure the ‘Sonos Three' will be next off the starting blocks ... but time may prove me wrong. On the face of it though, looking at the current line-up of Sonos Speakers, it is the most obvious (speaker) product in need of update.



It’s difficult with Sonos, as they seem to surprise me with each new release. [/quote]



I'm probably contradicting myself here, but in a lot of ways, I see the Beam as more of a direct competitor than the hypothetical sonos 3 in may ways. If you're talking about a living room, chances are there's a tv in the room. It makes more sense to get one device that does audio for your music and TV then one that only does music. If you're talking about getting more than one for a stereo pair, I'd argue that a Beam+2 play:1s beats two Homepods.



For a hypothetical Sonos 3, I'd guess the price would be around $300, since the current play:3 is $250 and the Sonos One is $200. That price would be $50 less than a homepod and a $100 less than an Beam. For a room that doesn't have a TV, perhaps a Sonos 3 is going to be more appealing, or if you really want to get a stereo pair.



I don't know, as suppose I'd market Sonos as having lot of options to fit your various needs.



And of course, if Google integration comes before Christmas, that could be a very compelling reason to go with Sonos this Christmas. Maybe it is best to hold off any new products till next year, in order to keep interest in Sonos going for a longer period of time. Then again, more now could be the way to go, and there are surely lots of existing customers who would be happy to using Chirstmas money to replace their existing play:3s.
I’m waiting it out for the new play 3 myself. I hope they announce whether or not it’s discontinued so I can move on to either a pair of ones or the 5
I'm interested in the (maybe) new Play 3 replacement too but I'd caution current Play 3 owners to look at the Play 5 Gen 1 - 2 and Play 1 - Sonos One incompatibilities and not plan on pairing an old Play 3 and whatever replacement Sonos may announce.



If I needed a second Gen 1 Play 3 for a pair you can bet I'd be on ebay and the like shopping today.
[quote=melvimbe]

And of course, if Google integration comes before Christmas, that could be a very compelling reason to go with Sonos this Christmas. Maybe it is best to hold off any new products till next year, in order to keep interest in Sonos going for a longer period of time. Then again, more now could be the way to go, and there are surely lots of existing customers who would be happy to using Chirstmas money to replace their existing play:3s.



I definitely think getting Google Assistant support and a New Audio/Video product that can benefit from the full suite of assistants is critical to success during the holiday season.
I just hope they announce whether it’s discontinued or not
There was a comment from the CEO that I saw referenced on either Engadget or 9to5 Mac that said that Sonos was looking to increase the speed at which they were releasing new hardware, I'd assume as part of the preparation for the IPO. I tend to agree with Danny regarding the release time periods, getting new product out in time for the holiday shopping season is fairly important, generally speaking. But I'll share his caveats, as well, I am not an expert in Sonos marketing/release dates.



I might add to this that they no longer have the Play 3 AT ALL in their shop meaning a new product of the same mid range is coming.



What do you believe? We've been here with the beam before that one came out, was fairly right that time 😃
What do you mean by "their shop"? Are you talking about a physical location? If I click on "Products" at the top of this page, it still lists the PLAY:3, although it does say "no longer available". I'm in the US.



That being said, I'm certainly of the belief that it's on its way out. Speculating on what might be in a new replacement, if there is a replacement, is interesting. Certainly a microphone for voice, but any other changes? Guess we need to wait for some announcement. Sonos' marketing team doesn't like to talk about stuff much before they're just about to ship, so I'm not really willing to hold my breath. But I will continue to enjoy the PLAY:3s I have for many years to come.
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