Sonos is getting close to releasing a new entry-level soundbar, and you’re looking at it. The new device, codenamed “Fury” and officially known as the S36 model, are other speakers that will join the company’s lineup under the $449 beam and $899 main bow.
It seems Sonos is no longer willing to cede the low-cost speaker market to Vizio and other competitors, as I can reveal that the new product is expected to sell for around $249. This is much less expensive than any Sonos speakers to date. It is currently released for release a few weeks from now on June 7.
You have seen real pictures of the new speakers and the edge I used it to create 3D renderings for this article. It’s not an exact match but it’s more than enough to give you the idea. (you can trust meLike the Arc and Beam, Sonos’ budget speakers will be offered in black and white.
The device is more compact than the Sonos Beam – which is no surprise given that it has far fewer drivers.
- Sonos S36 “Fury” model: 550 mm (width) x 69 mm (depth) x 100 mm (height)
- Sonos Beam (2nd generation): 651 mm (width) x 68.6 mm (depth) x 100 mm (height)
As expected at a lower price, the new Sonos speakers will omit some features like Dolby Atmos, and they also lack built-in microphones for voice assistant functionality. Sonos will position this as a speaker for TV and music, leaving the smarts to its more pricier siblings. In fact, the internal specifications indicate that there is no HDMI port on this product (only an optical cable comes in the box). This limits the new speakers to Dolby Digital surround sound. You can still expand it to a 5.1 system if you own other compatible Sonos speakers.
Here’s an interesting piece of information: Sonos expects that a good number of customers will use the new speakers as connected surrounds for the high-end Sonos Arc. Because of this, the company has created a wall mount that allows Fury – once more, that’s only a codename and I’m not sure of its final brand – to be mounted vertically in addition to the standard horizontal orientation.
Sonos has yet to announce its upcoming speakers. So while I’m more than happy to do it for them, I expect we’ll all hear more details regarding the S36 and the company’s expanded home theater ambitions in the coming weeks. “We do not comment on rumors or speculation,” a Sonos spokesperson, reached by email regarding this story, said.
Other products still in development at Sonos . include: Smaller and cheaper subwoofer (model S37) and the company’s long-rumored wireless headphones. The latter will enter Sonos in a new product category for the first time since it has expanded into portable speakers with the Move and Roam.
Update April 21st at 2:40PM ET: The article has been updated to be clear and to include a comment from Sonos.
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