While Netflix might not be a huge fan of AirPlay anymore, other companies aren’t so shy about supporting the streaming feature. Enter IKEA and Sonos, two companies who have teamed up to launch new speakers that definitely support AirPlay 2.
As is par for the course with IKEA, the designs for the new speakers are what really stand out. In this case, we have a pair of Symfonisk speakers, one that serves as a desk lamp and the other a “bookshelf” speaker with a more traditional design. Both of these speakers will boast Sonos’s TruePlay feature, which means they will automatically adjust audio output based on the type of room they are installed in.
And this is Sonos, so building a household of interconnected speakers is still part of the equation as well. The new lamp and bookshelf speakers will interface with other Sonos-branded speakers you have in the house. However, as noted by The Verge today, the speakers will also support AirPlay 2 to fit within Apple’s ecosystem. It also means you can control apps and music with your voice thanks to Siri.
“The lamp and bookshelf speakers will be full-fledged members of the Sonos ecosystem. They can join an existing setup or serve as your entry into multiroom audio. If you buy two of each, you can stereo pair them or even use them as the rears in a 5.1 audio setup, assuming you already own a Playbase, Playbar, or Sonos Beam. (How many 5.1 systems do you know of that include lamps as rear speakers?) Both speakers also support Apple’s AirPlay 2 for playing music from a slew of apps or with voice commands via Siri.”
These lamps are aimed at smart homes, too, with IKEA saying that, at some point in the future, it will integrate with other smart home items from the company through the IKEA app.
Both speakers launch on August 1. The Symfonisk lamp speaker will retail for $179 when it arrives, while the bookshelf speaker will cost $99.
Our Take
These are both pretty great designs, even if it sounds like the bookshelf speaker won’t be equipped to fill an entire room with high-quality sound. The lamp speaker, though, reportedly sounds just as good as a Sonos One, which means it should be a pretty awesome speaker with a unique design.
What do you think of these designs?
[via The Verge]
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