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The New Sonos Move Brings the Noise Outdoors

If you’re a Sonos user who has harbored hopes for an outdoor compatible speaker engineered with the same convenience and refined details as their existing line of networked audio components, your wishes have been finally answered. Sonos has announced the Move, their first portable indoor/outdoor speaker.

As a longtime Sonos user I’d identify myself as one of the many who’ve always wanted to take the music into the backyard. Sonos has been aware of this common desire amongst its users for an outdoor, battery-powered option, but the company waited till the maturation of Airplay technology (and the new Bluetooth 4.2 protocol) to develop a speaker capable of attaining the performance/standards matching their existing catalog.

The $399 Sonos Move’s aural capabilities are delivered by way of two Class-D amplifiers powering a single tweeter and a mid-woofer driver, plenty sufficient for most indoor spaces and also the outdoors, where sound doesn’t have the benefit of walls to maintain and contain perceived volume. And for outdoor use, the Move is rated IP56 for protection from dust particles and liquid splashes, as well as being capable of withstanding temps between 14 degrees F and up to 131 degrees F.

The Sonos Move is large enough (6.61 lb) it warrants a built-in handle for easy carrying.

If you already have a Sonos speaker, you’re probably well acquainted with the sonic wah-wah-wah process of TruePlay tuning the speaker to map the physical layout of a room. The Move conveniently automates the process, eliminating the need to walk around a room with an iPhone or iPad to optimize sound, using its own set of microphones to adjust its sound. And another smart, customer-friendly design decision: the Move’s battery is replaceable (Sonos estimates with regular use, a three-year battery life; no costs were yet available for replacement batteries.)

Sonos has equipped the Move with a battery allowing for up to ten hours of continuous play time on a single charge, with an indoor charging base to connect and power it up between cordless sessions. In “Suspend” mode the Move will reserve the battery for up to five days.

Noting its intended outdoor use, there’s no need to touch any buttons or pick up a phone. Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa are built in to control music playback, get a weather report, control smart home devices, and access streaming services by voice alone.

The Sonos Move joins two more new products announced, the Sonos Port and Sonos One SL, the former a new multi-room network streamer designed to connect to traditional home audio equipment, with the latter an affordable $179 replacement for the old Play:1 speaker.

Gregory Han is a Senior Editor at Design Milk. A Los Angeles native with a profound love and curiosity for design, hiking, tide pools, and road trips, a selection of his adventures and musings can be found at gregoryhan.com.