Computer Shopper - UK (2020-01)

38 JANUARY2020|COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE383

SONOS Move

★★★★★

£399•From http://www.currys.co.uk

WIRELESS SMARTSPEAKER

VERDICT

It’sheftierthanmostportablespeakers,buttheSonos

Movehasthesmartsandaudioqualitytomakeupforit

DRIVERS (^2) • RMSPOWEROUTPUTNotstated•
DOCKCONNECTORNone•WIRELESS802.11n Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth SBC•DIMENSIONS240x160x126mm•
WEIGHT3kg•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILS
http://www.sonos.com•PARTCODEMOVE1UK1BLK

SPECIFICATIONS

APORTABLEBLUETOOTHspeaker has long

been the missing piece of Sonos’s multiroom

catalogue.That changes with the Sonos Move,

which also brings smart speaker capability via

Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

The designisadeparture,too.Unlike the

squatSonos One(Shopper378), theMoveis

tall and elegant, with an oval topplateand a

profile that tapers at the bottom end.All the

main controls sit on the toppanel, which

also plays host to thespeaker’sfar-field

microphonearray. The controlsare touch-

sensitive,which can sometimes spell trouble,

but thesework reliably andquickly; they

comprise amicrophone on/off button, aplay/

pausebutton and apairofcontrolsfor

adjustingthe volume up and down.

BIG LUG

At therear is ascooped-out hollow

containing the power button, the join button

(for connecting the speaker to Wi-Fi or an

existing network of Sonos speakers) and

another button forswitching between

Bluetooth andWi-Fi. There’s also acarrying

handle,which you’ll need given the Move’s

considerable size and 3kg weight.Thisis

definitely the kind of wireless speaker that’s

better fortakingonshort trips down the

garden,rather than long excursions.

Even so,it’s sturdy and well made,even

meetingthe IP56standard fordust resistance

and waterproofing. Thatdoesn’t mean you

can dunk it in thebath, but it will shrugggoff

arain shower.

Battery life iiisn’t

bad, either,at10

hoursofcontinnnuous

playback. The bbbattery

is replaceable,tttoo,

although pricing

and availability for

spareunitsisyet

to be revealed.

Elsewhere,ttthe Sonos

Move is equipppped with

the same featureswe’ve

come to love innnthe

SonosOne: supppport for

both AmazonAAAlexa and

Google Assistannnt; a

fantastically easy-to-use

app with fullyinnntegrated

support forSpoootify,

Tidal, Qobuzannnd

more than 100 other

streaming serviiic

and theability to pair two

SonosMoves together to

producestereosound.

It’s worthnoting, however,

that you can’tuse Alexa

and Google Assistant

interchangeably,which is a

shame.Instead,you have to

switch betweentheminthe apppp.

And, in keepingwithother

third-party smartspeaker

manufacturers, theMovecan’ttt

make useofsomekey Alexa

features, such as theuseful

drop-inand phone callfeaturesss.

That’s mildlyfrustrating,

but the Move has the major

advantage over Amazon

and Google’s own smartspeakeeerrrsssbbbyyybbbeeeiiinnnggg

able to form part of aSonos multiroom

network. If you already own anetworkof

Sonosspeakers –perhaps aSonosOne in

the kitchen andbedroom andaSonosBeam

in theliving room –just pressthe joinbutton

on oneofyour already connectedSonos

speakers,thenthe joinbutton on theMove,

and they’re all linked together.

SPATIALAWARENESS

The Move also supports Trueplay, whichtunes

the speaker’sfrequency responsetosuit the

room you’re listeningin. On previousSonos

speakers,thishas required asomewhat

tedious setupppppprocess, but the Move does it all

automatically by using

its ownnnmicrophones to

test hooowthe sound

bounceeesaround the

environnnment. It works

beautifffully,except in

Bluetooth mode, where

Trueplaaayisdisabled.

Theeere’s nothing

particuuularly fancy

about the driver

arrangement inside the

Sonos Move.Asingle,

downwwwards-firing

tweeteeersitsatthe top

of the speaker,sending

high-frrrequencyaudio

down aaagainst a

‘waveggguide’that then

disperssses the sound

outwarrrds andupwards.

Mid annndbass tonesare

edbyalarger,

fffooorrrwwwaaarrrddd-fffaaaccciiinnngggmmmiiiddd-wwwoooooofffeeerrr,aaannndddbbbooottthhhdddrrriiivvveeerrrsss

are coupled with apair of digitalamplifiers.

The results sound great,and with Trueplay

engaged theMovebecomes the best-sounding

smartspeaker on themarket. We’ve used it

indoors and outdoors, next to walls andon

the floor,placed on shelves andsitting in

corners,and the SonosMoveconsistently

punches outaudioinacontrolled, considered

and detailed manner,withhigh volume

potential and plentyofstrong,impactful bass.

GOING PLACES

In short, the SonosMoveisanexcellent smart

speaker.Wewere initiallysurprisedathow big

and heavy it was, andunlike the UE Megablast

(Shopper362)it’snot something thatcan be

easily carried around on foot.Still, if you

want the best soundquality,you’re goingto

have to accept some compromises, andthe

Move’s battery power stillgrants it flexibility

in where you can listen to it.

At thesame time,it’s makingsomesteps

forward forSonos as awhole.Besidesfilling a

gap in its multiroomfamily,automatic Trueplay

tuning is asignificant improvement,one we’re

hoping to seeasstandardonfuturespeakers.

The Move is therefore themostcomplete

and sumptuous-sounding smart speaker yet,

and is well worthits high price.

JonathanBray