Sonos looks set to announce a new wireless speaker some time soon, after details of a new product were revealed in an FCC filing. The product name wasn't revealed, the filing instead referring to a Sonos S18 satellite speaker, but some features were confirmed... although they don't give much away.
Naturally enough the filing shows compliance for wi-fi and Bluetooth. While Bluetooth streaming would be a first for Sonos, the inclusion here is instead likely to be for set-up purposes rather than wireless music.
Elsewhere, Variety (opens in new tab) spotted the new speaker was tested alongside the Playbar soundbar, and so suggested the speaker could be designed especially for use in a Sonos cinema system. A smaller satellite speaker for surround sound channels? Possibly. Or even a Dolby Atmos compatible speaker? Probably a long shot, not least as none of the soundbars support Atmos (and Sonos isn't convinced).
We think it's more likely that the speaker is a new version of an older Sonos speaker: the Play:3. The mid-sized speaker in the family was released back in 2011 and now looks a little dated. A new design, complete with touch buttons and voice control in line with the Sonos One, would make a lot of sense. The Sonos Three, then?
The existing One, Play:1, Play:3 and Play:5 can all already be used alongside the Beam, Playbar and Playbase as surround speakers for a cinema system, which would explain the Playbar testing.
While CES 2019 might be a little too soon for an announcement, it seems we may not have too long to wait until we see something new from Sonos.
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