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Sonos and Ikea tease new Symfonisk smart speakers

Sonos and Ikea tease new Symfonisk smart speakers

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Yup, it’s also a shelf

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Prototype Ikea speaker attached to wall above Sonos  Play:5.
Prototype Ikea speaker attached to wall above Sonos Play:5.
Photo: Sonos

The Sonos and Ikea partnership announced in December is now bearing fruit in the shape of speakers. The non-functional prototypes on display at Ikea’s Democratic Design Days event in Sweden are illustrative examples of what you can expect from Ikea’s new SYMFONISK range. In other words, the final products may or may not look like the prototypes. Nevertheless, Sonos says that the final products will fully integrate with Sonos’ existing range of Wi-Fi speakers and Ikea’s “Home Smart” range of Trådfris smart devices, including lights, dimmers, and switches. 

And because they’re designed for Ikea, at least one prototype features brackets that makes it possible to use as a shelf, or to attach beneath an Ikea kitchen cabinet, for example.

Sketch: Sonos / Ikea

In keeping with the theme of democratization, you can expect the new Symfonisk range to lower the cost of entry into the Sonos ecosystem which currently starts at $150. “Many people dream of built-in sound systems, but few can afford it,” says Björn Block, business leader for Ikea Home Smart. “Our goal is for our collective work to save space, get rid of cords, make clutter invisible, and bring sound and music into the home in a more beautiful way.” Unfortunately, Neither Sonos nor Ikea is confirming any pricing today.

A table full of possible designs.
A table full of possible designs.
Photo: Sonos

Beyond Sonos, Ikea has taken a strong interest in sound reproduction recently. It launched its first Bluetooth speakers earlier this year, and it’s collaborating with Teenage Engineering to bring party audio into the home. The Eneby speakers are available now, but the Teenage Engineering mashup won’t be available until July 2019. The first speakers from the Symfonisk series will be available after summer 2019.

Update June 7th, 5:32AM ET: The original article displayed images wrongly labeled “SYMFONISK” by Ikea. These have been replaced with the correct images.