Smart speaker shootout: Sonos Move, Ultimate Ears and Bose compared

Multi-room audio pioneer Sonos has finally introduced a portable speaker, but increased competition means it might have waited too long.

Music is made to be shared, in or out of the house.

While the commute to work each day means we’re shoving headphones into our ears, on weekends it is time to share music and experiences with friends. For years Sonos has been a leader in multi-room audio with speakers big and small for each room of the house. Their app and ecosystem is class leading and customers have begged for a Sonos that could be taken outside.

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Portable bluetooth speakers is not a new idea, nor is a Wi-Fi speaker. But one that has both options, sounds good and allows not just one — but two — voice assistants is generally unheard of. So when Sonos announced the Move they didn’t aim to just make a portable speaker, they set about ticking all the boxes.

The Sonos Move speaker is designed to bring music with you wherever you go.

The Sonos Move houses two amplifiers, an array of microphones to hear you clearly, solid speakers and the brains to adjust tuning to suit the environment it is in. Resting on a halo shaped charging base the Move can be lifted from a rear handle and taken anywhere with up to 10 hours of battery life. Once it is out of Wi-Fi range, a flick of the switch will enable bluetooth and you’re music experience can continue. With the summer upon us, this means taking it to a BBQ, whether that is at home or at the beach. With a premium product like the Move you’d be worried about protecting it. Sonos has made the Move IP56 water and dust resistant for safe keeping from a spilt drink or an evening on the beach but also built strong enough to handle a fall when the New Years party gets a little rowdy.

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At $649 it isn’t a small price to pay for a speaker, however as something that performs a double-act as an elegant speaker at home and a party in a box, it means you only need one product for any occasion. We also appreciated the choice of the Amazon Alexa voice assistant or the more popular Google Assistant. Further, Sonos supports 100 music streaming services, including Apple Music and support for AirPlay 2 so no matter who is around there are more ways than one to get your favourite track started.

But, are there competitors in this space? Absolutely.

Ultimate Ears popularised the Bluetooth speaker, and its making them even smarter now.

Ultimate Ears is not a brand unfamiliar to portable speakers. Their passion for audio anywhere is obvious with products available to match most budgets. At $379.95 the Ultimate Ears Megablast is half the weight of the Sonos Move at 1.2kg making it more backpack friendly. It doesn’t pack quite the punch that the Sonos Move has but it will run for up to 16 hours and has a higher water resistance rating meaning it’ll still work even if it falls into the pool. The Megablast only supports Amazon Alexa and the app ecosystem from Ultimate Ears will mean a smaller list of music streaming options over Wi-Fi. We love that, if money allows, you could pair up to 8 Megablast speakers together for a very loud and surround sound.

Bose Portable Home Speaker has a two voice assistants to choose from.

Not to be left out, Bose conveniently announced a multi-connection option to Australia with the creatively named Portable Home Speaker. Similar to the Sonos Move, the offering from Bose will also have bluetooth and Wi-Fi along with a choice of the Google or Amazon voice assistant. The anodised aluminium speaker has a night lantern look with a convenient carry handle, perfect for transporting outdoors. With 12 hours of battery life and multi-room capabilities, it is likely to be an excellent alternative to the Sonos Move, especially with the less expensive price of $499.95, plus $39.95 for a similar charging base. The Bose Portable Home Speaker is available from October 15th.

Connect with Geoff Quattromani on Twitter @GQuattromani and listen to his podcast “Technology Uncorked”