The most important thing to say about the new Sonos Roam – which costs $ 170 and ships next month – is that it fits in a carrying case. Considering there are endless Bluetooth speakers out there that fit this description, from the superlative $ 80 Wonderboom 2 to the gruesome best-selling $ 30 OontZ Angle, this might sound like a dissonance. It is not. The Roam is a giant leap forward for Sonos as it’s exactly what the company’s devotees have been waiting for and the best possible portable speaker available to even the most ardent Sonos skeptic. Thanks to its small size, excellent audio quality, and endless streaming functionality, the Roam is the first Sonos product that will make damn anyone happy.
The main reason for this is simple: the Sonos Roam is the best-sounding portable speaker I’ve tested. It eats lunch from any loudspeaker of similar size and rivals the larger speakers in its price range. When put through the “Love Lockdown” test (yes, this is a thing), the Roam sounds much fuller than similarly sized speakers like the aforementioned UE Wonderboom 2. The UE doesn’t necessarily sound bad – you can find the outline of the sliding bass – but the Roam sounds much clearer. Nalgene-sized UE Megaboom 3 delivers more powerful bass than the Roam for obvious reasons, but doesn’t sound betterOn slightly less bass-heavy songs, such as Saweetie’s “Back to the Streets”, the low end sounds mostly the same between the Roam and the Megaboom. In fact, the diminutive Roam conveys the artist’s melodic voice and all the glittering details hidden in the production much more clearly.
But that’s to judge the Roam purely as a portable speaker, while also being the most in-demand member of the whole-home wireless Sonos family. Dedicated Sonos users have been striving for a portable audio solution for years. In 2019, Sonos made its first attempt to haul the Move, a Bluetooth-enabled, battery-powered speaker as portable as a bowling ball – into the backyard, but no further. It seemed like Sonos couldn’t expand its wireless super system to that last frontier: the carrying case.
Two years later we have the Roam, with Sonos quality sound and Sonos-level versatility. Once you’ve set up the Roam through the Sonos app, you get access to a ton of easy ways to actually use the speaker. AirPlay or Bluetooth from any app, or WiFi with the Sonos app. You can operate it with a connected streaming service, such as Spotify or AppleMusic. Don’t underestimate this level of choice: Bluetooth is fine when you’re on the go, but at home the stability of AirPlay or WiFi, even on a portable speaker, is a boon. No more wandering your phone away from the speaker and hearing the music sputter.
If you’re on Wi-Fi, you can also use the Roam’s built-in microphone to summon Amazon’s Google Assistant or Alexa to play audio for you (and turn off your smart lights while you’re at it). But even if you aren’t, the Roam still includes some relatively advanced software. There’s Sonos’ signature Auto Trueplay, which allows the speaker to adjust its EQs to match the room’s acoustics. As well as the new Sound Swap, which allows you to send audio to one of your other Sonos speakers or “get” music by simply pressing a button on the Roam.
Even when charging, the Roam is ahead of the portable package. The USB-C input works much faster than the Move’s own charger, but the real magic trick is that the Roam can charge when placed on a Qi-compatible wireless charging puck. In our tests, we found that the Roam’s battery lasts an entire working day when streaming classical music from WQXR. That includes some Bartok in a post-workout shower – the Roam’s is water resistant to one meter of water for 30 minutes.
Bottom line, if you’re a Sonos skeptic – which I understand, given that the costs add up when you imagine your living space dotted with non-cheap speakers – the Roam still feels like the best portable Bluetooth speaker out there , all together. One you can take to the beach and which can help you avoid the fussy Bluetooth at home. One that fits seamlessly into your life. One that, if you decide to take the plunge with Sonos, suddenly becomes so much more useful.
What if you already enjoy the warm embrace of Sonos life? The Roam does exactly what you’ve always wanted from a Sonos speaker: it fits in a great carrying case.