"The Sonos Move can be used anywhere, but is just as happy at home. It may be the only speaker you need."
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Outstanding build quality
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Integration with Sonos systems
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Sounds particularly good outdoors
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User replaceable battery
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The Sonos app does not work via Bluetooth
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Big size, big price
Sonos has been the leading brand for wireless home audio since the company effectively launched the category almost 20 years ago. All this time, however, it has decidedly refused to support Bluetooth wireless connections on its devices.
Only Sonos knows all the reasons why the company has held back, but this chapter is now closed. The company's first truly portable (and Bluetooth-enabled) $ 399 Move is here. The only remaining question is whether the move is worthwhile given the significant investment.
Big but balanced
Sonos products are known for their excellent build quality. Regardless of whether it's a Sonos One SL (formerly Play: 1) or a Sonos Sub, every speaker feels solid and solid. The Sonos Move goes one step further. It weighs 6.6 pounds, making it more than two pounds heavier than a Sonos One and almost twice as heavy as the Ultimate Ears Megablast, a portable speaker with many of the same features.
Thanks to the well-designed integrated handle, you can still carry it from place to place without fear of accidentally dropping it. The included charging station essentially disappears with the move in position, which is ideal and offers additional stability.
Thanks to the handle, you can move the Move from place to place without fear of dropping it.
Not that the move needs it. Despite a rounded base that wants to roll the Move to the side at any time, a low center of gravity and a very grippy rubber floor lets the Move lean at surprisingly precarious angles without falling over. Even if that were the case (I didn't intentionally drop or roll the move), Sonos assures that the speaker will continue to work properly, although no promises have been made to dent the black metal grill. And unlike so many other speakers built for the elements, the Move's understated design still looks great on a coffee table or in a bookcase.
In June 2020, Sonos announced that a new matt white color would be added to the Move's matt black debut. This brings the Move in line with other black and white products from Sonos such as Sonos One SL, Sonos Five and the new Sonos Arc soundbar.
let it Rain
This robustness extends to the Move's ability to deal with the inherently variable outdoor conditions – in fact, this is a large part of the speaker's appeal. With IP56 protection, the Move should be able to withstand deserts and beaches alike, and if you take it to the snowboard terrain park, it should also work well there.
I didn't do any of that with the move. Instead, I had a small meeting on the terrace, placed it next to our cats' dusty litter box for 24 hours, and then ran it under a tap to clean it. You would never do that with a normal Sonos speaker, but the Move did it all effortlessly.
Patio power
The ability to survive in the face of water, dust, and occasionally spilled beer is one thing, but a portable speaker must sound like it was built for one thing: great audio. Indoors, the Move is cheap compared to Sonos One or Play: 1. It creates a slightly wider sound stage and the bass is more pronounced, but there is also a corresponding clouding of the mid-range. You would only notice something like this if you place a move right next to one of these other models and then compulsorily switch between them while playing everything from The Offspring to Adele. Of course not that I did.
Take the movement outside and only one thought comes to mind: This thing rocks.
Take the train outside and all other thoughts but one melt away: this thing rocks. Even with a volume of less than 50%, I ran the risk of attracting unwanted attention from neighbors several doors away. The expanded sound stage, which made itself felt in the interior, magically expands further outdoors. We have a pair of Klipsch AWR-650-SM landscape speakers in our garden that are powered by a Sonos amp. You sound fantastic. But if the Move had been available, we could have bought two of them, saved ourselves considerable dough, and found a much more flexible solution for outdoor music. For many people, a single move is more than enough speaker for even the wildest pool parties.
A better battery
I've said it before, but it needs to be repeated: Sonos' decision to make the Move rechargeable lithium-ion battery user replaceable deserves praise. Sonos claims that the cell lasts three years or 900 charges. You can then replace the battery with a new one. The battery is suitable for an alleged duration of 10 hours at medium volume. I think that's pretty accurate, but I had a different experience when the Move was in standby. It was supposed to stay that way for up to 120 hours, but I found it heard an audible tone when I canceled it with a 40% charge remaining that it had to be plugged in after just 12 hours.
On June 16, 2020, with the announcement of the new white color option, Sonos announced that the battery life of the Move would be increased to 11 hours by a software update.
The Move can be charged via USB-C if you don't have the charging station at hand. However, please note the following: Not every USB-C charger works. The move requires a charger that can output one of these three voltage / current combinations: 12 V / 3 A, 15 V / 3 A, 20 V / 2.25 A, and it is highly unlikely to do so with your phone supplied charger is compatible. You don't want to make this discovery in the middle of a road trip. The Move's front LED flashes angry orange to let you know that she's not happy.
Hey google, can you say bluetooth, wifi and airplay 2?
The Sonos Move offers many options: a portable Bluetooth speaker with a battery life of 10 hours, a Wi-Fi speaker with AirPlay 2 and a smart speaker with Alex or Google Assistant on board. The move makes everyone right. Switching between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modes is as easy as pressing the dedicated mode button on the back of the speaker. Amazingly, Bluetooth sounds very similar to the quality of Wi-Fi, which proves that the biggest factor in the perceived sound quality of the speakers is not necessarily the source.
I still preferred to listen over Wi-Fi indoors, but frankly it's more than sufficient in places where Bluetooth is needed. Sonos claims that the Bluetooth wireless range is excellent on the go, and while this is true outside, it also had trouble staying connected to my phone indoors as I was in our multi-tier home, as in other BT products that I tested, say we didn't like being separated by more than one floor.
Sonos needs to find a way for the Sonos app to maintain operational control over the move in Bluetooth mode. It's not right to start a third-party app like Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal just because I'm not at home. I like the experience with the Sonos app and hope that one day it will be the only experience I need, regardless of the color of my wireless connection.
I had some difficulty installing the Google Assistant setup on the go, but I feel like I've already used GA for another Sonos product in my home. If you completely remove GA from the system and add it back in, everything will work properly. As soon as Google was operational, it ran perfectly and responded to all of my commands. "Hey Google, how do I make a mojito?" on the specific, "Hey Google, play Los Lobos in the living room", very quickly. The microphone array on the Move has so far proven to be more sensitive than that of the Sonos One. It picked up my orders in quiet speaking throughout the room and even whispered when it was only a few meters away.
Is it really trueplay?
The same microphone array is responsible for one of the more fascinating functions of the Move: Auto Trueplay or the ability to optimize your own EQ settings based on the location of the speaker. In last August's Sonos demo, a speaker moved the move from a wide-open living room to a tiny storage compartment, and in fact Auto Trueplay has adjusted to improve the sound.
I may not have made the move sound as extreme as I did in the demo, but I haven't noticed many EQ adjustments from place to place. I wondered if Auto Trueplay could only be as effective with its dependence on local acoustic feedback as Trueplay from a smartphone microphone outside the speaker. Unfortunately there is no way to test this. If you disable Auto Trueplay on the Move, you won't get manual Trueplay as an option.
Our opinion
At $ 399, the Sonos Move isn't as cheap as some would have liked for the company's first Bluetooth speaker. It lacks some Bluetooth gadgets like a speakerphone and Bluetooth stereo paring, and you can't use the Sonos app in Bluetooth mode. It only sounds a little better indoors than a Sonos One SL for $ 170.
With its ability to fill any garden or pool party with music, the easy switch between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and the practical integration of smart speakers, it is the ideal companion for some Sonos fans and possibly the only Sonos product that does so you need .
Is there a better alternative?
The number of portable, smart, weatherproof speakers that can work on both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi networks is gradually increasing. Many of them are cheaper than the Sonos Move for $ 399. Of these, the Bose portable home speaker for $ 349 is the closest in design and features. It's not quite as powerful as the Move, but it's a bit lighter and its handle makes it a better companion for longer hikes. Here's our head-to-head comparison of these two excellent portable devices. However, none of these competitors can connect to a Sonos system. This makes the Move unique for Sonos owners.
How long it will take?
All Sonos products come with a one-year warranty. However, this is not an indicator of longevity. Sonos speakers have always shown impressive build quality, and the company goes to great lengths to test its products for durability. We believe that the Sonos Move, with its user-replaceable battery and first-class construction, has an excellent lifespan.
Should you buy it
Yes. The Sonos Move delivers great portable sound in a package that survives almost anything you can throw at it.
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