Sonos Play Review: A Perfect Middle Ground?
For years, if you wanted a portable Sonos speaker, you had a choice to make. You either went small and light with the Roam 2, sacrificing some of that room-filling power and battery life, or you went bigger with the Move 2, gaining more scale and bass but giving up some true portability in the process.
There has always been a gap in the middle. And that is exactly where the Sonos Play comes in.
After thoroughly testing it and comparing it hands-on with the Roam 2, Move 2 and Era 100, we think Sonos has got a lot right here. The Play sounds bigger than you might expect, feels properly premium in the hand, and offers a level of flexibility that makes it much more than just a portable speaker.
But is it the right Sonos speaker for you? Let’s find out.
Sonos Play - SHS 60-Second Summary:  RRP: £299.00 (see latest pricing) The Sonos Play feels like the portable speaker Sonos has been missing. Sitting neatly between the Roam 2 and Move 2, it offers a really impressive balance of sound quality, battery life and day-to-day portability. What stood out most in our testing was just how complete the package feels. The sound is open, spacious and clear, with particularly impressive vocals and a more well-rounded presentation than you might expect from a speaker of this size. Add in the 24-hour battery life, the included charging base, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, and the ability to move seamlessly from room to room or out into the garden and the Play starts to feel like much more than just another portable speaker. For us, that is exactly what makes it so appealing. It has the flexibility of the Roam 2, the battery appeal of the Move 2 and a sound that at times feels closer to an Era 100 than anything else. If you're looking for one Sonos speaker that can do a bit of everything (and do it well) the Sonos Play looks like a very smart choice. | |
| Pros: ✓ Excellent balance of portability and performance ✓ Open, spacious sound with impressive vocal clarity ✓ 24-hour battery life is a huge plus ✓ Premium design and finish ✓ Useful flexibility with WiFi, Bluetooth and charging base | Cons: ✕ Not the cheapest route into Sonos ✕ Move 2 still offers more outright scale and bass |
Haven’t got time to read? Watch our full Sonos Play review on YouTube.
Jump To:
- Price & Availability
- Design & Build
- Features & Everyday Use
- Battery Life, Charging & Bluetooth Grouping
- Sound Performance
- Sonos Play vs Roam 2 vs Move 2 & Era 100
- Our Verdict
Sonos Play Review: Price & Availability
The Sonos Play is available now with an RRP of £299, placing it bang in between the Roam 2 and Move 2 in Sonos’ portable lineup.
At that price, it feels like a well-judged middle ground. You’re getting a more premium, more capable step up from the Roam 2, without stretching to Move 2 money.
If you’re thinking of adding one to your setup, you can shop the Sonos Play at Smart Home Sounds with Lowest Price Guaranteed, Free Next Day Delivery, our Free 6-Year Extended Warranty, and expert advice if you need help deciding whether it’s the right Sonos speaker for you.
Sonos Play Review: Design & Build
Straight out of the box, the Sonos Play feels every bit as premium as you’d hope.
The grille, clean finish and even the charging base all give it a more polished, high-end feel than a lot of portable speakers at this price. It still looks unmistakably Sonos, but there’s a bit more personality here too, especially in the white finish with its subtle green accents.
Size-wise, it actually feels a little smaller in person than the initial launch photos suggested. The dimensions mean it sits between the Roam 2 and Move 2, but in the hand it feels closer to an Era 100 that’s been shrunk down and made portable than a direct rip-off of either of those. That's a big part of its appeal. It's compact enough to move around the house easily, but substantial enough to feel like a proper speaker rather than just a grab and go option.
There are some nice practical touches too. The utility loop on the back works well, although in day-to-day use we often found ourselves just grabbing the speaker itself. The top-mounted controls are responsive and easy enough to use too, even if they are a little subtle visually.
Durability is another big plus. The Sonos Play is rated IP67, which means it’s fully dustproof and waterproof, and can survive being submerged in up to one metre of water for 30 minutes. That matches the Roam 2 and gives it an edge over the Move 2 on paper, which we really like, especially if you’re thinking of using it in places like the bathroom or out in the garden.
Our only small criticism is that some of the softer-touch materials do pick up dust and fingerprints a bit more easily than we’d like. Still, this is a really well-judged design. It feels premium, practical and properly thought through, which is exactly what you want from a Sonos speaker designed to move around with you.
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Sonos Play Review: Features & Everyday Use
The Sonos Play is packed with features, but what we like most is that they actually feel useful in day-to-day life rather than just there to bulk out the spec sheet.
You’ve got WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and the Sonos app, so there’s loads of flexibility in how and where you want to use it. At home, it fits neatly into the wider Sonos ecosystem over WiFi, but when you want to take it elsewhere, Bluetooth makes that really easy.
Around the back, there’s also a USB-C port, and that does more than you might expect. With the right line-in adapter, you can connect something like a turntable, which is definitely not the most obvious use case for a portable speaker, but it actually works really well. If you’ve got the charging base set up near your turntable, it becomes a handy way to bring vinyl into your Sonos system without needing a speaker that permanently lives there.
Voice control is here too, and it actually makes more sense than you might think on a speaker like this. We found ourselves using it in the garden to turn the volume up or skip tracks without reaching for a phone. You’ve got Alexa, Siri and Sonos Voice Control, but no Google Assistant.
Once it’s set up in the Sonos app, you can even use Sonos Voice Control over Bluetooth for more basic commands, which is a nice touch. And if voice control isn’t your thing, Sonos gives you a couple of ways to switch it off. There’s the top control, which disables voice assistants but keeps the mics active for Auto Trueplay, and there’s also a physical switch on the back which cuts power to the mics completely. The only thing to bear in mind there is that you’ll lose Auto Trueplay if you use the hard switch.
If you’re not familiar with Trueplay, it’s Sonos’ room tuning tech that measures the environment your speaker is in and optimises performance to match. You can still run it manually in the Sonos app, but the Play also gets Auto Trueplay, which means it can adjust itself automatically when needed, for example if you move it from the kitchen to the bathroom or out into the garden. In our experience, Trueplay works really well, so it’s definitely worth using, and you can always toggle it on and off in the app to hear what difference it makes.
Sonos Play Review: Battery Life, Charging & Bluetooth Grouping
For us, battery life is one of the best features of the Sonos Play.
It’s rated at up to 24 hours, which is plenty enough for a speaker this size. That matches the much bigger Move 2 and more than doubles the 10-hour battery life of the Roam 2. In day-to-day use, that makes a real difference. It means you’re not constantly thinking about charging it and during our testing, it quickly became the kind of speaker you can just pick up, use around the house, leave somewhere, come back to later and carry on without much thought.
The charging base helps with that too. It gives the Play a proper place to live when it’s at home, which makes it feel more like a wireless speaker that also happens to be portable, rather than something you only get out now and then.
| SHS Tip: It’s worth noting that there’s no power brick in the box, so you’ll need to make sure you’ve got a suitable USB-C power adapter ready to get the charging base up and running. |
There are also a few smart battery-saving touches going on in the background. The Play will automatically power off after 30 minutes when it’s not on charge, and there’s a Battery Saver option in the Sonos app which shortens that to 10 minutes in sleep mode. The idea is to preserve standby time as much as possible, which is helpful for the way a lot of people will actually use this speaker, taking it off the dock, moving it from room to room and not necessarily putting it straight back every time.
We also like the fact that Sonos has designed it to sit on its charging base for extended periods without damaging the battery. And when the time eventually comes, the battery is replaceable, with Sonos offering a battery replacement kit. That kind of long-term thinking is always good to see.
The USB-C port does another useful job too, because the Play can also work as a power bank. We tested that ourselves by charging a phone for one hour. Our phone battery went from 46% to 89%, while the Sonos Play dropped from 83% to 60%. So yes, it does take a decent chunk out of the speaker’s battery, but it’s still a handy feature to have if you’re out and about and need to top your phone up.
Another big new feature here is Bluetooth grouping, and for Sonos users especially, this could be a really useful addition. You can group up to four Sonos Play or Move 2 speakers together over Bluetooth, without needing to be on your WiFi network.
In practice, it works really well. You just put the speakers into Bluetooth mode, connect one to your phone, start playing music, then press and hold the play/pause button on the other speaker and it syncs up almost instantly. Once grouped, you can control volume or pause playback from either speaker, and when you are on WiFi, you can even see that grouping in the Sonos app.
If you’re not on WiFi, you won’t see anything in the app, but that doesn’t really matter because it still works exactly as you’d want it to. At home, we’d probably still use WiFi, but when you’re outside or away from home, this is a really handy feature. We also found the range pretty impressive, with around 20 to 30 metres of separation still working reliably in testing.
Sonos Play Review: Internals
Under the hood, the Sonos Play looks like a more compact take on the acoustic platform Sonos has been refining across recent speakers.
Inside, you’ve got a dedicated mid-woofer, two angled tweeters for proper stereo separation, and dual passive radiators helping out with the low end. It’s a setup that makes a lot of sense for a speaker like this, and it goes a long way to explaining why the Play sounds as open and spacious as it does for its size.
One interesting detail here is that Sonos has used Class-H amplifiers, which is a bit different from the Class-D amplification used elsewhere in the lineup. When we asked Sonos about that, they said Class-H gave them the best balance of power, efficiency and durability for a speaker designed to move around and work on battery.
You won’t find Sound Motion inside the Play either, despite Sonos introducing that tech with the Arc Ultra. Sonos told us it is still a big part of its long-term roadmap, but for the Play, they felt this internal setup was the better fit.
Sonos Play Review: Sound Performance
What stood out straight away from testing was how open and spacious the Sonos Play sounds for something this size.
Those dual angled tweeters do a great job of spreading the sound, so it never feels like the audio is just being fired in one direction. Instead, it fills the space really nicely, with a surprisingly wide soundstage and a good sense of stereo separation.
Vocals & Mid-Range:
For us, the real highlight is the mid-range and vocals.
Voices come through really clearly and really naturally, which gives the Play an easy, comfortable sound that you can listen to for long periods without it ever feeling forced. It has a more grown-up, refined presentation than a lot of portable speakers do, and that really helps it feel at home as an everyday speaker rather than just something for occasional use.
Treble & Detail:
There’s plenty of detail up top too.
The treble stays clean and separated without tipping over into anything harsh, which just adds to that open, balanced overall presentation. Nothing feels too sharp or overcooked, and that makes the Play a very easy speaker to listen to for long periods of time.
Bass Performance:
When it comes to bass, the Play does a really solid job, especially at the sort of mid-volume levels most people will actually listen at day to day.
There’s a nice bit of weight here, and it definitely sounds fuller than you might expect from a speaker of this size. Those passive radiators are clearly doing a lot of the heavy lifting, and in all honesty, they perform better than we expected given the form factor.
Push it up towards max volume though, and you do start to hear its limits a bit more. The bass begins to compress, and the sound starts to thin out a bit. If listening loud is your priority then this is where you might want to consider stepping up to the Move 2.
What about as a stereo pair?
If you go for two and run them as a stereo pair, things step up again.
You get a stronger sense of scale, a really solid phantom centre channel, and even more of that openness that makes the Play so enjoyable in the first place. Vocals feel nicely locked in, the overall presentation gets bigger and more effortless, and there’s enough output there to comfortably fill a decent-sized room.
Of course, at £299 each, it’s not exactly a cheap setup. And even as a pair, we still wouldn’t mind a touch more weight in the low end. But for the size and form factor, the performance here is seriously impressive.
Our take:
If we’re being picky, there is still a ceiling to what the Sonos Play can do. It won’t replace a bigger speaker if your priority is maximum bass and scale.
But that’s not really the point.
The clever thing about the Sonos Play is how close it gets, while still being easy to move around and use daily.
Sonos Play vs Roam 2 vs Move 2 & Era 100: What's The Difference?
If you’re still trying to work out where the Sonos Play sits in comparison to the other similar speakers in the lineup, this gives you the quick picture before we get into the more detailed comparisons below.
| Feature | Roam 2 | Play | Move 2 | Era 100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £179 | £299 | £449 | £199 |
| Weight | 0.43kg | 1.3kg | 3kg | 2kg |
| Battery life | 10 hours | 24 hours | 24 hours | Mains Powered |
| Waterproof rating | IP67 | IP67 | IP56 | Humidity Resistant |
| Connectivity | WiFi / Bluetooth | WiFi / Bluetooth | WiFi / Bluetooth | WiFi / Bluetooth |
| Stereo pairing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Built-in powerbank | No | Yes | Yes | No |
Read More: Sonos Roam 2 vs Move 2: Which Portable Speaker is Best?
Sonos Play vs Sonos Roam 2
Compared to the Roam 2, the Sonos Play is a pretty major step up.
That’s not really a criticism of the Roam 2, because it was never trying to do the same job. The Roam 2 is all about being small, light and easy to take anywhere. It’s the one you can chuck in a bag, move from room to room without thinking, or take away with you when space is tight.
The Sonos Play just feels like it's more than that.
It sounds noticeably bigger, fuller and more spacious, with a much wider presentation and far better stereo separation. You’re also getting a huge jump in battery life, going from 10 hours on the Roam 2 to up to 24 hours on the Play, and that alone makes a big difference in day-to-day use.
For us, the Play is the speaker for people who liked the idea of the Roam, but always wanted a bit more from it. More scale, more openness, more battery life, and more of that “proper speaker” feel.
That said, the Roam 2 still absolutely has its place.
If portability is your top priority and you want the lightest, most compact Sonos speaker possible, the Roam 2 is still the better fit. But if you’re happy to go a little bigger in exchange for a much more complete listening experience, the Sonos Play is the clear winner.
Sonos Play vs Sonos Move 2
Compared to the Move 2, the Sonos Play is obviously the smaller and less powerful speaker, but the key thing to note is that it gets closer than you might think.
The Move 2 still has the edge when it comes to outright scale, bass weight and high-volume performance. If you want the biggest, boldest portable Sonos speaker, or you’re trying to fill a larger garden or open-plan space, the Move 2 is still the one to go for.
But what makes the Play so impressive is how little it feels like a compromise for daily listening.
It’s much easier to carry, easier to move around the house and far more practical if you actually want a speaker you’ll take with you regularly rather than just shift from one spot to another.
And considering the difference in size and price, the Play gets surprisingly close in overall sound quality. The Move 2 definitely digs deeper in the bass and holds onto that low-end authority better at higher volumes, but the Play still sounds open, clear and much more capable than its size would suggest.
Vocals are a real strong point too. In fact, there were times in testing where the Play’s mid-range actually felt a little more impressive than the Move 2’s, which says a lot for a speaker this compact.
Then there’s the value side of things to consider too. At £299, the Play comes in a fair bit lower than the Move 2, and for a lot of people, that gap will be hard to ignore. Especially when the Play still gives you the same 24-hour battery life, better portability and a more manageable size for everyday use.
Of course, if your priority is maximum performance, the Move 2 still earns its place. But if you want something that’s easier to live with and easier to justify, the Sonos Play makes a really strong case for itself.
Sonos Play vs Sonos Era 100
The really interesting comparison for us is the Sonos Play vs Era 100.
On paper, these speakers do different jobs. The Sonos Era 100 is designed as a home speaker first and foremost, while the Sonos Play is built to move around with you. But once you actually start listening to them side by side, the difference feels smaller than it does on paper.
The Era 100 is physically bigger, and that does show up in the bass. It just has a bit more weight and hangs onto the low end better at higher volumes. So if your speaker is mainly going to live in one room and your priority is getting the best sound possible for the money, the Era 100 makes a really strong case for itself.
But the Sonos Play is more flexible, and in some ways, more enjoyable.
In our testing, the Play came across as the clearer and more open-sounding speaker at those everyday mid-volume levels. Vocals in particular really stood out. There’s something about the way the Play handles the mid-range that just makes it feel easy and natural to listen to and that gives it a slightly more refined feel than we expected going in.
That actually ties in with what Sonos told us. They said the Sonos Play builds on the same two-tweeter, one-woofer design first introduced in the Era 100 and later used in the Move 2, but that it has been refined further over time. According to Sonos, they’ve continued to improve the transducer performance, enclosure acoustics and DSP tuning, and they see the Play as the most mature version of that platform so far.
That makes a lot of sense based on what we heard.
The other thing the Era 100 can’t offer is the Play’s portability. This is where the value argument starts to shift. Yes, the Era 100 is cheaper, and yes, if you’re only ever listening in one room, it may still be the better-value buy. But the Sonos Play can live on its dock in the kitchen, move to the bathroom, head out into the garden and come away with you for the weekend. That is a very different kind of flexibility.
Ultimately, the choice between these two comes down to how you like to listen. If you want a speaker that is mainly going to stay put and you care most about pure value, the Era 100 will make a load of sense. But if you like the idea of one speaker that can go pretty much anywhere and still sound properly impressive when it gets there, the Sonos Play starts to justify the extra spend very quickly.
Sonos Play Review: Our Verdict
Sonos has designed the Play to be the perfect middle ground in its portable speaker lineup, and after testing it, that's exactly what it feels like.
What you’ve effectively got here is the solid, room-filling performance of something like the Era 100, combined with the battery life of the Move 2 and the flexibility and portability of the Roam 2. Which for most people, is a really appealing mix.
At £299, the Sonos Play feels like a speaker where your money is working hard. It gives you a lot of the flexibility that would otherwise have you looking at multiple Sonos speakers for different spaces, and wraps it into one solid all-rounder.
Sure, if you mainly want a speaker for one space at home and you care most about value, the Era 100 SL at £169 could be the more sensible option. If you want maximum power and something that will fill a bigger room or garden, the Move 2 is still the better choice. And if portability is your top priority, the Roam 2 might still be the better fit.
But for the right person, the Sonos Play really does feel like the all-rounder Sonos has been missing. It sits right in the middle of all that, and for some people, this could be exactly what they’ve been waiting for.
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