Santa Barbara, California, electronics company Sonos is not one to follow the schedules of other hardware makers. The company is not one to join the rush in regularly releasing new devices and has been intentionally introducing new products according to its own schedule. The electronics company has been known to be a leading brand for sound system devices and speakers.
On Sept. 28, Monday, Sonos has announced that it has updated its flagship speaker, the Play:5. The new Play:5, which is the company's all-in-one speaker, is now equipped with some design changes that improve the quality of the speaker's sound. According to Forbes, Sonos has added 800 holes on the company logo which can be found on the speaker. Before, the logo has been reported to obstruct the sound and compromise the quality of the audio.
The new Play:5 now has 66,000 holes on the plastic grill of the speakers. Before, the company has opted to use metal for the grill. Since the speaker has Wifi antennas, six of them to be exact, the metal interferes with the performance of the wifi feature. The speaker also has three tweeters , six drivers, and three sub-woofers, all to improve sound quality and performance.
The Play:5 speaker has first been released in 2009, along with the Play:1 and Play:3 speakers. The flagship speaker costs $500. The new Play: 5 is available in two colors, matte black and matte white. "We put all these disciplines together, like antenna engineers, acoustic engineers, industrial designers, user interface designers. They all come together in the beginning of a project and that is unusual," said Sonos senior design director, Mieko Kusano.
Kusano further added that tech companies usually opt to work on the hardware first, and then work on the software to make the device smart. The design comes in last, but in this case, Sonos did not save the design for last. Sonos has also announced a matching software for its Play speakers. The new software allows users to tune their Play speakers, and it is aptly called Trueplay.
The software lets users tune the speakers to match a specific acoustic environment, allowing the devices to produce sound that will fit the setting. The room mapping technology makes the quality sound possible at any space or room, for the speakers to produce. "Suddenly, the speaker knows where it is and it morphs itself inside the home," said Sonos sound experience leader and award-winning music producer, Giles Martin. The app, however, only works in iOS devices. Indeed, Sonos marches to the beat of its own drum, and it appears to be working all for the good.
