Fans of Sonos soundbars have been waiting for years in anticipation of its rumoured foray into the world of TVs, and they’re now one step closer to seeing that happen.
That’s according to the latest report on the story in The Verge, which quotes an anonymous source from the company who is familiar with plans for the device as saying it will cost between £200 and £400.
That would mean the device, codenamed Pinewood, is going to be far more expensive than similar streamers.
For instance, it would compete with devices such as the Amazon TV Fire Stick 4K, which costs just £60, or even cheaper if you go for an older model that doesn’t support 4K resolution. There’s also the Google Chromecast with Google TV, which is priced at just £35 for the HD version. Even Google’s latest gizmo, the much heftier Google TV Streamer, which comes with generous storage and more AI features, only costs £99.
Many suspect that Sonos is really going after Apple’s territory, where it competes in the upper tier of the streaming device sector with the Apple TV 4K. But even that is likely to be much cheaper than Sonos’s device, as it’s currently on sale for around £149 in most stores.
The Verge didn’t say when the Sonos device might go on sale, but Bloomberg said in a report last December that it’s likely to make its debut in early 2025.
The report did at least give us an idea of what to expect from the new device. Among other things, it says Pinewood will combine content from multiple streaming services, such as Netflix, Max and Disney+, putting it all together within a “single, unified software experience”. But considering that is essentially what the Apple TV 4K already does, what else is there to justify the high price tag?
According to The Verge, Pinewood will also integrate Sonos Voice Controls, and there will be a physical remote with buttons for popular streaming applications. It didn't publish any pictures of Pinewood, but the report describes it as being a “flattened black square and slightly thicker than a deck of trading cards” when viewed from above.
The unique look will be enhanced by that fact that Pinewood will also serve as an HDMI switch, with multiple HDMI ports that support passthrough functionality. As such, users would be able to plug in external devices such as games consoles and 4K Blu-ray players directly, which is something that no other streamer supports.
In addition, Pinewood will also have the ability to transmit lag-free TV audio to Sonos soundbars and speakers wirelessly, and other possible features include gigabit Ethernet and Wi-Fi 7.
To date, Sonos has not yet confirmed it is working on a TV device, though it has previously announced a partnership with The Trade Desk, creator of the Ventura smart TV operating system.
