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Update: Though it's not mentioned in the press release, Sonos confirmed that the Move 2 will support Amazon Alexa and Sonos Voice Control.
Following the rumors surrounding the potential arrival of a new Sonos Move speaker and the 5 features to expect, I'm pleased to reveal the next-gen Sonos Move 2 portable smart speaker has officially been announced today (September 6).
Billed as Sonos' most powerful portable speaker ever, the Move 2 is set to go on sale on September 20 priced at $449 / £449 / €499 / AU$799 — around $50 more than when the original launched in September 2019.
Like the original, the Move 2 is IP56-rated for durability, meaning it can tolerate rain and light water splashes without issue. The physical design may not look any different, but the next-gen model comes in a new olive matte finish option as well as the company's traditional black, and white finishes.
It's remarkable how the original Sonos Move managed to rank as one of the best smart speakers as well as one of the best Bluetooth speakers, and one of the best outdoor speakers when it launched. Its strong performance in each of these categories was undoubtedly due to Sonos' Trueplay tech that continually optimizes the speaker’s sound to its surroundings and the audio content that's playing. The same tuning software continues to be incorporated in the Move 2.
With the promise of even better performance thanks to several key upgrades, the Sonos Move 2 looks set to shake up even more speaker categories. Here's what to expect.
Sonos Move 2 gets stereo sound
Much like the Sonos Era 100, which superseded the Sonos One smart speaker when it arrived earlier this year, the new Move 2 has also morphed into a stereo speaker. The original Sonos Move was a mono speaker. For reasons best known to itself though, Sonos doesn't publish much on internal specifications for any of its speaker models. There's no mention of the power output except to say that the Sonos Move 2 is "powerful," and that the stereo driver configuration uses two angled tweeters and one mid-woofer speaker driven by individual Class D amplifiers.
Sonos Move 2 gets 24-hour playback
From the press images I've seen so far, it's tough to spot the differences between the original and the next-gen model. The dimensions are similar at 9.5 x 6.3 x 5 inches, as is the weight at 6.61 pounds despite doubling battery life capacity. Speaking of which, the Move 2 claims to deliver up to 24 hours playback on a single charge. That's more than 2x as much as the original, although we've yet to get a hands-on with the Move 2 to test that claim out under real world listening conditions.
Sonos Move 2 gets stronger connectivity
In terms of wireless smarts, the Move 2 sports both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. Both are connected simultaneously rather than requiring users to toggle between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. This feature made it to the Sonos Roam but the original Move missed out. Additionally, owners can stream via Bluetooth to a stereo pair of Move 2 speakers when connected to Wi-Fi, or even group Move 2 with the rest of your Sonos system. Connection via AirPlay 2 is also available.
Sonos Move 2 gets improved USB-C port
Sonos tells us that the Move 2 has an upgraded USB-C port that can be used to top up devices via the Move 2's built-in battery. There's also a proprietary adapter for connecting to external audio sources using a Sonos Line-in Adapter, or to a router via the Sonos Combo Adapter. Both adapters are sold separately and were launched along with the new Sonos Era 100 and Era 300 speakers in early 2023.
Sonos Move 2 gets better control
Although it might be tough to spot the external differences between the original Move and the next-gen portable smart speaker, the Move 2 has the same controls as the Era 100 and 300. This doesn’t change too much, but it does add the volume slider control, which is pretty neat. There's also a switch on the back to disable the Move’s voice assistant microphones.
Speaking of which, there's no mention of voice assistant support. Amazon Alexa and Sonos Voice Control were expected to be supported, but there was no mention of it in the Sonos press announcement. I'll update this news story with more information when it becomes available.
Once again, the Sonos Move 2 will be priced at $449 / £449 / €499 / AU$799 when it goes on sale on September 20. It will be available directly from the Sonos shop as well as online retailers. It comes in three matte finishes including olive, white, and black. Look out for our full hands-on review coming later this month.
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