Sonos is working on the successor to its flagship Dolby Atmos-toting Arc soundbar, according to a leak which describes the next-generation home cinema product as “ultra-premium”.
According to a report from The Verge‘s Chris Welsh, who has had an inside track on pretty much every product Sonos has released in recent years, the next-gen model could be getting a pretty sizeable overhaul that might drive up the price.
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The report says the “components and speaker drivers have been completely overhauled and redesigned” and that could mean a cost of $1,200 (something likely to be mirrored in the UK if it comes to pass).
Considering the original Arc was priced at $899/£899 that could represent a price increase of £300/$300 or 33%, so we’d better see some pretty significant improvements here. Perhaps it’s plausible that the redesign somewhat negates the need for a Sonos Sub to do some of the heavy lifting at the lower end.
Another improvement might be the inclusion of Bluetooth connectivity, which is absent from the previous model that solely relied on Wi-Fi connections for wireless sound. It’s a more recent addition to Sonos products, and the first Arc arrived in 2020.
The report says the company is also planning to include connectivity with the new Sonos Ace headphones, which offers Spatial Audio. The device, reportedly codenamed Lasso, will retain a very similar design Welsh says, and Sonos is targeting shipping before the end of 2024.
The Sonos Arc remains one of our favourite soundbars, with our reviewer praising the expansive, well-defined and invigorating sound, and Dolby Atmos support that offers a good impression of audio height and width.
