Sonos and Ikea – The Picture Frame – A Wireless Speaker That Looks More Like Furniture Than a Gadget
Sonos and Ikea have joined forces again, this time to offer a flexible wireless speaker for under $200 that looks more like furniture than an electronic gadget. Like its picture frame predecessor and Symfonisk lamp counterparts, this latest collaboration creates something truly versatile.
Use it as a bookshelf or mount it directly to the wall (Ikea offers an attachment bracket for this purpose). Plus, its smart lighting and blinds capabilities will work through Sonos app in the fall – adding even more flexibility!
Sound quality
An unlikely partnership may seem unlikely at first glance, but Ikea’s knack for designing practical everyday devices makes them the perfect partner for Sonos’ Symfonisk line of audio-based smart speakers that resemble furniture rather than typical electronics.
Ikea’s first two releases – a bookshelf speaker and table lamp – were met with enthusiastic consumer reception. Now comes Ikea’s third product release: The Picture Frame speaker. Building on previous designs but taking an entirely different approach in form and function, this new model can be placed vertically or horizontally and propped against flat surfaces like an actual photo frame would. As it can also be used as bookend (though Ikea cautions against placing too much weight on it (it only holds up to 6.6 pounds).
Like its sister products, Sonos’ Picture Frame streams music over Wi-Fi rather than Bluetooth from your favorite music services and can be combined with soundbars for surround sound or multi-room audio playback. It supports most major voice assistants including Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri; plus you can pair another speaker for stereo audio playback or use multiple frames together for easy multi-room playback.
Setup and use are simple with Sonos thanks to its familiar user interface on both its app and device itself. There’s a sleek plastic casing in either white or black hues with textured fabric speaker grilles and three playback controls: LED indicator light, small Ikea-Sonos label on front panel, power port and cutaways on back for either USB or Ethernet connections depending on configuration settings.
The Picture Frame doesn’t offer quite the same performance as dedicated Sonos speakers, but it still serves as an effective option for consumers looking to quickly enter multi-room audio. It is capable of getting fairly loud without suffering compression at maximum volume; however, its soundstage doesn’t quite measure up to larger speakers’.
Design
The Picture Frame is the newest member of Sonos and Ikea’s Symfonisk smart home speaker range. A mid-sized unit, it can either be wall-mounted or placed on a shelf via its kickstand for easy placement and placement – similar to other Symfonisk products designed to blend in seamlessly with decor without getting in your way. Wireless speaker manufacturers increasingly favor this approach in an attempt to avoid having to find space for individual sound systems.
The Picture Frame uses Sonos-designed digital speaker technology hidden inside an attractive fabric cover reminiscent of a picture frame, complete with its signature line-and-dot pattern that might not suit everyone’s aesthetic but should fit nicely in most modern decor settings. Simply swap out its artwork to match whatever room it’s placed in – there is even a small Ikea-Sonos fabric label visible at its top for easy identification – plus its LED provides play/pause/volume control!
Picture Frame speakers stand out as pieces of tech due to their eye-catching shapes, but this more subdued speaker still fits on most standard shelves and features flip-out feet for stability against vibration and bass rattling.
Like its other Sonos speakers, the Picture Frame boasts smart functionality and compatibility with Apple’s AirPlay 2 protocol. Compatible with Spotify, Amazon Music, and other streaming services – controlled using Sonos apps – it also works great as part of multi-room audio setups.
The Picture Frame’s primary downside is its limited selection of pre-made front artwork designs; however, third-party companies are already stepping in with custom designs for Sonos and Ikea to offer custom solutions that blend in more with customers’ home environment rather than standing out like an obvious gadget. It’s good news that Sonos and Ikea are finally realizing customers want their smart home technology to fit seamlessly in rather than draw attention as an intrusive device.
Convenience
Ikea has made strides toward making technology an integral part of home furnishings and decor in recent years, through smart lights and blinds designed to reduce hassle when plugging things in or switching them on and off, as well as its partnership with Sonos to facilitate multi-room audio setup.
Symfonisk Picture Frame WiFi Speaker is a new offering from Sonos, designed as an art piece to fit seamlessly into any living space. As its name implies, this $200 piece looks more like a piece of artwork than a sound device and should be displayed as such. Equipped with AirPlay 2, voice assistant integration via Alexa or Google Assistant and music streaming from Spotify, Apple Music, TIDAL and more–these features combine in an easily integrates design that complements home environments seamlessly.
This speaker features a unique tall, thin design that makes it possible to stand it up like a book or lay flat as part of a bookshelf. Additionally, its wall mounting design includes cutouts in its back so power and ethernet cables sit flush against its surface – full Sonos compatibility making this model the lowest priced ever Sonos speaker with excellent audio quality and multi-room compatibility ensuring multi-room cred.
One drawback of the LG C8 Tablet is its lack of an internal microphone for voice assistant support; this issue can be addressed by pairing it with another voice assistant device like Amazon Echo or Google Home. Starting July 15, these speakers will be available online and in stores alike and include a remote control to enable play/pause/skipped tracks as well as to adjust volume up or down. There are a few improvements over the original, including a longer power cable and subtle changes to button placement (from ‘play/pause/volume up/down’ to ‘volume down/play/volume up/play). One more notable upgrade will be its stereo pairing feature; this will allow two speakers to be closer together for left and right stereo effects not possible with single output models.
Value
Sonos has long dominated the premium smart speaker market, but its recent partnership with Ikea may prove revolutionary. Soon enough, consumers will be able to walk into an Ikea store and purchase Sonos bookshelf speakers for $100 or a lamp-powered picture frame for $299; both products deliver impressive sound right out of the box without requiring subscription or other fees to use properly.
Ikea and Sonos have collaborated on multiple products so far, with the most noteworthy one being the Symfonisk WiFi bookshelf speaker. At half of the price of Sonos Play:1 or the new Sonos One SL voice assistant speakers with similar audio performance, its price point makes this an appealing alternative. This speaker can also be mounted wall-mount as shelf if an additional mount is purchased.
The Symfonisk lamp speaker stands out as one of Sonos’ more quirky devices, offering solid sound through its lamp part while being large and cumbersome to store away compared to their other products. Plus, its appearance does not blend in seamlessly into a living room corner!
However, these Ikea/Sonos speakers represent an exciting change to how we think of connected home technology. Up until now, people who wanted smart speakers in their homes had few options besides buying cheap Amazon Echo Dots or Sonos Minis from retailers and duct taping them onto furniture. But the Symfonisk line marks an intriguing deviation from that model with its elegant industrial design (much better than Ikea smart light bulbs which may not appeal to everyone) and great sound quality at around $180 or under for table lamp speakers and their cost.