Sonos is on a bit of a roll. The company recently unveiled its first headphones, the Sonos Ace headphones — headphones that I loved when I reviewed them. But there are other new products from Sonos too, including a follow-up to its most portable speaker. The Sonos Roam 2 may not represent a massive upgrade, but it does bring new features to an already-loved speaker.
The Sonos Roam 2 offers a few design tweaks and some new features while remaining at the same price as before. Let’s get this out of the way right now — if you have a first-generation Sonos Roam, you probably don’t need to upgrade to the second-gen model. But, if you’re newly looking for a portable Bluetooth speaker , the Sonos Roam 2 makes a serious case for itself as the go-to option for those who prioritize audio quality.
At $179, the Sonos Roam 2 is definitely more expensive than other portable speakers. Is it worth buying as a premium option?
A sleek and stylish design
For the most part, the Sonos Roam 2 keeps the same design as before, with a few minor tweaks. The logo color has been changed to match the rest of the speaker, allowing it to blend in, and there’s a dedicated Bluetooth button.
The fact that the speaker is so similar to the previous generation isn’t a bad thing. The speaker clearly has Sonos’ design sensibilities, and looks right at home next to other Sonos speakers and soundbars. It’s clearly built from premium materials too — a combination of metal and a matte rubberized plastic.
Image source: Christian de Looper for BGR
Speaking of build quality, the speaker is built for portability, and it still has the same waterproof build. That’s a good thing — with IP67 water resistance, it’ll easily survive splashes and rain, and should be fine submerged in up to a meter of water for up to 30 minutes. To be clear, you won’t want to drop the speaker in water intentionally, however if it unintentionally takes a bath, it should survive perfectly fine.
On the left side of the Sonos Roam 2 speaker, four buttons can be found. There are two buttons for volume control, a play/pause button, and a microphone button. On the bottom of the speaker are a few extra controls: a power button and, new for this version, a dedicated Bluetooth button. There’s also a USB-C port here, but that port remains solely for charging and can’t be used for wired audio playback.
Like other Sonos speakers, the Sonos Roam 2 is available in black and white. However, it also comes in a few other fun colors, including red, blue, and green. I like that Sonos has branched out a little in colors for its portable speaker. It makes sense that you wouldn’t necessarily want a green soundbar, but a green portable speaker looks good.
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, wrapped into one
For the most part, the feature set remains the same on the second-generation speaker. However, the way you’ll use the speaker is a little easier. That’s because the new speaker has a built-in Bluetooth button, which means you can simply turn the speaker on and connect it to your device through Bluetooth without having to go through the setup process in the Sonos app first. The addition of the Bluetooth button may be a small change, but it definitely helps make the speaker easier to use day-to-day.
Of course, you can still add the speaker to the Sonos app if you want to, and if you’re a Sonos user with other Sonos speakers, you’ll likely want to do that. The Sonos Roam 2 isn’t just a Bluetooth speaker; it can also connect through Wi-Fi, which means that when you’re not using it outside of the home, it can technically be used as part of your larger multi-room speaker system. Sonos even sells a wireless charger that can be used with the Roam to keep it constantly powered. However, the speaker can technically be used with any Qi wireless charger as well. Sonos’ own wireless charger supports 10W charging speeds, while most Qi wireless chargers max out at 7.5W. I didn’t have the Sonos wireless charging to test with.
Image source: Christian de Looper for BGR
The Sonos Roam 2 has a microphone built into it and supports Sonos’ TruePlay technology, which means it can constantly tune your Sonos speaker. I really like the TruePlay tech, however I’ve found it mostly useful for speakers that are fixed in a spot rather than those that are moved around a lot.
As expected, because the speaker works through Wi-Fi, it also supports AirPlay, so it can be integrated into your Apple speaker ecosystem when it’s connected to Wi-Fi. The speaker can also be used with Amazon Alexa or Sonos Voice Control. As expected, there’s no Google Assistant support, unfortunately. Lastly, the Sonos app has an EQ built into it — however, it’s a very basic EQ that only offers a basic slider for bass and treble. This isn’t necessarily a huge deal for the speaker, which sounds quite good. However, I did find it to be an issue when I reviewed the Sonos Ace headphones .
The battery life on the Sonos Roam 2 is 10 hours of continuous listening, which is really only fine. Other portable speakers offer a much longer battery life, so if you’re looking for a speaker that can play music all day without running out of juice, the Sonos Roam 2 probably isn’t for you. Of course, most people will only need to listen for a few hours at a time, and if you plan on keeping your speaker on a wireless charger or plugged in whenever you’re not using it, you should have no issues with the battery.
Great audio quality overall
The audio quality on the Sonos Roam 2 is pretty much the same as the original Sonos Roam, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The original Sonos Roam sounded great, and the Sonos Roam 2 does, too.
Despite being a smaller speaker, the Roam 2 is capable of producing decent bass response. Sure, you won’t get the same bass that you’ll find from a speaker like the Sonos Era 300, but it’s certainly not sub-par.
Image source: Christian de Looper for BGR
Like many consumer speakers, the Sonos Roam 2 has a slight cut in the mid-range and a small boost in the highs. This isn’t a bad thing — it helps make the speaker sound great for a wide variety of music. I was particularly impressed with the high-end response offered by this speaker. Often, smaller portable speakers limit both the bass and the highs, but there’s decent clarity and detail in the high-end for a speaker in this class. Sure, audiophiles might want a little more than this speaker can offer, but as far as portable speakers go, the Sonos Roam 2 sounds excellent.
Conclusions
In a vacuum, the Sonos Roam 2 might be a bit of a tough sell. It looks good and sounds great, but it’s also relatively expensive at $180. There are other portable speakers, like the Anker Soundcore Motion 300, that also sound great and cost a whole lot less than the Roam 2.
But the Sonos Roam 2 doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Instead, it’s built to cater to existing Sonos users who want a portable speaker they can integrate into the ecosystem. For those users, the Sonos Roam 2 is an excellent speaker. It works well with Sonos’ app, supports tech like AirPlay 2 , and when it’s not outside the home, it can be integrated into a wider multi-room speaker system.
The competition
As mentioned, the Sonos Roam 2 is built for a specific kind of user — someone who already uses Sonos products and wants a portable speaker that can be used with the rest of their system. For those people, there’s really no competition. That said, if you already have the original Sonos Roam, you don’t need to buy the Sonos Roam 2.
However, if you are simply looking for a portable speaker to use on the go, it might be worth considering something like the Anker Soundcore Motion 300, which costs only around $80. It’s not as premium as Sonos’ offering, but it does sound pretty good and has a longer 13-hour battery life.
Should I buy the Sonos Roam 2?
Yes. If you’re looking for a portable Sonos speaker, it’s the way to go.
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