I preferred the unique Sonos Roam sufficient to provide it a 9/10, WIRED Recommends. And now, I fall on my sword in entrance of everybody who purchased one primarily based on my recommendation. I had one grievance, which was that my overview unit’s battery—together with the batteries of many different models belonging to folks I do know and work with—had bizarre drain points long-term. My first-gen mannequin was unusable by the point I got here again to match it to this new mannequin.
With the Roam 2, quietly launched alongside Sonos’ new Ace over-ear headphones (8/10, WIRED Recommends), Sonos has remedied these battery issues. The corporate additionally added a button to make Bluetooth pairing simpler and extra prompt if you’re not at house.
It isn’t exactly an engineering triumph, however I do wish to see manufacturers replace merchandise to repair what’s damaged fairly than reinvent the wheel. Functionally, the Roam 2 appears and acts identically to the primary mannequin. This one simply goals to last more than a pair years, and it comes with a neater Bluetooth pairing button. I nonetheless prefer it, and I am going to prefer it much more if long-term testing reveals that the battery (and the gadget itself) will final.
{Photograph}: Amazon
Roam on the Vary
Sonos’ entire deal was that you just could not get Bluetooth in its merchandise, however that has modified over the previous a number of years.
The Roam was the primary devoted moveable gadget that Sonos determined ought to get Bluetooth (there not being a lot Wi-Fi in the course of the woods or at a lake) in order that listeners might snag a single Sonos product for each their kitchen and knapsack.
At house, it connects to Wi-Fi and reveals up within the Sonos app in your cellphone. If you’re on the go—or a pal desires to play some music actual fast—simply pair to Bluetooth and play. It’s a superb celebration trick for these of us with different Sonos audio system.
I preserve my Roam 2 in my rest room or bed room once I’m not taking it with me exterior. At house, it acts like one other speaker in my Sonos ecosystem. Once I wish to come out for some seaside time, or deliver a few of my favourite tunes exterior, I simply seize the speaker and go, then pair it to my cellphone (or reconnect it, normally) for straightforward listening the place it in any other case doesn’t have an web connection.
{Photograph}: Amazon
Nonetheless The Finest
Utilizing the Roam 2 (which appears an identical to the primary Roam, save a much-needed Bluetooth pairing button and some totally different colorways) is so simple as it will get. Join cellphone, choose music, play mentioned music. At house, by way of Wi-Fi, issues can get a bit extra difficult, because of a much-maligned new Sonos app and its woes with organising (or generally even seeing) new audio system.
I’ve managed to attach mine to my house system with relative ease, connecting it to the opposite Sonos speaker I’ve paired in my workplace in a indifferent storage, in case I wish to play the identical music in and out. It really works flawlessly for this function, and if I had a bigger Sonos system at house I’m certain that I’d take pleasure in it much more.
Functionally, it really works nice, with good beefy bass and balanced treble and midrange that makes the speaker good for each podcasts and pop music. It’s not loud or giant sufficient to gasoline a full-on dance celebration within the woods, however it does get surprisingly loud for its dimension.
