SONOS PLAY:3 Smart Wireless Speaker, White

Product Information

Prices valid in stores (all including VAT) until close of business on 2nd November 2023. (Some of these web prices are cheaper than in-store, so please mention that you've seen these offers online.) Under the hood, the speaker array remains exactly the same as its Play:5 predecessor –and Sonos actually makes no bones about this. You're getting the same six custom-designed drivers driven by six class D amplifiers for a combined power output of 120W: three high excursion 10cm mid-woofers across the bottom of the unit and three tweeters above them, two of which are angled outwards. Sound is still definitely positional – the Play:3 can produce serious volume, but it’s not hard to pinpoint where the sound’s coming from compared with the larger Play:5. This ensures it can’t replace a full hi-fi on its own, but Sonos has a solution for that too.

So why did it even refresh the product? Well, you're also getting an upgraded processor here, which is key – it signifies that Sonos is likely future-proofing this speaker for potential firmware upgrades, ie. the oft-rumored addition of hi-res music support. So, there's that. For sound quality, the Sonos Five actually isn't just good value, it's absolutely great value. But it's a case of different strokes for different folks; if Bluetooth streaming is important to you and you own an Android phone, you should look elsewhere. Stream Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, performed by Andre Previn, the London Symphony Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy, and the flute is never harsh through the sparkling and untethered treble. Piano notes are distinct, three dimensional and lilting with enough space around them to shine in a cohesive mix.

Sonos' biggest wireless speaker is kind of a big deal generally

There are over 30 additional services you can plug into the Play:3 in the UK, including – Spotify, Apple Music, Last.fm, Deezer, Aupeo!, Napster, Wolfgang’s Vault, Stitcher SmartRadio and Grooveshark. This should be more than enough to satisfy most buyers.. Why did Sonos create a second home entertainment device? The team did extensive research into how people used their Playbar at home and found that most people didn’t wall mount their televisions or Playbars. To that end, the Playbase was created to allow people to set their televisions right on top of the speaker, allowing for a compact home theater solution. The Sonos Play:3 is an unassuming little box. 26cm wide and 16cm deep, it’s small enough to fit on a bedside cabinet without poking over the edge. If that foot print is still too large for your liking, this box is also designed to function just fine on its side, making it just 13cm wide. There are little rubber feet on one side as well as the bottom, to avoid scratches, while a built-in accelerometer lets the box know when it’s on its side, and to change the sound processing accordingly. As you'd expect from Sonos, the Sonos Sub Gen 3 is a breeze to set up. With no wiring or programming required, simply press one button and follow the prompts from the Sonos app. It automatically adjusts the audio settings to ensure that the Sub is fully optimised to work with your paired Sonos components. It even senses which way it’s orientated and automatically adjusts the EQ for maximum dispersion – and this thing will fill a room far better than you might expect. Streaming

The Sonos Sub also features revolutionary Trueplay technology. Trueplay scans your room, analyses the results and then fine-tunes the Sub for the ideal listening experience. Whether your room is large or small, densely furnished or minimalist, the Sub adapts to give the most natural and realistic sound possible (iOS device required). And talking of positioning, the fact that the Play:3 can be oriented vertically or horizontally means it will fit in almost any space. That's not to say it's bass-heavy overall though. Listen to Fontaines D.C.'s Skinty Fia and you'll hear a low-end that, while impactful and unwavering, never bloats or muddies other musical passages such as accordions, drum riffs, angered vocals and keys.The potential downside of relying on a “real” music library rather than a cloud collection like Spotify is that the device you’re streaming from needs to be powered-up all the time. If you use a NAS box, this is hardly a problem, but we’d be less keen on keeping a computer on all day long. To get the good stuff – like Spotify, Deezer and so on – you need to have signed up for a Sonos account. These extra services are available from within a “More Music” submenu, but can only be added to the main menu once you’re signed in with your Sonos user name. Getting an account is free though, and only takes a minute. The name-plate is positioned so that when you flip it to it's upright orientation, it still reads. (Image credit: TechRadar) Sonos Five review: Design The rear of the Sonos Five reveals its power cable, Ethernet and 3.5mm ports –so your turntable is catered for too. (Image credit: TechRadar) Sonos Five review: Features Band of Horses’ delightful No One’s Gonna Love You, for example, sounds beautifully smooth and solid, but with lots of detail and punch.