Sonos and Ikea show us possible designs for their budget speaker range

Ikea teased a collaboration with Sonos back in December, but didn’t share any details of what to expect. It has now revealed that the plan is for a range of budget speakers which are compatible with both existing Sonos setups and Ikea’s Tradfri smart home devices …

The speaker range will be branded as Symfonisk.

What do you get when you combine great home furnishing knowledge with sound expertise? The answer is SYMFONISK – an all new sound range that marks the beginning of a long-term partnership between Sonos and IKEA. The first product is already within earshot […]

Research shows that for many people music is the one most crucial ingredient to boost the mood at home. A few years back IKEA, realizing the need to learn more about the impact of sound, set out on a journey that soon led to California – and to Sonos. The American electronics company, known to be true experts on wireless sound technology, proved to be the perfect teacher, sparring partner, and collaborator.

“Sonos’ company culture is very similar to that of IKEA. Our shared values and beliefs made us connect from day one. When the actual work started, we felt that we were the perfect match in every way”, says Björn Block, Business Leader for IKEA Home Smart.

No pricing has yet been revealed, but Ikea’s Tradfri range was intended to make smart lighting more affordable to the masses. The company also hints that Symfonisk will be cheaper than existing Sonos speakers, which currently start from around $150.

Many people dream of built-in sound systems, but few can afford it. Our goal is for our collective work to save space, get rid of cords, make clutter invisible, and bring sound and music into the home in a more beautiful way.

The Verge has seen non-functional prototypes, shown above. These are captioned ‘a table full of possible designs,’ suggesting that nothing has yet been finalized.

One big question will be whether the speakers will support AirPlay 2, or whether that will be one of the compromises needed to hit a desired price-point and avoid cannibalising the existing Sonos range.

Check out 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Apple news: