Sonos Play:1 - Compact Wireless Smart Speaker - Black

The Good: The Sonos Play:1 works with virtually every streaming service available. At 6.36" H x 4.69" W x 4.69" D the Sonos Play:1 is is small enough to hide in almost any room, but given its simple beauty, you may choose to display it. The Play:1 can be set up in stereo pairs, or multiple Sonos devices can play synced or independent music throughout the house. The Play:1 is humidity resistant (although not waterproof or water resistant) so it can be safely kept in high humidity areas like a bathroom or indoor pool. Despite its small size, the Play:1 is a clear and powerful speaker. Apps are available for phones, tablets and computers. Simple setup, easily pairs with other Sonos devices. One app for all streaming services.The Bad: Sonos recently lost the ability to stream Audible (presumably due to competition with Echo). The Play:1 requires power and cannot run on battery. The power cable may limit placement options. Sonos speakers rarely go on sale, except usually right before the holiday's, so the price is generally the price.Overall: The Sonos Play:1 is a phenomenal entry point into the wireless streaming market. At $199 it is priced competitively, even though the competition is still trying to catch up. Despite being top dog in the field, Sonos is still pushing ahead by adding features regularly. Sonos is universally praised for their features and sound quality and it is well deserved.For months my wife had been complaining that she needed a way to stream music in our master bathroom while she was getting ready in the morning. She had already bought, and subsequently returned, a myriad of cheap bluetooth speakers that sounded awful and had a hard time filling the 10x12x14 bathroom with sound. So I decided to put the issue to bed with a Sonos Play:1. As soon as we powered the speaker up and started playing music, we realized it wasn't just going to suit the purpose, it was massive overkill! We now have it split time between our kitchen counter and our pool bar, which is a testament to its small size, big sound and portability.I had wanted to buy a Sonos Play:3 for many years, but had a hard time justifying buying a single speaker that cost as much as my Denon AVR-1913. When Sonos released the Play:1 I was instantly drawn to it. The idea that I could have multiple speakers throughout my home, and at my pool bar, all playing the same thing...all controlled through one app, without having to pay an electrician to run wires all over my house was captivating.Despite having the aforementioned Denon AVR-1913 set up as our entertainment center, and as a dual room, seven speaker, two subwoofer monstrosity for parties, the Sonos Play:1 quickly became our go-to option for playing music around the house.Play:1 FeaturesSonos Physical Features:Two Class-D digital amplifiers (apparently this is where the magic happens, I have no idea what this means)One tweeterOne mid-woofer6.36" H x 4.69" W x 4.69" D4.8 lbsBuilt in wifiTop panel buttons for play/pause, volume up/down and skip (double tap play/pause)Screw in mount for speaker stands/bracketsFunctionality:Stereo Pairing: Through the app, two Play:1's can be paired to form left and right channel speakers.5.1 Home Theater: Adding two Play:1's to a Playbar and Sub forms a true surround sound experience.Adjustable bass and trebel controlsTrueplay tuning: Using the app, you can use Trueplay to measure the acoustics of any room to fine tune your Play:1 so it sounds great no matter where it's placedInsteon integration: Since January 2015, Sonos can be controlled by Insteon devices or through the Insteon app. It can also be added to scenes and preset to play certain music with a scene.Streaming:Sonos can stream over 100,000 free radio stations, shows and podcasts. It can playback music stored on up to 16 PC's, Macs or NAS devices on your home network. It can also wirelessly play music from your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Android device. Oh and it works with a couple of streaming services, including but not limited to:Apple MusicSpotifyPandoraDeezerRadio by TuneInSiriusXMGoogle Play MusicSoundCloudAmazon MusiciHeartRadioRhapsodyRdioQobuzTIDALAnd downloads from any service offering DRM-free tracksOther Features:Although it isn't waterproof or water resistant, the Play:1 is humidity resistant.You can use the ethernet port on the back of your Play:1 to bring internet connectivity to other devices, such as a set-top box, DVR, PC, game console or network hard drive. Seriously, this is right off of Sonos' site and something I didn't know until I was writing this. Previously this port had been virtually useless when Sonos pushed an update eliminating the need for a bridge.What does it all mean?The Play:1 is beautiful in its simplicity. Its small form factor and well thought out look allow it to almost disappear into any room in which it's placed. While you may not notice the Play:1 when it is silent, it is tough to ignore when it is playing. The Play:1 delivers surprisingly clear and powerful sound at any volume and in any size room. I often bring this one speaker outside to fill my large backyard with music.The app delivers something I long for in other areas of home automation, a single app to control multiple services. No matter which platform you want to use to stream your music, all you need is the Sonos app to control it. And while we're talking about streaming, it's time to dispel a myth about Sonos really quickly: SONOS DOES NOT USE YOUR PHONE'S DATA TO STREAM! While you do control your Sonos with your phone, tablet or PC, all of the streaming is done over your wireless network directly to the Sonos. You can kick off a station or playlist from your phone and then go out for the day and Sonos will continue to play.Despite the fact that it is just a speaker, the Sonos Play:1 has been the most used device in my house since I bought it over a year ago. It has given our lives a soundtrack and given us the ability to quickly change the mood from anywhere in the house. During parties, guests can join the network, add the Sonos app and play whatever they want to hear whenever they want to hear it.The greatest thing about the Play:1 is that it is just the tip of the iceberg. Sonos also offers the Play:3, Play:5, Sub, Playbar and Connect. These can be controlled independently to play from different sources in different rooms, controlled together to play the same source in multiple rooms or paired into systems, delivering stereo or 5.1 surround sound. With the Sonos Connect, you can bring existing stereo equipment into the fold, allowing you to sync your existing entertainment center with Sonos devices around your home.Because of its amazing sound, endless streaming options, massive scalability, ease of use, price point and evolving integrations, the Sonos Play:1 is a must have for your smart home.

Full disclosure, I am a Sonos user and have fully adopted into their wireless speaker ecosystem. I currently have two Play 5s (Dining Room & Great Room), two Play 3s (Living Room, Guest Bedroom), and a Sonos Home Theater setup in my Media Room (one Sonos Playbar, one Sonos Sub, and two Play 1s).After hearing all of the pre-release hype about the Denon HEOS Wireless speaker system, I want to compare it to my Sonos system. So I picked two HEOS 3s up this weekend and tried them out.In my opinion, the Sonos Play system provides a slightly better overall experience and value for the money you spend. However, the Denon HEOS system has a distinct edge over Sonos - not requiring the $99 Denon HEOS Extend Wireless Range Extender just to use the system. News reports have leaked that Sonos is working on a solution to remove the requirement of their $40 SONOS BRIDGE Instant Set-up Solution for SONOS Wireless Network, but until that software/firmware release comes, I can definitely see why the HEOS system will be a serious contender and solid alternative for some households.MUSIC SOURCES:Both Sonos and Denon work with the following music service providers:- Pandora- Spotify- Rhapsody- Tune-InHowever, Sonos is able to work with the following additional music services:- Amazon Cloud Player,- Google Play Music- Beats Music- SiriusXM Internet Radio- Slacker- Stitcher SmartRadio- Songza- Rdio- Last.fm- iHeartRadio- SoundCloud- Audible- and many more lesser known digital music sourcesAs of the date of this review, Denon has only been able to gain partnerships with Pandora, Spotify, Rhapsody, andTune-In. That's nothing to sneeze at, however if you are a subscriber to any other music service, you may want to wait before giving the HEOS system a try. In my opinion, just having access to Google Play Music is a deal maker for me with Sonos. And the ability to control what plays through my Sonos speakers with the native Google Play Music app (versus having to be in the Sonos app) is a serious step in the right direction to satisfy my needs as a customer.** Point Goes to Sonos **THE LOOKS:Cosmetically, the look of the Sonos Play 1 is considerably more traditional versus the HEOS 3. The HEOS 3, measuring 10.7" x 5.1" x 6.5" is taller, sleeker, and stylish than the 6.36" x 4.69" x 4.69" cylindrical Sonos Play 1. However, in my opinion, the Sonos Play 1 has a more solid feel with its metal mesh front plate and and smooth lines with no major edges. It also has a denser feel than the HEOS 3, packing in just over 4lbs of audio hardware in such a small casing.Depending on your personal style and if you want your speakers to blend in to your room, the winner of the looks category is totally up to you. While I like the minimalist look of the Sonos, the clean edges and sleek design of the Denon is very eye catching. And if you like to have cool lines in design to draw attention to an exceptional piece of audio equipment, the Denon is a clear winner. So for being different by blending elegance with a touch a touch of flash, the winner for this category is Denon.** Point Goes to Denon **UNDER THE HOOD:Both speakers house two class D digital amplifiers pushing a tweeter and mid-woofer that generates a crisp, clean sound for both higher frequency vocals and mid level bass tones. There is no doubt that both Sonos and Denon installed great amplifiers and speakers into their systems as they both generate a solid range for all genres of music - equally.The HEOS 3 does have a ported designed enclosure, which the Sonos Play 1 does not. I found that the ported enclosure was a nice touch to add a little more depth to the bass, but for certain music tracks played through the device, it seemed the sound was muddier than the Play 1. Nothing horrible, but very noticeable depending on where you have the Play 3 placed in the room.** Point Goes to Sonos **THE APP:Sonos recently changes their app's user interface for iOS, Android, Mac, and PC. This was another big development for Sonos as the old user interface for their controller looked like it was stuck in the early 2000s. And while it still leaves mush to be desired, the Denon HEOS controller app is not much better. It adds features like grouping rooms by dragging widgets together within the app and other functions that seem to be geared towards easier control. However, depending on the phone you are using, pinching and dragging are more cumbersome than tapping to select. Again, this is not a big issue, but something I found slightly clunky and annoying with my smaller iPhone screen.Again, this is a personal preference. I like the new Sonos controller app, but can definitely understand why Denon went a different direction. Denon seems more built for a tablet experience, in my opinion as some of the key actions call for pinching, dragging, and precision dropping.** Sonos & Denon Tie **THE SETUP:Both Denon and Sonos are extremely easy to setup and both customer service teams are OUTSTANDING. However, given the fact that Sonos currently requires more steps in their setup process (connect a Sonos Bridge), the point goes to Denon for sure.During the initial setup of your first Sonos speaker, you must either connect it directly to your network router or purchase a Sonos Bridge, connect the bridge to the router, then wirelessly connect the speaker to the SONOSNet network created by the Sonos Bridge. Did that sound confusing? Well, it may be for the first time user of novice electronics buyer. The really nice people at Sonos customer service had to hold my mother's hand in setting up her first Play 1 and it took almost an hour as she was not familiar or comfortable with making changes to the router the cable company had installed in her home - true story. On the other hand, once you have a bridge set up, adding additional Sonos components is extremely easy.Denon, on the other hand, has an extremely easy setup from the beginning. Plug the speaker in the wall, download the app, use the supplied cable to connect the speaker's AUX jack into your phone's headphone jack, follow the in-app directions to connect to your network, unplug the speaker from the phone, place the speaker in any room, blast music from the app. Simple!** Point Goes to Denon **EXPANDABILITY:Both the Sonos and Denon systems allow for multiple speakers to be added. Additional speaker may be played independently, paired as a group, or paired as a stereo pair. In my test, I only purchased two HEOS 3s. So, I cannot speak for pairing different size HEOS speakers together.The biggest advantage regarding expandability goes to Sonos. With a playbar and subwoofer in their arsenal of components, Sonos has a huge advantage for users who also want to bring the wireless music technology to home entertainment. The Sonos Playbar and Sonos Sub can run as a 2.1 home theater or 5.1 home theater system when paired with two Play 1s. And believe me the sound is amazing. So, with Denon only building an ecosystem for music based consumption, I think it leaves room for growth to catch up with Sonos' expandability into home entertainment. Again, this is not a deal breaker for getting into the HEOS ecosystem, but should definitely be considered before going too far down the Denon rabbit hole.** Point Goes to Sonos **THE RESULTS:The Sonos Play 1 is a great, compact speaker that will definitely bring attention to your home's sound system. It has a bigger sound than you would expect from such a small speaker and having two play 1s paired together can fill most rooms with a crisp, clean sound.The Sonos Play system does require a Sonos Bridge (for now) and that is the biggest negative that I would give it in my book. But that is not a deal breaker as the Play ecosystem as a whole is much more powerful than the Denon HEOS ecosystem is currently.At a $199 price makes me give the Sonos Play 1, 5 out of 5 stars. I definitely don't think you will be disappointed with the performance or functionality of the HEOS system. I just believe that you can get more for your money with Sonos.