Sonos Roam

The best portable speaker of 2021

- Olivia Tambini

£159 FROM Sonos, sonos.com FEATURES 2x Class-H digital amplifiers, 1x tweeter, 1x mid-woofer, far-field microphone, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, AirPlay 2, 1x USB-C port, dust- and waterproof to IP67, Amazon, Alexa, Google Assistant support, Privacy button, up to 10 hours playtime

According to the brand’s CEO Patrick Spence calls the Sonos Roam “the smartest speaker we have ever built.” The speaker certainly comes with both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, which means it can work as a portable speaker as well as part of your wider multi-room Sonos system – and with Google Assistant and Alexa onboard, it doubles up as a smart speaker too.

The Roam also comes with a host of cool features. With Sound Swap, you hold down the play button and the speaker will ‘throw’ your audio to the nearest other Sonos speakers available. Automatic Switching between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi means you can walk into your home and the Sonos Roam, having previously been paired with your Bluetooth device, will connect to your Wi-Fi, without the need to reconnect manually. Finally, the Auto TruePlay feature (first introduced with the Sonos Move) has been upgraded here, so the Roam will automatically tune its soundstage to your environment, whether you’re on Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

While the Roam retains the minimalist aesthetic of the brand’s previous devices, there’s a focus on ruggedness. It’s similar in size to a water bottle, and weighs just 430g, yet it has an IP67 water-and-dust resistance rating, and can survive being three feet underwater for 30 minutes.