Sonos releases Move, its first ever outdoor, bluetooth speaker

Release date, price, features, specs and more revealed as Sonos also launches One SL and Port

Sonos has unveiled the Move, its first ever speaker meant to go outside the home.

The smart speaker also represents the first time that Sonos has ever allowed users to play songs over bluetooth, despite years of requests. And it is the first ever Sonos product that can be used without being plugged in, since it includes a large replaceable battery on the bottom.

As well as including a variety of new features and design tweaks to allow it to withstand the water and dirt that it might encounter outside, as well as the potential damage that could happen if it is dropped, the speaker functions entirely normally as one of Sonos's indoor speakers. When it is not being used on the move, the new speaker can be dropped into a special dock that it will let it work like any other Sonos product as well as charging the battery.

From the front, it looks like any other Sonos speaker. But on the back it has a handle, which allows it to be picked up from the base that charges it and carried anywhere.

Sonos says that the Move marks a significant change of strategy, representing the first time it has moved outside the home, with more similar products to come. It also says the speaker is a challenge to the bluetooth speaker market, which tends to be dominated by cheaper and non-smart options.

The Sonos Move costs £399. It is available for pre-order now and will be released on 24 September.

It comes alongside two other launches that are really altered versions of existing Sonos products: the One SL and the Port.

The One SL replaces the older Play:1 is the same as the One, but has the microphones stripped out of it. That means that it is unable to use the Google and Alexa voice assistants that Sonos has added to its products in recent years, but also allows customers to buy it for slightly less than the existing One.

The Port replaces the relatively ancient Sonos Connect, as the way for people to use their existing Hi-Fi technology but hook it into Sonos's system. It can work as both an input, for devices like record players, and an output for existing amps and speakers.

But it is still the Move that is the most significant of Sonos's new releases, representing a variety of firsts.

Sonos says that creating the first speaker to go outside of the home represented a significant challenge, both in terms of the physical design of the speaker and the sound that it throws out.