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By Simon Cohen
Sonos‘ widely expected Wi-Fi-enabled headphones are facing a delayed release due to a software bug according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Citing “people with knowledge of the matter,” Gurman said that the new product, which goes by the internal code name Duke, won’t be available until at least the first half of June, a month later than the company had reportedly planned.
At the core of the delay is a problem with the way the headphones connect to available Wi-Fi networks. The report claims that the bug was discovered during production validation testing, which is often scheduled two weeks in advance of the start of mass production.
All of Sonos’ existing products connect over Wi-Fi, with some, like the Sonos Move 2 and Sonos Era 300, also being capable of Bluetooth connections. Still, the Sonos app — a key differentiator for the company — has only ever supported Wi-Fi-connected Sonos products, underscoring the importance of having a set of wireless headphones that can connect using both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Gurman says Sonos is readying a new version of that app known internally as “Passport,” which may finally add Bluetooth connectivity.
It’s expected that the headphones will cost $449 when they eventually launch. Sonos CEO Patrick Spence has only referred tangentially to the existence of the new product in his previous public comments, referring in 2023 to “our entry into a new multibillion-dollar category in the second half of the year that will complement our current offering, delight customers, and drive immediate revenue.” Spence’s next public appearance is a fireside chat alongside Sonos’ Chief Financial Officer Saori Casey on March 4 at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference.
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Simon Cohen covers a variety of consumer technologies, but has a special interest in audio and video products, like…
The most innovative headphones and earbuds of 2023
In 2023, we saw plenty of great new wireless headphones and wireless earbuds emerge, like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC, Sony WF-1000XM5, and the new USB-C variant of the Apple AirPods Pro 2.
Each of these products delivers better performance than its predecessors in one or more categories like sound quality, active noise cancellation (ANC), battery life, or spatial audio. But for a product to be considered innovative, it can’t just offer incremental improvements. It needs to break new ground by offering us something new or by getting us to think about an existing feature in an entirely new way.
Sonos headphones to make 2024 debut, and a video streaming device is set for 2025
Sonos will release its first wireless headphones in 2024, according to a report from Bloomberg that cites sources familiar with the matter. The headphones are projected to cost between $400 and $500, which would place them in direct competition with Apple’s AirPods Max and Sony’s WH-1000XM5, two of the leading noise-canceling headphones on the market. The report suggests the new wireless cans, code-named “Duke,” could appear as early as April, and will come in Sonos’ two main colors, black and white.
Earlier in November, Sonos CEO, Patrick Spence told investors that in 2024, the company will enter into a “new multibillion-dollar category in the second half of the year that will complement our current offering, delight customers, and drive immediate revenue.” Given the timing cited by Bloomberg, it seems likely Spence was referencing the as-yet unannounced Sonos headphones.
Dali says its latest wireless headphones achieve electrostatic levels of clarity
Dali’s latest wireless headphones, the Dali IO-12, will cost $1,299 when they hit retail later this month. That’s a huge jump up from the company’s previous offering, the $500 Dali IO-6, and it might even be a new record price for a set of wireless headphones, but Dali says the new noise-canceling cans are worth it because of the unusual technology that has been used to create the headphones’ 50mm drivers.
The Danish company claims the IO-12 are the world’s first to use a Soft Magnetic Compound (SMC) magnet system — the same tech that Dali patented and used in its acclaimed floor-standing speakers. The primary benefit to SMC is a reduction of hysteresis — distortion that can be caused by resistance to the voice coil in traditional magnet systems. Reducing hysteresis can lower uneven harmonic distortion “drastically,” according to Dali.
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