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Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker

In 2019, Ikea and Sonos Inc. presented the first jointly developed speakers, and now the latest member of the Ikea SYMFONISK Series is to be presented, the Ikea SYMFONISK frame with WiFi Speaker.

It came as quite a surprise when Sonos Inc. announced a collaboration with the Swedish furniture store Ikea in 2019. Together, as part of the Ikea Smart Home Initiative, a product line for multi-room audio was to be designed, the Ikea SYMFONISK Series, based on the Sonos system.

Since then, they have jointly presented solutions such as the Ikea SYMFONISK table lamp with WiFi Speaker or the Ikea SYMFONISK shelf WiFi Speaker, and now another member of the Ikea SYMFONISK Series family is being released.

Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker

Admittedly, the naming sounds a little unwieldy, but ultimately the name of the new Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker says quite exactly what is meant by it.

It is a wireless speaker that is mounted directly on the wall similar to a picture frame and should therefore be very flexible to integrate into any living environment. The two companies Ikea and Sonos Inc. unanimously speak of a solution that takes the interplay of sound and design to a new level and offers a unique sound experience as well as unique design at an affordable price.

The new Ikea SYMFONISK frame with WiFi speaker is said to be a decorative furnishing object and to inspire with outstanding sound.

Combining music and art

Once again, Sonos Inc. emphasises that studies show how important music is to many people and that the aim is to make access to it as intuitive as possible, anywhere in the home.

This is exactly what the solutions of the Ikea SYMFONISK Series, developed together with Ikea, are supposed to allow, but they are not supposed to appear as a conventional consumer electronics device.

Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker in White or Black

The new Ikea SYMFONISK frame with WiFi Speaker is offered in white or black, whereby the special feature is that it offers exchangeable fronts. Here, they want to offer a wide variety of subjects as optional accessories, which the user can change at any time as desired.

“The speaker can either be placed alone on a wall like a work of art or combined with other pictures, stand on a shelf or the floor or lean against the wall. Thanks to the interchangeable fronts, it’s easy to choose a style that suits the individual home.”

Stjepan Begic, Product Developer at IKEA of Sweden

Part of the Sonos system

As part of the Sonos Multiroom Audio Streaming System, the new Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker can of course be used on its own, but it can also be combined with other solutions from the Ikea SYMFONISK Series as well as any solution from Sonos Inc. In the simplest case, a stereo pair with two “picture frames” can be realised, but music playback over tens of zones in the entire house is also possible.

The integration into such a system is done via WiFi, only a power cable hanging down below the frame thus reveals its true purpose.

Everything is controlled with the familiar Sonos Controller Apps, which are offered for Apple iOS and Google Android. With the help of these apps, the Sonos TruePlay function is also available for automatic sound adjustment to the room.

Apps can be used to access your own content on the network as well as countless music streaming services, internet radio and podcasts. Sonos Inc. lists over 100 supported streaming offers as one of the most important features of its own platform.

It is interesting that this solution supports Apple AirPlay 2 in addition to the Sonos streaming platform, but not Google Chromecast. In addition, it seems that Bluetooth has been omitted here, so simple pairing with a smartphone for music playback without integration into the network is not possible.

“Each SYMFONISK speaker uniquely combines the Sonos sound experience with IKEA design. This creates products that neither company would create alone – the best of both worlds, so to speak.”

Sara Morris, Principal Product Manager at Sonos Inc.

The new Ikea SYMFONISK frame with WiFi Speaker is scheduled to be available exclusively at Ikea from 15 July 2021, both in stores and online.

The price of the new Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker is listed at € 179, the mentioned interchangeable fronts are available at prices between € 20 and € 30, depending on the design.

Getting to the point

With the Ikea SYMFONISK Frame with WiFi Speaker, Ikea is expanding its range of streaming systems in the Ikea SYMFONISK Series, which already features solutions such as the Ikea SYMFONISK Table Lamp with WiFi Speaker or the Ikea SYMFONISK Shelf WiFi Speaker. Now it is a picture frame that was once again developed together with Sonos Inc. and realised on their streaming platform. The fact that a wide variety of subjects are offered, which the customer can change at any time, will probably be beneficial for acceptance as a streaming system in the living environment.

Manufacturer:Ikea
Distribution:Ikea
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Michael Holzinger

Michael Holzinger, founder and editor-in-chief of HiFi BLOG and sempre-audio.at, has been working for years as a journalist in the fields of IT, photography, telecommunications and consumer electronics.

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