At first glance, the new Sonos Beam doesn’t look like a bargain.
It’s a new smart speaker from a company whose reputation is for making sleek home audio setups, rather than voice-assistant technology — and it costs a whopping $399.
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Also consider the fact that the Beam is a sound bar. It’s more than two feet long, and belongs in only one place — under your TV screen.
As such, it’s not exactly in the same family as the compact smart speakers from Amazon, Apple and Google that we’ve grown accustomed to placing on the coffee table, next to the blender, and on the nightstand.
But kick back and listen to this: If you’re looking to set up a home theater on the cheap that responds to your commands like an Amazon Echo, the Sonos Beam is worth an audition.
Setup is a breeze. The box includes the Beam, which is available in black or white, as well as a power cable and an HDMI cable. Follow the instructions on the Sonos App and you’ll be up and running in five minutes.
Once I hooked mine up, it was obvious that the Beam made movies and shows sound better than ever through my TV’s speakers. When I tried streaming video, the clash of swords in “Game of Thrones” rang with startling realism. When I played music, the chorus of “Dancing Queen” in the “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” soundtrack had guests twirling.
Indeed, I began to feel a little uncivilized for having made do with my built-in TV speakers for so long.
Add to this the fact that the Beam is powered by Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. Turn on the TV, adjust the volume, turn it off — all by talking to Alexa. If you have a Fire TV Stick, Alexa also can control your Netflix and Prime Video hands-free.
Along with the Alexa functionality, however, comes one of the Beam’s most annoying quirks: A few times a week, I’ve found, the Beam will pick up a character in a TV show saying something that sounds like “Alexa,” followed by a chime and the occasional, “I’m having trouble understanding you” interrupting the show.
To be sure, Alexa is a bit more clunky and robotic than Google Assistant, which is loaded onto my Google Home Max speaker, and also costs $399. Sonos claims that the Beam will have Google Assistant integration available by the holiday season.
Until then, if the TV is off and I’m requesting a song, Google’s speaker gets the job every time. In addition to a voice assistant that’s smarter, easier to use and all around less robotic-sounding, the Google Home Max actually sounds a bit better than the Beam, with better definition at higher volumes.
All of that said, if I could have only one, it would be the Sonos, which has taught me that a great TV speaker something worth spending a little money on.
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