Sonos is teasing, both in emails and on social media, that its “most requested product ever” is “coming soon” on May 21st (this Tuesday). This, of course, is almost certainly the Sonos Ace, its first wireless headphones.
Sonos has been expected to launch the Ace in June, but given the company’s “most requested” phrasing here and the fact that the headphones recently appeared for sale by authorized dealer Schuurman, it seems they’re coming sooner than that.
A launch this week could help Sonos with some of the ire surrounding the roll-out of its new app earlier this month. The app was ostensibly created in part to support the Sonos Ace, but is missing key features like a sleep timer or those related to local library management. And getting those features back in the app may take months.
Image: Schuurman
Sonos is also gearing up to release the Roam 2, likewise rumored for June. That speaker will look nearly identical to the original Roam and Roam SL, but with a color-matched “Sonos” and a dedicated Bluetooth pairing button. For all its good qualities, the first Roam had some annoying drawbacks, like requiring Wi-Fi setup before you can use Bluetooth, and an unintuitive pairing process even when you can.
Image: Sonos
The Roam and Ace aside, there’s not much else that the company is likely to announce this week. Rumor has it that Sonos is preparing to release a TV streaming device, but not until late this year at the earliest. Same goes for its rumored Sonos Arc soundbar. And chances seem pretty that its “most requested product ever” is the next Sonos Sub or the business-oriented Era 100. The headphones make the most sense and would kick off the first of four new product categories the company is supposed to be stepping into.