The latest Sonos Era 100 is regarded as the successor to the Sonos One, with upgraded internals to improve sound quality. Is it worth an extra $30?
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Sonos Era 100, which will be available starting March 28 alongside the Era 300, was redesigned from the ground up to replace the existing Sonos One. It is slightly taller and slimmer than the Sonos One, and features more rounded grills. Both smart speakers are available in black and white. Controls at the top of both speakers include ‘Play’/’Pause’ buttons, ‘Forward’ and ‘Backward’ track buttons, and a voice assistance control button. However, the Sonos Era 100 has a small groove running through the middle that allows users to adjust the volume by sliding their fingers up and down, while Sonos One does not have separate volume control buttons.
Sonos Era 100 Upgrades Over Sonos One
Furthermore, the Era 100 has a 25 percent larger woofer than the Sonos One, resulting in much deeper bass in a similar size package. Unlike in Sonos One, where the Trueplay was limited to iPhone users, Sonos Era 100 now adds the automatic Trueplay for Android users as well.
Sonos One has an Ethernet port on the back, whereas Sonos Era 100 has an upgraded USB-C port for connectivity. Users can, however, purchase Ethernet adapters and a line-in adapter from Sonos to connect devices like a turntable directly to the Sonos Era 100. Furthermore, in response to user demand, Sonos has added Bluetooth 5.0 support in Era 100, as well as upgraded support to Wi-Fi 6, as opposed to legacy 802.11n Wi-Fi connectivity with Sonos One. Sonos Era 100 has an additional button on the back to turn off the mic completely for users who are concerned about privacy or do not want accidental voice inputs.
Sonos Era 100 currently only supports Sonos voice assistance alongside Amazon Alexa, whereas Sonos One supports Sonos voice assistance plus Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. In comparison to Sonos One, the performance of the Sonos Era 100 has improved significantly.
Users who already own Sonos One and are satisfied with its audio quality need not upgrade, but the Sonos Era 100 is worth the extra $30 for everyone else who wants a smart speaker with an immersive audio experience, stereo support, Trueplay for Android, a mic mute button, and deeper bass over Sonos One.
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