Sonos has confirmed that it is delaying the launch of a new product – which we believe is the long-established Sub Mini – after a “difficult” quarter in which the company was hit by currency fluctuations and inflation.
Sonos spokeswoman Erin Pategas confirmed Borderland (opens in a new tab) that the “expected product launch” has been postponed from Q4 2022 to Q1 2023, so you have a little extra time to save for your next wireless speaker.
While Sonos has not endorsed the Sub Mini’s existence, it is widely believed that it is the product in question. Based on what we think we know so far, this will be a cheaper and more affordable version of the existing Sonos Sub.
A huge opportunity
Sonos has just announced its earnings for the last quarter and they are well below expectations. “We have observed that the macroeconomic situation has become much tougher for us since June,” CEO Patrick Spence explained in the statement (opens in a new tab).
However, Spence also released a confident note for the future. “We expect to survive the current environment acting from a position of strength: we are profitable, we do not get into debt and we have a huge market opportunity,” he added.
We don’t have any pricing or any other details for the Sonos Sub Mini so far, but we do know that it went through a US regulatory approval process in June, which would normally mean it would be out any day.
Analysis: No Rush for Sonos
Overall, Sonos has recently attempted to release two new products every year. We’ve already seen the Sonos Ray arrive in 2022 – a compact, affordable soundbar that we were impressed with when we tested it.
However, the company is in no rush to stuff new products and refresh products. Its wireless speakers are designed to last for a long time and will last well for many years before needing to be replaced.
At the same time, the company will not want to rest on its laurels, with increasing competition from smart speakers and other products. That’s one reason the Sub Mini exists: to give buyers even more options for their home speaker system.
In addition to hardware, Sonos is also working hard to maintain and improve the software offering that is essential for streaming audio over Wi-Fi networks. If the rumors are to be believed, big improvements are in store for this department as well.
