Sonos Ace headphones: what we know from leaks so far
Sonos headphones have been rumored to be in the works for years, but it feels like they're finally going to happen – and happen imminently, judging by a big leak at a Dutch retailer that may have revealed their name as Sonos Ace. The name was also backed up by Redditors who found a Sonos website page with the title "Pre-order Sonos Ace, our new wireless headphones".
Sonos Ace headphones rumored features
- Original rumors said price of $300 / ￡220 / AU$400
- Retailer leak had a price of €403.58 (about $435 / ￡350 / AU$660)
- Over-ear design
- Sonos logo on the earcups
- Wireless connectivity (Bluetooth and Wi-Fi)
- Active noise cancellation
- Ability to 'swap' music with Sonos speakers
The image at the top of this page also appeared in the retail leak, so you're probably looking at their design right there – it's backed up by a second photo that includes accessories, which you can see below.
Rumors about an upcoming pair of Sonos headphones first emerged in early 2019. We've since seen patents describing how the first Sonos headphones will interact with other Sonos speakers, allowing them to integrate with existing multi-room audio setups – something that the likes of Sony and Sennheiser aren't able to offer.
It's a move that makes sense now that Sonos has conquered the wireless speaker market, most recently releasing the Sonos Era 100 and the Sonos Era 300. We'd expect the headphones to have the same level of build quality and audio excellence.
Price-wise, the rumors initially put the price at around $300 (￡235 / AU$460), so a lot cheaper than the Sony WH-1000XM5, but more recent rumors mention $449 (￡355 / AU$690), which is backed up by the newer retail leaks. It now seems very likely that 2024 will finally be the year when we see these headphones, so let's dive further in.
Sonos headphones: news and updates
May 9, 2024 – Dutch retailer Schuurman leaks images, price and the name of the newly-christened Sonos Ace.
February 28, 2024 – A report from Bloomberg suggests that the Sonos headphones hit a delay after some software snags, but will definitely see the light of day in June 2024. Oh and they'll cost around $449 (￡355 / AU$690), more than we anticipated.
February 8, 2024 – Again, CEO Patrick Spence goes on the record as saying that a "highly anticipated new product" will be arriving in "months".
November 16, 2023 – There's news from Sonos CEO Patrick Spence on an earnings call that the company will enter "a new multi-billion dollar category" in the second half of 2024... and it could well be headphones.
April 26, 2022 – Patents emerge that suggest the Sonos headphones are going to come with Wi-Fi support, to enable a variety of features that may well include tight integration with Sonos speakers on the same network.
February 11, 2022 – After we'd been getting our hopes up about the introduction of Sonos headphones at some point in 2022, the news was given to investors that there wouldn't be any new product categories from the company in that year.
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February 2, 2022 – Rumored Sonos wireless headphones closer to reality thanks to a new acquisition.
February 2, 2022 – Sonos advertises for an ad agency to help with one of the company's "most ambitious projects". What could that be, do you think?
January 31, 2022 – A Sonos patent reveals plans for Wi-Fi headphones.
November 11, 2021 – TechAdvisor reports that RHA – an audio company recently bought by Sonos – was working on a pair of "premium" over-ear headphones with features that could have rivalled the AirPods Max.
September 13, 2021 – Sonos increases the prices of its devices across the board.
May 24, 2021 – Sonos patent reveals plans for true wireless earbuds.
April 20, 2021 – Sonos releases the Sonos Roam, the company's second Bluetooth speaker.
February 18, 2021 – A Sonos patent reveals a possible design for its first headphones.
February 11, 2021 – The Sonos CEO pledges to release two new products a year.
Sonos headphones: what you need to know
Sonos headphones release date: That's TBC, but a 2024 release date is now looking likely.
Sonos headphones price: It's rumored they'll cost in the region of $449 / ￡355 / AU$690.
Sonos headphones design: Patents suggest we're in for Sony WH-1000XM5-style over-ear headphones (though true wireless earbuds are also possible).
Sonos headphones features: The first Sonos headphones will apparently come with Wi-Fi connectivity, the ability to swap music with Sonos speakers, active noise cancellation, and voice assistant support.
Sonos headphones release date
We don't know for sure when the first Sonos headphones will be released, but a 2024 launch now seems likely based on the rumors we've heard.
Word of a pair of Sonos headphones first came about all the way back in 2019, and we've seen a steady influx of patents from the company since then – and the recent acquisitions of audio company RHA and Bluetooth start-up T2 Software suggests Sonos is expanding in preparation for the new cans.
While Sonos is yet to confirm that it's working on a pair of wireless headphones, we do know that the company tends to release two new products a year – that's something that CEO Patrick Spence pledged to continue on an earnings call with investors in 2021.
Peter Pederson, Sonos' VP Global Marketing and Communications, has also posted to LinkedIn, asking for ad agencies to apply to work on "one of the most ambitious projects in our history". The job listing specifies that applicants must have experience in launching a new brand/product/service in an established category, creating a new category for an established brand, and/or targeting a new audience/consumer segment.
That sounds very much to us like Sonos is planning to branch out from its existing line up of speakers, amps, and soundbars – and if the company is looking into advertising options, the new product could be on the way very soon.
In 2023 we saw the Era 100 and the Era 300 speakers appear, and the rumor is that there might be a streaming set-top box on the way as well. In 2024, we've seen more than one rumor that the headphones are, at last, almost here.
Sonos headphones price
The price of the first Sonos headphones is still to be determined, but based on the company's existing products, we don't think they'll come cheap. It's existing speakers are top quality, but they also come with a high price attached.
Bloomberg's sources originally said that the first Sonos wireless headphones would likely cost about $300 / ￡220 / AU$400, putting them in direct competition with the likes of the Sony WH-1000XM5 and the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700.
If Sonos undercuts these models and delivers on rumored features like Wi-Fi connectivity, the wireless headphones market will be in for a huge shake up – though we aren't expecting a super budget-friendly price.
More recently, Bloomberg has revised this figure, saying it's actually going to be more like $449 (about ￡355 / AU$690) – we are more than five years on from the original rumor, bear in mind.
We are, however, at least hoping the first Sonos headphones will cost less than the Apple AirPods Max. Costing $549 / ￡549 / AU$899, they're among the most expensive consumer headphones on the market (as in, they aren't particularly aimed at hardcore audiophiles or studio professionals).
Sonos headphones design
The first Sonos headphones are rumored to be a pair of over-ear cans with wireless connectivity, with patent images revealing what they might look like.
A 2021 filing at the German Patent and Trademark Office offers a glimpse of what looks to be a close-to-final design for the upcoming headphones, and suggests several changes compared to similar design patents from September 2020, which detailed two different wireless models.
Based on the images in the patent, the Sonos wireless headphones won’t have rods protruding from the headband like the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, as one previous design suggested, but will instead see the rods go straight down into the ear cups like the Sony WH-1000XM5. There’ll also be no additional piece that wraps around the back of each ear cup, which we saw in the other previous design.
These patent images also reveal a Sonos logo on the earcups of the headphones, whereas previous designs featured no such logo. It's worth noting that much of the design is rendered in broken lines, meaning the placement of certain features could change, but given the amount of time Sonos’ wireless headphones have been in development, we’ll bet this patent offers something close to a final blueprint.
Another notable difference on this patent is what looks to be an earphone adapter, which could suggest replaceable ear cushions for the headphones. A USB-C port, various buttons and a 3.5mm audio port are also visible in the new drawings.
There's no guarantee that the first Sonos headphones will be over-ear cans. In May 2021, we heard that Sonos could be working on a pair of true wireless earbuds, according to a patent discovered by Zats Not Funny(via Pocket Lint).
The patent describes two different wireless earbuds designs, as well as three options for charging cases with some novel approaches to extend playtime, including detachable battery plates.
The fact that Sonos has now acquired RHA – a company that specializes in in-ear headphones – lends credence to the idea that the first Sonos headphones will be a pair of true wireless earbuds. In any case, the company is clearly looking to branch out into more product categories.
Whatever kind of headphones we get, Sonos products typically follow a sleek, minimalist design aesthetic, in black and white color variations.
We'd expect to see more of the same from the first Sonos headphones, with minimal external hardware and a slick user interface, perhaps making use of touch sensitive housings that allow you to control your music playback without digging your phone out of your pocket.
Sonos headphones features
While patents aren't guarantees that a product will see the light of day, the filings we've seen have given us an idea of some of the features we might see from a pair of Sonos headphones.
The first is wireless connectivity via Bluetooth – we'd imagine that Sonos would opt for the latest Bluetooth 5.2 codec to ensure strong connections, as well as aptX Low Latency for video and gaming.
Interestingly, the first Sonos headphones could also come with support for Wi-Fi connections. A patent granted to the company was spotted by Digital Trends, and it suggests that Sonos is looking at how to implement Wi-Fi connectivity in a similar way to its speakers.
The patent, which is describes a "cable retraction mechanism for headphone devices" discusses the engineering that would be needed to implement Wi-Fi antennae in a set of headphones.
As Digital Trends points out, Wi-Fi with a decent range would require an antenna in each earcup - and these would need to be connected to each other with a hidden cabling system running through the headband of the headphones.
This means the first Sonos headphones could come with a pretty chunky headband. The patent says that "a cable assembly containing each of the required conductors for the improved wireless headphones discussed in the examples described herein may be greater than 4 mm in diameter. This is almost twice the diameter of a typical headband cable in a Bluetooth-only headphone."
While headphones manufacturers have avoided Wi-Fi in the past due to the extra weight and bulk it requires, this mightallow for the first Sonos headphones to deliver hi-res audio and truly lossless streams – something that Bluetooth can't do (unless you count Qualcomm's aptX Lossless codec, which should start appearing in new headphones this year).
In any case, the first Sonos headphones are expected to work within the company's wider ecosystem. In fact, the most interesting feature revealed in the patents we've seen so far describes how the wireless headphones might interact with existing Sonos speakers, with what the company calls 'swapping'.
"For example, if a particular piece of content play is currently playing on the wireless headphone, a swap changes the playback to play that piece of content on one or more other playback devices on the local network."
So in theory, you could be listening to music on your Sonos headphones and swiftly switch that music over to your Sonos Bluetooth speaker, whether it's part of a multi-room audio system or a standalone smart speaker like the Sonos One or the Sonos Move.
It’s certainly an exciting prospect that would really set the rumored headphones apart from the competition - while the Apple AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 3 are able to do this with the HomePod mini, Apple's audio ecosystem is nowhere near as comprehensive as Sonos.
Plus, we know this technology works. The Sonos Roam and Sonos Move are both able to 'swap' audio to other Sonos speakers, and can automatically switch between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.
The patent we've seen also describes noise-cancelling tech, which is an increasingly sought-after feature for over-ear headphones. Hopefully, Sonos will employ adaptive noise-cancelling as seen with the Sony WH-1000XM5; this clever tech adapts the level of noise cancellation to your environment in real time, ramping up for loud environments and turning down for quiet environments.
The headphones will also apparently come with built-in microphones to allow you to summon your device's voice assistant – it's also possible that a voice assistant (either Google Assistant or Alexa) could come built-in to the headphones directly, as with previous Sonos speakers.
As for the audio specs? We simply don't know yet – but if Sonos applies the same level of care to its first headphones as it does to its speakers, you can expect an immersive, powerful sound, with plenty of detail and rumbling bass. And, if we're lucky, they'll come with spatial audio support like the Apple AirPods Max and Sony WH-1000XM5.
