Which Sonos Portable Speaker is Right for Me?
Having been a Sonos approved reseller since 2008, we've sold and recommended a huge number of Sonos products over the years — and the portable speaker range is one we get asked about a lot. With three options now available at very different price points, it can be tricky to know which one suits your life. With all our experience and knowledge, we're in a great place to help you make the right call.
We also have Sonos products available to demo in our showroom in Fleet, Hampshire so if you'd prefer to hear the difference for yourself before committing, we'd love to see you.
Published 25/04/2026
The Three Speakers at a Glance
Let's compare the Sonos Roam 2, Play and Move 2 portable speakers.
Sonos now offers three battery-powered portable speakers, each designed with a slightly different listener in mind. The Roam 2 is the most compact and travel-ready of the three. The Play sits in the middle — a newer addition to the range (launched in early 2026) that strikes a balance between portability and performance. The Move 2 is the most powerful of the trio, built for those who want serious sound they can move around the home and garden.
Size & Portability
Size is probably the first thing to consider. The Roam 2 is genuinely pocket-friendly at just 168mm tall and weighing only 430g — it'll slip into a jacket pocket or day bag without a second thought. The Play is roughly twice the size of the Roam 2, weighing in at around 1.3kg, and comes with a removable carry strap to make it easy to grab and go. The Move 2 is the big one — at 240mm tall and around 3kg, it has a built-in handle on the back, but it's more of a "move it between rooms and out to the garden" size than a "take it hiking" size.
Our take: If you're heading to the beach, a festival or travelling light, the Roam 2 is the one. If you want something that lives in the kitchen but comes out to the garden on weekends, the Play is the sweet spot. If you want to fill a large outdoor space or open-plan room, the Move 2 is hard to beat.
Weather Resistance
All three speakers are built to handle the great British outdoors — but there's a meaningful difference in their ratings.
Both the Roam 2 and the Play carry an IP67 rating, meaning they're fully dustproof and can be submerged in up to 1m of water for 30 minutes. Drop it in a paddling pool, leave it out in heavy rain — it'll be fine.
The Move 2 has an IP56 rating — excellent protection against water splashes, rain and dust, but it's not designed to be submerged. For most garden use, this won't matter at all.
Battery Life
This is where things get interesting. The Roam 2 offers around 10 hours of battery life on a single charge, which is perfectly respectable for a speaker of its size. The Play steps things up significantly with an impressive 24 hours — and unusually for a portable speaker, it comes with a wireless charging base included in the box, so it can sit charging on the kitchen counter like a regular home speaker. The Move 2 also offers around 24 hours of battery life.
Worth noting: both the Play and Move 2 have a replaceable battery, which is a genuinely thoughtful touch for long-term ownership.
Sound Quality
Roam 2
The Roam 2 is powered by two Class-H digital amplifiers and features a single tweeter. Don't let the small size fool you — it delivers a warm, full sound with impressive bass for something you can hold in one hand. It's been designed for on-the-go listening and does that job very well.
Play
The Play is a step up in audio performance. It features one mid-woofer, two angled tweeters and two side-mounted bass radiators — all driven by separate Class-H amplifiers. The result is a genuine stereo presentation with noticeably more depth and low-end compared to the Roam 2. It's the kind of speaker that sounds at home playing music in a kitchen, living room or outside on a summer afternoon.
Move 2
The Move 2 is the flagship portable and it sounds like it. With a dedicated tweeter, mid-woofer and two bass radiators, it delivers true stereo sound with real weight and scale. It's the one to choose if you want to fill a larger space — a big garden, a kitchen diner, or an open-plan living area — with genuinely impressive audio.
All three speakers support Sonos' Automatic Trueplay, which continuously tunes the EQ based on the acoustics of the room they're in.
Hearing is Believing
Still not sure which one is right for you? We completely understand — it's a personal decision and reading about audio only gets you so far.
We'd love to welcome you to our showroom in Fleet to hear the difference for yourself. Just get in touch in advance to let us know you're coming and which speakers you'd like to hear.
Low Prices & 5 Star Service at Jennings
Get the best deals on Sonos at Jennings. Find out more about each speaker in detail instore or online
Connectivity
All three speakers offer Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, plus Apple AirPlay 2. All are compatible with Amazon Alexa and Sonos Voice Control, and all integrate seamlessly into a wider Sonos multi-room system.
One key difference: the Roam 2 can be used as a Bluetooth speaker straight out of the box, with no app setup required. The Play and Move 2 need to be added to a Wi-Fi network via the Sonos app before Bluetooth will work — worth knowing if you're planning to gift one.
The Play and Move 2 also support USB-C line-in (using the optional Sonos Line-In Adapter), which means you can connect them to a turntable or other analogue audio source — great for vinyl fans.
Sonos Portable Speaker Comparison
| Compact & lightweight Roam 2 | Most popular Play | Maximum performance Move 2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | |||
| SRP | £179 | £299 | £449 |
| Design & Size | |||
| Height | 168 mm | ~200 mm | 240 mm |
| Weight | 430 g | 1.3 kg | 3 kg |
| Carry handle / strap | ✕ | Utility strap | Built-in handle |
| Wireless charging base | Optional extra | Included | Included |
| Durability | |||
| Water & dust rating | IP67 | IP67 | IP56 |
| Submersible (up to 1m) | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Battery | |||
| Battery life | 10 hrs | 24 hrs | 24 hrs |
| Replaceable battery | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Audio | |||
| Amplifiers | 2× Class-H | 3× Class-H | 3× Class-H |
| Tweeters | 1 | 2 (angled) | 1 |
| Bass radiators | ✕ | 2 (side-firing) | 2 (side-firing) |
| Stereo sound | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic Trueplay | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Connectivity | |||
| Bluetooth | 5.2 | 5.3 | 5.0 |
| Wi-Fi | 2.4 / 5 GHz | Wi-Fi 6 | 2.4 / 5 GHz |
| Apple AirPlay 2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Bluetooth out of the box | ✓ | Wi-Fi setup first | Wi-Fi setup first |
| Line-in (via optional adapter) | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Smart Features | |||
| Voice control | Alexa, Sonos VC | Alexa, Sonos VC | Alexa, Sonos VC |
| Mic on/off switch | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sonos multi-room | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Stereo pair (two units) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shop Roam 2 → | Shop Play → | Shop Move 2 → |