Sonos hasn’t annouced anything official, but all signs point to a new pair of wireless headphones incoming, and among those signs are now leaked pictures.
Thanks to a leak from the German tech site, WinFuture (machine translated), we’ve got what appear to be promotional images of the Sonos Ace Ultra, a new pair of Sonos wireless headphones that recently appeared in Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filings. The details on the Sonos Ace Ultra are still sparse, but the pictures reveal a few things about what to expect.
Visually, they’re similar to the first Sonos Ace, with a pretty rounded design and oval earcups. As noted by WinFuture, the earcups do look a bit deeper, though it’s hard to get a sense of the size from the pictures. To me, the headband looks slightly thinner, but there’s only one picture with someone actually wearing them, so that’s TBD. I think if there’s one thing we can count on, based on these images, it’s that the Sonos Ace Ultra will superficially be similar to its predecessor, and I’m not mad about that—I like the look of the original Ace.
What will differentiate the Ace Ultra is likely the wireless headphones’ features. FCC filings suggest support for voice controls, which would be a departure from the original Sonos Ace. There are also hints at Wi-Fi support, which would make the Ace Ultra more like other Sonos products, including its recent speakers, like the Play. Previously, the Sonos Ace used Wi-Fi in a fairly limited capacity for a TV Swap feature that allowed you to transition from listening to audio via your Sonos soundbar to the wireless headphones. Unlike other Sonos speakers, there was no support for general Wi-Fi streaming on the original Ace, though.
One thing I’m particularly interested in is the price. With “Ultra” in the name, we can assume that these wireless headphones will be on the expensive side, and the original Sonos Ace had an MSRP of $449 at launch in 2024. I’m not sure how far Sonos feels comfortable going in the price tag department, but it’s already charting Apple AirPods Max 2 territory, so I assume it will want to tread cautiously. Sonos CEO Tom Conrad hinted at an upcoming event in September for the company, so all may be revealed soon.
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