As you’d expect from the Sonos brand, Roam sounds incredible, especially for its size. The little speaker is tiny enough to go just about anywhere but brings volume that I’d expect from something twice the size. That quality is best heard at or below 50% volume where I found clarity as its best, but if you need to crank up the volume you won’t be disappointed. This thing is great both for a gardening companion and for filling your backyard with music during a BBQ. You can’t expect perfection or even quality that matches the rest of the Sonos lineup, but Roam sounds better than it should for its size, probably helped by the “Auto TruePlay” feature that adjusts the sound based on the environment.
You can play music from the Roam directly through the Sonos app or using Spotify Connect, but it really shines for me because it doubles as a Google Assistant speaker. A quick setup process walks you through linking Sonos Roam to Google Assistant and, afterwards, the product can listen for “Hey Google” commands and act as a target for any app that supports audio over Chromecast. Assistant commands were easily understood by the Roam even from a distance, and I was also happy with how quickly it would respond to those commands, something some third-party devices like this can slightly struggle with. There’s also an easy toggle for the mic if you want added privacy.
There are some restrictions, though, which keep me from calling this the “perfect” portable Google Assistant speaker.
Due to the ongoing Sonos feud about speaker grouping, you can’t pair the Sonos Roam with other Google Assistant speakers around your home to have music playing simultaneously. That was a bummer to find out, as I’d hoped to use the Roam as a portable part of a whole home speaker group on cleaning days or when having friends to my home, but it wasn’t meant to be. Another slight quirk is how Roam is treated within the Google Home app. It appears as a miscellaneous speaker which, unfortunately, means you can’t control volume or tracks playing on the Roam within the Home app’s excellent “Media” section.
If Sonos Roam is in your budget, it’s shipping now from Sonos.com, Best Buy, B&H Photo, and other retailers.