Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: which premium smart speaker is right for you?

Sonos makes some of the best smart speakers in the world, and the Move 2 is another fine entry in the canon. Like its predecessor, it's marketed as a portable speaker – though nowhere near as manoeuvrable as the smaller, cheaper Sonos Roam – but with some key upgrades.

But would you be better off with the premium Sonos Era 300 wireless speaker? They cost the same, so is there any reason you should buy the four-star Move 2 over the five-star Era 300? Let's find out.

Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: price

The Era 300 is the older of the two speakers – it launched back in March for £449 / $449 / AU$749. This being Sonos, the price hasn't dropped. You might snag a small discount in a sale – fingers crossed for Amazon Prime Big Deal Days and Black Friday – but big price slashes are hard to come by.

The Move 2 has only just launched, and costs the same as the Era 300 at £449 / $449 / AU$799. With it so new, deals are even less likely.

** Winner: Draw **

Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: design

The Move 2 is sold as a portable Bluetooth speaker. Usually that conjures images of dinky little models you can stash in your bag (think the JBL Charge 5 or Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3), but the Move 2 couldn't be further from that. It's massive. Standing about the same size as a door-stopper hardback like a dictionary or encyclopaedia, it's not the kind of thing you'll take to a friend's for a barbecue. Instead, you're meant to move it from room to room or maybe out into your own back garden, which you do using the carry handle on the back.

On the surface, very little has changed from its predecessor. It has Sonos' typically excellent build quality and finish, and the IP56 water- and dust-proofing means it'll withstand whatever the weather throws at it. But there are some new touches.

The icons have been updated to match the Era speakers', and it even features the same volume trough on the top. The buttons around back for power, Bluetooth pairing and mic on/off have been reworked, and there's a natty new olive green finish to complement the usual white and black options. Nice. 

But overall it looks like a standard speaker. Not like the Era 300. This has a unique cinched hourglass shape designed to help its spatial audio output. It's built to the same high standards as the Move 2 (and all of Sonos' speakers), with a nice, clean profile. Your colour options are more limited than the Move 2 though – there's no olive green in sight.

The controls take the same style as the Move 2's as well, bringing unity to the range. It helps that they're responsive and very intuitive to use.

** Winner: Sonos Era 300 **

Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: features

A huge part of the Era 300's appeal and design is all about spatial audio. The unusual design is necessary to incorporate the unique arrangement of six drivers: four tweeters (one forward-firing, two side-firing, one upward-firing) and two woofers (angled left and right for stereo playback). Each is powered by its own class D amplifier. Custom waveguides direct sound forwards, upwards, left and right to create an immersive listening experience. 

The up-firing tweeter is Dolby Atmos-specified, and reflects sound off the ceiling when playing Dolby Atmos music. However, at the moment, this is only supported by Amazon Music Unlimited and Apple Music, so Tidal’s Dolby Atmos catalogue is off limits. Hopefully that'll change soon.

The Era 300 was the first non-battery-powered Sonos speaker to feature wi-fi and Bluetooth (previously, this combo was reserved for the Roam and Move). Also like the Move 2, it supports Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 6 and Apple AirPlay 2 wireless technologies. Both have a USB-C port, but while the Move 2 uses this to charge its battery as well, on the Era 300 it's solely as a line-in for hooking up a source like a record player (though you'll need an extra adapter). The Move 2 can also use this port to charge your mobile device – handy if you're far from a power socket.

Both support 24-bit/48kHz hi-res music files from Qobuz and Amazon Music services, and Alexa and Sonos Voice Control are on hand for hands-free playback.

One of the Move 2's biggest improvements is the battery life. This now stands at an impressive 24 hours, which is over double to 10-11 we got from the original Move. As before, the battery is replaceable and a wireless charging base comes in the box.

The other improvement is stereo sound, with dual angled tweeters alongside a woofer. (You can read how this performs in the Sound section below).

Both devices use the excellent Sonos app, which makes setup and pairing a doddle. Multi-room has never been so user-friendly. They use Sonos’s Trueplay room calibration tuning to fine-tune playback to your environment – especially handy with the Move 2, which is more likely to be lugged between rooms and gardens.

The Era 300 has a feather in its cap: you can use it as a Dolby Atmos surround speaker, delivering multi-channel rears for the first time. Use it partnered with the Sonos Arc or Beam Gen 2 soundbars and Sub, and you can put together a 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos home theatre experience. It'll cost you, but it should sound awesome.

** Winner: Sonos Era 300 **

Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: sound

So, apart from spatial audio, there's not that much difference between the two speakers. They're both on the large side, both share a lot of the same features and both use the same Sonos app. But when it comes to sound, the differences between the two become rather more obvious. 

The Era 300 has plenty of scale – the sound spread is immense considering it's coming from a single box. It projects sound further into the room and overhead more confidently than any other similar wireless speaker we’ve heard. But it doesn't just spread the audio far and wide, it makes it sound solid and cohesive at the same time. 

Spatial audio doesn't sound gimmicky like it can on some speakers – rather, it feels like the same music, made more immersive. Tracks are delivered in a way that's detailed, engaging and accomplished. And it's fun, which a speaker like this ought to be.

This is a very mature, very assured performance from Sonos.

The Move 2 is an improvement on the original Move, but it can't match the Era 300 for bass depth or agility. It spreads sound impressively, and has plenty of power. It's also more detailed and balanced than the original Move.

For parties, it's a blast. Songs are thrown around with abandon, and it has no trouble staying composed while raising the roof. There's more grip and depth to the bass than the original Move, while notes sound cleaner and more precise.

But it can't compete with the Era 300 when it comes to power, detail and timing.

** Winner: Sonos Era 300 **

Sonos Move 2 vs Sonos Era 300: verdict

The Move 2 is an improvement on its predecessor. With over double the battery life, new controls and better sound quality, it's very deserving of its four stars. But that price! We're not sure how Sonos can justify charging the same as for the Era 300, a product it developed completely from the ground up.

If you need a speaker you can also take to the garden and have a Sonos multi-room setup, the Move 2 is a no-brainer. But for the same price, with more features and a superior sound, the Era 300 is our choice, hands down.

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