Sonos filing hints at upcoming smart home theater speaker
It could be the first Sonos product with a HDMI port.
If you've been planning on upgrading your home theater, you might want to hold off a little longer. According to a new FCC filing, Sonos could be coming up with a new smart home theater speaker in the near future. Variety reports that the model number has "S14" in the name and, importantly, features a HDMI port.
Sonos' most recent home theater offering was the Playbase, a soundbar designed to sit directly underneath your TV. Sonos released its flagship soundbar, the Playbar, all the way back in 2013, so it's definitely time for an update. The FCC filing doesn't reveal a lot of details, but according to Variety, the speaker in the document is described as a "high-performance all-in-one home theater smart speaker" and part of Sonos' home sound system. This might mean that it'll have a voice control interface, similar to the Sonos One.
The addition of a HDMI port is a new one for Sonos too. The company's other soundbars both use optical out for audio, which makes for a simpler setup, but does limit functionality. If the new soundbar supports HDMI 2.1, it would then support lossless audio formats like Dolby Atmos.
