Ikea and Sonos have been collaborating for years on unusual speakers. For example, a Symfonisk lamp or painting is not only a design item, but also music comes out of it. Samsung thinks it can do better and is showing the Music Frame at CES 2024.
If you, like everyone else on Easter Monday, do polonaise in the Ikea, you sometimes see special Symfonisk lamps there in the sample living rooms that have sound coming out of them. It’s the ideal product if you love music but don’t want speakers to really stand out.
Ikea is working with Sonos for this. The special thing about this is that, unlike normal Sonos products, the boxes in a lamp or painting are not expensive at all. During CES 2024, Samsung now also announces that it will target that market.
Samsung will compete with Sonos and Ikea
The Frame may look familiar to you. Samsung already makes televisions under that name that are finished to resemble a painting. The advantage is that you don’t see an ugly black surface when the unit is off. Now it is expanding that line with a special speaker, which looks a bit like Ikea and Sonos’ Symfonisk line.
Samsung has quite a bit of expertise when it comes to sound. The company owns Harman/Kardon, of which JBL is a sub-brand, among others. So the company, like Sonos, knows perfectly well how to make good speakers.
Major differences from the Symfonisk
Unlike The Frame television, Samsung’s Music Frame does not have a screen. Instead, it has a physical image. So you can rightly call it a Symfonisk competitor. Still, there is a difference between it and those from Sonos and Ikea. Samsung’s one you can pair with a Samsung television, giving you true surround sound. Ideal for hanging behind the couch so you no longer need normal speakers.
There is also another advantage over the Symfonisk speaker from Ikea and Sonos. Measuring 32.77 by 32.77 centimeters, Samsung’s model is considerably smaller. You can also just customize the picture and frame of the speaker.
Samsung has not yet shared a price and launch date of this Sonos/Ikea competitor. However, it is expected to appear in spring 2024.