Best answer: Yes, the Sonos Roam is waterproof up to 3 feet of submersion for as long as 30 minutes and dust-proof thanks to an official IP67-certification.
How waterproof is the Sonos Roam?
Sonos has been making some of the best smart speakers for a while now, and with the Sonos Roam being the first easily portable speaker the company has made, it begs the question — is the Sonos Roam waterproof? Ok, technically, the Sonos Move is portable, but it is heavy and on the bulky side. For the Move, Sonos went with an IP56-certification that means the speaker can handle some dust and being splashed by water.
For the Roam, Sonos opted to get the portable speaker a more robust certification at an IP67 level. Since the Roam is far more simple to haul around due to the smaller overall package, it makes sense to have a higher tolerance for the elements. If you’re unsure what this rating means, here’s a bit of clarification:
- First digit 6: Dust-tight. No ingress of dust.
- Second digit 7: * Protection against immersion effects in water between 1cm and 1m for 30 minutes.*
So, though you can’t take the Sonos Roam to your next underwater pool party — it would be hard to hear anyways — it can hang out poolside. Should it get splashed or knocked into the shallow end, the Roam will survive. Just be sure that you don’t let the speaker get too close to water deeper than it is rated to survive because it doesn’t float.
What’s the difference between the Sonos Roam and Move?
As I said earlier, the Sonos Roam isn’t the first portable speaker that the company has released. However, it may be the first one that you’ll take with you on the go. The Sonos Move weighs 6.5 pounds and has a built-in battery that recharges either via a USB-C cable or while it sits in a specially designed dock. On a full battery, the Move will net you 10 hours of playback over a Wi-Fi connection and a bit less when using Bluetooth.
The Roam, however, has a much smaller footprint and weighs less than a pound. When it comes to charging the speaker’s battery, that can be done by either USB-C, a yet-to-be-released magnetic dock, or by using any of the best Qi wireless chargers. While both the Roam and Move each work over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, the Roam actually gets better playback time on Bluetooth at around 10 hours compared to closer to 9-hours using Wi-Fi.
As these speakers are both Sonos branded, you’ll get the great sound quality that the company is known for. Of course, the Move will have a fuller sound with deeper bass due to its physically larger size; the Roam is no slouch. Just keep in mind that you likely won’t want to toss the heavier Sonos Move into your bag, especially if you will be doing something where the elements could be a likely factor in your activities.
Free to move about
Sonos Roam
$169 at Best Buy $169 at B&H $169 at Sonos
Go where you please
With the Sonos Roam, you get the brand’s pedigree of high-quality sound reproduction and stable connectivity inside of a small package that is ready to go wherever you choose.
Ready to go
Sonos Move
$400 at Best Buy $399 at B&H $399 at Sonos
A workout
The Sonos Move has some of the best sound quality of any portable speaker. It may be on the heavy side for a portable speaker, but it’s ready to move nonetheless.
