Wiim's collision course with Sonos becomes more inevitable with this new addition to its ecosystem.
Table of Contents Tomorrow, Wiim will announce its first wireless speaker, the Wiim Sound. It looks like a lot like Apple’s HomePod, with an almost cylindrical shape that’s wrapped in a fabric grille and topped with a set of touch controls.
But the detail that will likely get the most attention is its built-in, 1.8-inch circular touchscreen. The hi-res screen offers the same album displays and controls as the one on the front of the Wiim Ultra, the company’s flagship network music streamer. As with all of Wiim’s products, its core feature set is designed to work seamlessly with the rest of the affordable Wiim ecosystem, giving Sonos owners even more reason to make a switch. Recommended Videos The Wiim Sound is set to debut at High End Munich 2025, an audiophile-centric audio show in Germany. Wiim hasn’t released pricing or specific availability yet, noting only that the Wiim Sound will arrive in “Q3 2025 on Amazon and at select retailers.” For now, it’s only available in black. Related Another step toward a true Sonos alternative The Wiim Sound isn’t the first Wiim-compatible wireless speaker. Earlier in 2025, the company announced it had partnered with Swedish brand, Audio Pro to create Wiim Edition versions of its A10 Mk II and C10 Mk II wireless speakers, which can be discovered and controlled natively within the Wiim Home app. However, the Wiim Sound marks an important milestone in the company’s evolution as it begins to build out an ecosystem of in-house designed products that let it compete more directly with Sonos. It’s not difficult to imagine that Wiim will continue this expansion, eventually working its way into the rest of Sonos’ categories, such as soundbars, Bluetooth speakers, and possibly headphones. Between HomePod and Era 100 Physically, the Wiim Sound straddles the line between the Apple HomePod and the Sonos Era 100. Its footprint is almost exactly the same as the HomePod, while its height, at 7.5 inches is slightly taller than the Era 100 . The presence of the circular touchscreen will no doubt renew speculation about Apple’s next HomePod, which has been widely rumored to include some kind of display. Internally, the Wiim Sound is much closer to Sonos’ speaker, with a 4-inch woofer and two balanced-mode radiator tweeters. Thanks to those dual tweeters, Wiim says the Sound can reproduce two-channel stereo, though like the Era 100, getting true stereo separation may be tricky. Wiim hasn’t revealed the amplifier layout details, but it claims there’s 100 watts of combined power on tap. On the bottom of the speaker are ports for power, and 10/100 Ethernet, plus a 3.5mm jack for analog inputs. Wireless connectivity is supported by both Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. Wiim calls the Sound a smart speaker, but since there’s no built-in mic and no native voice assistant, that might be stretching the term. You can, however, use it as Amazon Alexa device via the included voice remote. For the Wiim Sound, the company has created a modified version of it Siri-remote clone, the Wiim Voice Remote 2. Alternatively, the Wiim Sound is compatible with Google Assistant and can respond to those voice commands if you own an Assistant-capable smartphone or other device. As with the rest of Wiim’s ecosystem, the Wiim Sound has an impressive array of streaming and EQ features, including: You can control the Wiim Sound as part of a larger multiroom audio system within the Wiim Home app. This includes grouping the Sound with other Wiim components for synchronized playback as well as the ability to stereo-pair two Wiim Sounds. Interestingly, a single Wiim Sound can be used as center channel speaker, or two can be used as surround speakers within a 5.1 configuration. To do this, you’ll need a 5.1 source of sound — either a 5.1 audio recording that lives in your personal library on your home network, or from a TV plugged into one of Wiim’s HDMI-ARC compatible devices . Still no AirPlay For reasons known only to Wiim and Apple, the Wiim Sound is now the third Wiim streaming product to launch without support for Apple’s AirPlay 2 wireless streaming protocol. When the Wiim Ultra debuted without AirPlay, it was believed to be a temporary omission — one that would be rectified with a firmware update. This failed to happen, and then Wiim launched the Amp Pro, also without AirPlay. While AirPlay is a useful feature for iPhone users, letting them stream audio on their home Wi-Fi networks from any any app that supports it, its popularity among Wiim’s users is unclear. AirPlay 2 introduces lossy compression, which audiophiles consider an unacceptable tradeoff. Moreover, the trend toward streaming apps building their own version of AirPlay plus the availability of Google Cast, reduces the need for AirPlay under most circumstances. Even on an iPhone when streaming Apple Music, Bluetooth can serve as an acceptable AirPlay alternative on Wiim’s products.
Hi-Res Audio Homepod Multiroom Audio Sonos Wiim Wiim Sound Wireless Speakers
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Get an exclusive first look at Petra Lord's 'transgender epic' YA novel Queen of FacesIn Petra Lord's 'Queen of Faces,' a cyberpunk world provides the setting for a new transgender epic. See the cover and read an excerpt exclusively at Entertainment Weekly.
Read more »
Rob Liefeld Talks New Youngblood Comic, Shares Exclusive First LookRob Liefeld is returning to comics with one of his greatest creations, the super-team Youngblood.
Read more »
Two Boys and Their Dad Wander Through Lagos in ‘My Father’s Shadow’ (Exclusive First Look)Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù ('Slow Horses', 'Gangs of London') leads the semi-autobiographical film, the debut feature from Akinola Davies Jr. that will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
Read more »
EXCLUSIVE: L’Officiel Ventures Into Hospitality With First Coffee Outpost in TokyoL’Officiel is opening its first Coffee, a three-story hospitality space in Tokyo's Omotesando marking a lifestyle push for the storied glossy title.
Read more »
Wiim’s tvOS app is another slap at SonosWiim one-ups Sonos once again with a version of its app for the big screen.
Read more »
EXCLUSIVE: Miami-inspired Snipes x MCM Collection Debuts With Exclusive Bags and Bold ColorsDJ Khaled stars in the campaign for the first Snipes x MCM collaboration, which is inspired by Miami.
Read more »