Comparing Sonos Beam Gen 1 and Sonos Beam Gen 2
Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Experts prefer Sonos Beam Gen 2 over Sonos Beam Gen 1
On 4 Jan 2023 (25 days ago) we went through 120 Sound Bar expert endorsements .
Currently, Sonos Beam Gen 2 received 9 endorsements from Rtings.com (9 Dec 2022), What Hi-Fi (26 Nov 2022) World Wide Stereo (3 Jan 2023) and 6 others. Meanwhile, Sonos Beam Gen 1 did not receive any endorsements this month.
Curious to see this month's entire Sound Bars ranking? It's here
Endorsement summary:
- On 9 Dec 2022
Rtings.com ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #6 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #6 out of 7 Sonos Beam Gen 2 Best Small Soundbar... ... ... Source: www.rtings.com - On 26 Nov 2022
What Hi-Fi ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #2 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #2 out of 22 Sonos Beam Gen 2 If space and budget are limited there isn't a better virtual Dolby Atmos soundbar that we'd recommend... ... ... Source: www.whathifi.com - On 3 Jan 2023
World Wide Stereo ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #5 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #5 out of 20 Sonos Beam Gen 2 The Best Smart Sound Bar... ... ... Source: www.worldwidestereo.com - On 5 Jul 2022
SoundGuys ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #2 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #2 out of 5 Sonos Beam Gen 2 Best Smart Soundbar... ... ... Source: www.soundguys.com - On 24 Nov 2022
WIRED ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #4 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #4 out of 13 Sonos Beam Gen 2 The Smartest Soundbar... ... ... Source: www.wired.com - On 28 Nov 2022
TechHive ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #4 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #4 out of 8 Sonos Beam Gen 2 Best mid-range soundbar, runner-up... ... ... Source: www.techhive.com - On 21 Dec 2022
PCMag ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #8 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #8 out of 9 Sonos Beam Gen 2 Best Affordable Sonos Soundbar... ... ... Source: www.pcmag.com - On 22 Dec 2022
Tom's Guide ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #10 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #10 out of 12 Sonos Beam Gen 2 The best-sounding soundbar for small TVs... ... ... Source: www.tomsguide.com - On 6 Dec 2022
TechRadar ranked Sonos Beam Gen 2 as #8 Rank Sound Bar Comment ... ... ... #8 out of 15 Sonos Beam Gen 2 The best small soundbar with Dolby Atmos for compact rooms... ... ... Source: www.techradar.com
Made up your mind? Ready to dive in?
Sonos Beam Gen 1 
Sonos Beam Gen 2 Customers like Sonos Beam Gen 1 somewhat more
At ReviewFinder we prefer to focus on professional product reviews, because customer reviews can be disproportionately affected by unrelated factors such as delivery, specific seller listing problems, and, of course, fake reviews. With that said, below is the summary of consumer sentiment.
Sonos Beam Gen 1
Sonos Beam Gen 2
Sonos Beam Gen 2
Consumer score (CS) is a normalized computed representation of customers' sentiment towards a product.
CS of 10 is similar to a 4.8 star review, CS of 0 is similar to a 2 star review.
CS of 10 is similar to a 4.8 star review, CS of 0 is similar to a 2 star review.
Sonos Beam Gen 1, the cheaper option, tends to get more favorable reviews than Sonos Beam Gen 2.
As can be seen in the chart above, median best-selling sound bar receives a consumer score of 7.8 (good). Both Sonos Beam Gen 1 and Sonos Beam Gen 2 receive customer reviews that average out above that median threshold.
| Sonos Beam Gen 1 | |
| Sonos Beam Gen 2 | |
| Median best-selling Sound Bar |
Sonos Beam Gen 1 is more popular than Sonos Beam Gen 2
It's fairly safe to say that Sonos Beam Gen 1 is a more popular sound bar than Sonos Beam Gen 2, based on its 4,000+ reviews. Popularity is determined based on product sales. Note that older and cheaper products tend to sell more.
To consider
Customers who view Sonos Beam Gen 1 and 2 often consider Klipsch Cinema 600, a pricier option.
| Table: Top compared alternatives for Sonos Beam Gen 1 and 2 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Klipsch Cinema 600 | $449 | 2 expert recommendations | ||
 | Denon Home 550 | $499 | 2 expert recommendations | ||
 | Sonos Beam Gen 2 | $445 | 9 expert recommendations | ||
As can be seen below, Sonos Beam Gen 2 is mentioned by key experts in Jan 2023, while Sonos Beam Gen 1 is not.
| Rank | Change | Price | Sound Bar | Rtings.com | What Hi-Fi |
World Wide Stereo | SoundGuys |
WIRED | Digital Trends  | TechHive | PCMag | Tom's Guide | TechRadar |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | $445 |  Sonos Beam Gen 2 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 4 | - | 4 | 8 | 10 | 8 |
| 2 | +1 | $1598 |  Samsung HW-Q990B | 1 | - | 6 | - | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | - | 6 |
| 3 | -1 | $899 |  Sonos Arc | - | 3 | 3 | - | - | 1 | - | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | - | $295 |  Vizio M-Series 5.1 | 4 | - | - | - | 2 | 8 | 3 | 4 | - | - |
| Show all rows | |||||||||||||
Expert reviews [28]
Total expert reviews: 28
- with a score: 18
- without a score: 10
| Highest score by What Hi-Fi | 100 |
| Average score based on 28 reviews | 88 |
| Lowest score by Rtings.com | 79 |
Score distribution:
| 80-100 | |
| 60-80 | |
| 40-60 | |
| 20-40 | |
| 0-20 |
Expert reviews [23]
Total expert reviews: 23
- with a score: 16
- without a score: 7
| Highest score by What Hi-Fi | 100 |
| Average score based on 23 reviews | 84 |
| Lowest score by Rtings.com | 74 |
Score distribution:
| 80-100 | |
| 60-80 | |
| 40-60 | |
| 20-40 | |
| 0-20 |
Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
From Seller:
- Beam - The smart, compact soundbar for TV, music, and more.
- High definition sound - Experience rich, detailed sound for your TV that fills the entire room.
- TV, music and more - Play music, TV, movies, podcasts, radio, audiobooks and video games.
- Read more
From Seller:
- Enrich your entertainment experience with vibrant bass, crystal clear dialogue, and a panoramic soundstage.
- Experience a 3D surround sound effect with Dolby Atmos.
- Stream music, radio, podcasts, and audiobooks over WiFi when the TV is off.
- Read more
Sonos Beam Lowdown: All you need to know in under 5 minutes
Review by Smart Home Sounds Ltd.
Popular! 60K views!
Play video review
Sonos Beam (Gen 2) Review: What Have They Done?! 🤯
Review by Smart Home Sounds Ltd.
Very popular! 164K views!
Play video review
SONOS Beam Gen 2 Review Malaysia: Dolby Atmos is the name of the game
Review by KLGadgetTV
Play video review
Official Urls:
EAN Numbers: 0780537830157, 0878269004264, 0878269004271, 8717755773913, 8717755773920, 8717755773937, 8717755773944
UPC Numbers: 780537830157, 878269004264, 878269004271
Model Numbers: BEAM1EU1, BEAM1EU1BLK, BEAM1UK1, BEAM1UK1BLK, BEAM1US1, BEAM1US1BLK
Official Urls:
Model Numbers: 8717755778116
Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Info
Weight
6.2 lbs
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Dimensions
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Speaker composition
What is the cabinet of the speaker made out of?
PVC
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Speaker Design
Number of drivers in the speaker
Two-Way
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
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Separate subwoofer included
Does the soundbar comes with a separate subwoofer?
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Bluetooth Capability
Does the speaker support wireless connection?
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Supported connections
What type of connections does the speaker support?
HDMI input, digital audio input (optical)
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Hi-resolution audio
Does the speaker support hi-resolution audio playback?
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Rechargeable battery
Does the speaker have a built in rechargeable battery?
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
FM Radio capability
Does the speaker have an FM radio?
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Built-in microphone
Does the speaker have a built-in microphone?
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Wi-fi enabled
Is the speaker capable of connecting to wi-fi?
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
App/Smartphone controlled
Is the speaker can be controlled by an app or a smartphone?
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ENERGY STAR certified
Is the speaker energy star certified?
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Chromecast built-in
Does the speaker have a built-in Chromecast playback?
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Airplay capability
Does the speaker support Airplay technology?
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IR Remote Learning
Can the speaker be controlled with an external (universal) remote?
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Included Accessories
What are the accessories included with the speaker?
Optical audio adapter
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Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
Loading price comparison chart...
Sonos Beam Gen 1 is a very popular option on the higher end of the price range. It's in the top 3 bestselling sound bars and has dozens of popular alternatives in the same price range, such as Denon Home 550 or LG SP8YA .
Sonos Beam Gen 1 was released in 2018. There are a couple newer sound bars on the market. Show newer Sound Bars
Sonos Beam Gen 1 is $220 more expensive than the average sound bar ($279).
Sonos Beam Gen 2 is a well-known option on the higher end of the price range. It's in the top 3 bestselling sound bars and has dozens of popular alternatives in the same price range, such as Klipsch Reference RSB-6 or Klipsch Cinema 600 .
Sonos Beam Gen 2 is $166 more expensive than the average sound bar ($279).
Sonos Beam Gen 1: Buy | Customer Reviews
Sonos Beam Gen 2: Buy | Customer Reviews
