Top Wi-Fi speakers, music systems
Amazon Echo Dot
Cnet rating: 5 stars out of 5
The good: The second-generation, mini-size smart speaker is just as smart as the first at nearly half the cost, and it’s better at hearing you, too. It’s also the only Echo product you can connect to an existing audio setup.
The bad: Amazon’s Echo products still can’t offer audio that syncs across devices in multiple rooms.
The cost: $30 to $50
The bottom line: The Dot takes Amazon’s best-in-class smart home speaker and wraps it in an ultra-affordable package.
Chromecast Audio
Cnet rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
The good: Google’s ultra-affordable Wi-Fi dongle streams anything from an Android device and many top iOS apps as well. It supports multiroom audio, digital and analog outputs and — with Google Home — voice control.
The bad: Some notable music services, including iTunes, Apple Music and Amazon Music, are not supported on iPhone and iPad. You need to supply the speakers.
The cost: $35
The bottom line: The phenomenal Chromecast Audio should be your starting point if you’re looking into multiroom wireless audio.
Sony STR-DN1080
Cnet rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
The good: The Sony offers all of the features you could want in a modern receiver — multiroom music, Chromecast streaming, AirPlay, Dolby Atmos and a slew of 4K-compliant inputs. Sound quality is excellent, especially for movies. The interface is easy to follow, and it is coupled with a friendly remote.
The bad: Sound quality is a little less full than on last year’s model, meaning it may not be quite as forgiving of bright speakers.
The cost: $448 to $598
The bottom line: The Sony is fully featured and easy to use, and it sounds great, making it the best AV receiver available for the price.
Sonos One
Cnet rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
The good: The Sonos One integrates full-fledged Alexa voice control, just like an Amazon Echo speaker but with better sound quality. It offers most of Alexa’s smart home controls and its far-field microphone performs similarly to an Echo. The Sonos One works seamlessly as part of a Sonos multiroom system, and can pair with another One for stereo sound. In 2018, Sonos will add Google Assistant, and Apple AirPlay 2 support is coming, too.
The bad: The One costs twice as much as the new Echo. It cannot form a stereo pair with an existing Sonos Play:1. Google Assistant and AirPlay 2 support won’t arrive until 2018. It doesn’t work how you’d expect if you have an Echo within earshot. There’s no Bluetooth.
The cost: $199
The bottom line: The Sonos One is the first smart speaker that actually sounds good with music — and even more new features will be coming to it in the next few months.