After reporting bumpy third quarter earnings on Wednesday, Sonos announced that it has decided to push back a product launch that was originally penciled in for the near future. The product in question is almost certainly the long-awaited Sub Mini, a more affordable subwoofer that would join the company’s home theater lineup alongside the existing $749 Sub.
The Sub Mini appeared at the FCC in June. If Sonos had followed its typical window of time between that filing and a consumer release, the product would’ve been arriving relatively soon. But Sonos says it’s now been delayed until the fiscal first quarter of 2023. “We always consider the kind of product that it is, and the timing,” CEO Patrick Spence said on Wednesday’s earnings call. “We remain committed to two new product launches each year.”
Sonos spokesperson Erin Pategas confirmed the news to The Verge in an email, saying “I can confirm we decided to push an anticipated product launch from Q4 ’22 into Q1 ’23.” That would put its rescheduled arrival sometime between October and December.
Sonos’ Q3 earnings were well off the mark of the company’s revenue expectations. “We have seen the macroeconomic backdrop become significantly more challenging for us starting in June as the dollar’s appreciation and high inflation have adversely affected consumer sentiment globally, particularly in the categories in which we play,” Spence said in the company’s earnings release.
Outgoing CFO Brittany Bagley said on the investor call that Sonos is currently holding onto more inventory than it would like and faces a “challenging Q4.” The company pointed to soft demand for the $279 Sonos Ray soundbar as one reason for its revenue miss. But Sonos partially blamed that on a slowdown in TV sales, and the company voiced optimism that the Ray will ultimately prove very successful as its entry-level soundbar on account of positive reviews and its appealing price.
