Tired of the same boring flat speaker that we’ve had for yonks? Apparently Samsung is too, and is shaking things up this year with curves and soft flowing circular lines, building soundbars and speakers that look nothing like products you’ve seen from other vendors.
This week, you have choices for speakers that match a curved TV if you’ve bought one, and even speakers that will act as a showpiece in your home, as Samsung channels a bit of something different with a unique take on speaker design.
First up are the soundbars, which this year will offer up a curved look to match the equally curved Samsung TVs being offered in 2015.
Three of these will be offered, with the 6, 7 and 8 series soundbars, starting with 300 watts of power for the 6.1 channel Series 6, 320 watts for the 8.1 channel Series 7, and 350 watts for the 9.1 channel Series 8.
There are some other differences such as the sizes of TV these are compatible with because of the length of the models, and while all have Bluetooth, only the Series 7 and 8 support Samsung’s multi-room audio range, a technology that competes with Sonos by offering sound in every room of the house synchronised and playing back simultaneously.
Pricing for this range starts at $999 for the Series 6, reaching to $1399 for the 7 and $1699 for the Series 8, but they won’t be the only few speakers in.
You can expect a few soundbars made for flat TVs — because not everyone wants something curved — as well as a couple of speakers made to be a little curvier than your typical floor standing speaker.
These are the egg-like speakers Samsung showed off earlier in the year, back at CES, with the WAM6500 and WAM7500 models, offering omnidirectional sound using a technology called a “ring radiator” which Samsung says pushes the sound out to a 360 degree plane.
The look of these two speakers is definitely egg-like, and if you’re at all a gamer and know the Valve series “Portal”, the speakers are very reminiscent of a character from the game, albeit without a red light glowing at you and a personality that allows it to talk.
Instead of talking, these will sing audio, relying in a design from a new audio facility in America (Valencia, California), and able to be left in the corner of the home, or even mounted to the ceiling.
Unfortunately, these two are a ways away, and unlike the soundbars — which are slated for release in Australia in the next week or so — the WAM6500 and 7500 aren’t expected until later this year.
