Swedish furniture company IKEA is known for its minimalistic designs and flat-pack kits. A few years ago, it partnered with the US-based audio equipment brand Sonos to integrate electronics into furniture that blends into your decor. This collaboration led to the development of the Symfonisk bookshelf speaker and Symfonisk table lamp. Today, IKEA added another member to this line-up — the Symfonisk picture frame Wi-Fi speaker.
Although it is called a picture frame, you won"t be able to slide your photo into it. Instead, it features a design meant to disguise this speaker into a piece of "art". The front panel is swappable, and users will get to choose from several styles from artist Jennifer Idrizi in select markets.
The Symfonisk picture frame connects to your Wi-Fi and can stream music from popular services including Apple AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect. These speakers can be used for playing different content in separate rooms. Or you can group them together to play the same content across your home. The speakers have basic playback and volume controls onboard.
Like a picture frame, you can hang these speakers on a wall. However, IKEA has also added rubber feet should you choose to keep them on a desk. Each speaker comes with a 3.5-meter power cable for easy installation. The Symfonisk picture frame speaker also features a power-out port so that two speakers can be daisy-chained to work on a single wall socket.
The speaker can be controlled with the Sonos mobile app, which is available on Android and iOS. Using this app, you can also pair this picture frame speaker with compatible sound systems from Sonos.
The Symfonisk picture frame with W-Fi speaker will be available in black and white. Priced at $199 in the U.S., and for £179 in the UK or €179 in Europe; it will hit IKEA stores in those regions on July 15 with availability in other countries to follow.