IKEA Unveils Minimalist 'Eneby' Line of Bluetooth Speakers

[MacRumors]

Swedish furniture seller IKEA has unveiled the first in a new line of minimalist Bluetooth speakers from the company.

Called Eneby, the Scandinavian-styled units come in 8-inch and 12-inch sizes, can be wall- or stand- mounted, and are made to fit in IKEA's Kallax and Eket storage systems.

The plastic speakers come with a mesh polyester fabric front panel that can be removed to expose the drivers, and a knob on the front of the speaker controls power, bass, treble, or volume.

A 3.5mm auxiliary output around the back lets you attach a wired device, while the smaller 8-inch speaker also features a carry handle and an optional battery pack for portability.

Up to eight Bluetooth devices can be connected to a single Eneby speaker at a time, so there's no need to disconnect one user to make way for another.

IKEA's Eneby 8-inch speaker costs $49 and is available in white, gray, or black, while the 12-inch model costs $89 and comes in black or white.

The battery pack for the smaller speaker is sold separately for $20, and you can also buy black speaker stands for $10 each that fit both sizes.

Last year, IKEA brought to market its own Apple HomeKit-compatible smart Lighting range of products called Trådfri. The range includes LED bulbs, a remote dimmer switch puck, a gateway kit, a motion sensor kit, and dimming lights.

Article Link: IKEA Unveils Minimalist 'Eneby' Line of Bluetooth Speakers

 

[JaySoul]

Looks great, wonder how it sounds?

 

[Kabeyun]

Good for them. Fifty bucks for a BT speaker, and they already have millions of customers in the door? These should sell like hot cakes. The Masses don’t care about “audiophile quality” and digital assistants are still a gimmick.

 

[groovyf]

Is this the first result from the Sonos/IKEA collaboration?

[Edit: Maybe not, as their Press Release refers to 2019 - https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/this-is-ikea/newsroom/press-release/ikea-and-sonos-collaborate]

...or maybe the've snuck a Sonos-developed speaker in there...

 

[zahuh]

LOL you can buy either seven of the 8 inch version or four of the 12 inch version or one HomePod. These things could be amazing with airplay 2. I hope the audio quality is at least pretty good. Can’t wait for the reviews on YouTube

 

[IGI2]

LOL you can buy either seven of the 8 inch version or four of the 12 inch version or one HomePod. These things could be amazing with airplay 2. I hope the audio quality is at least pretty good. Can’t wait for the reviews on YouTube

They wouldn't be so cheap with AirPlay 2, since they would have to include Wi-Fi chips, and pay royalties to Apple for AirPlay.

 

[sunapple]

It probably sounds better when placed in a Kallax too, genius.

 

[Json81]

Would be nice if you could connect several of them.

 

[djcerla]

Sounds like an IKEA.

 

[zahuh]

LOL you can buy either seven of the 8 inch version or four of the 12 inch version or one HomePod. These things could be amazing with airplay 2. I hope the audio quality is at least pretty good. Can’t wait for the reviews on YouTube

Thank you for clarifying. I’m not fluent with what airplay 2 actual requires.

 

[springsup]

LOL you can buy either seven of the 8 inch version or four of the 12 inch version or one HomePod. These things could be amazing with airplay 2. I hope the audio quality is at least pretty good. Can’t wait for the reviews on YouTube

If the HomePod sounded like a $10 speaker, being sold for $350, maybe you would have a point.
The reviews are saying it's like a $1000 speaker, being sold for $350.

The HomePod is the cheapest product in its class; and it's not in the same class as this IKEA speaker... obviously... That's like comparing an iPhone X to a $50 Android phone.

Not to slate these - they look nice, and plenty of people will surely buy them and enjoy them. I might even get one (for the kitchen or bathroom).

 

[OldSchoolMacGuy]

Good for them. Fifty bucks for a BT speaker, and they already have millions of customers in the door? These should sell like hot cakes. The Masses don’t care about “audiophile quality” and digital assistants are still a gimmick.

This is what so many don't understand. 99% of BlueTooth speaker buyers don't really care about sound quality nor do they know the difference. They want something cheap and functional. This meets those needs well and as you said, millions are already coming through the doors of IKEA stores. These will sell well.

 

[hvfsl]

They wouldn't be so cheap with AirPlay 2, since they would have to include Wi-Fi chips, and pay royalties to Apple for AirPlay.

I would happily pay another $15 for airplay support. Last time I checked, I could tell the difference between airplay and Bluetooth (which uses lossy compressed audio) connected to the same set of speakers.

 

[RedGala]

That looks hot. You could add airplay support by buying an old airport express and connecting the speaker to the audio jack. Would only be useful in one location, but it’s a good “hack”

 

[radiology]

Minimalist?

 

[Fender2112]

Minimalist?

It's square. That makes it minimalist.

Or maybe it refers to the sound quality.

 

[4jasontv]

Hmmm. How hard would stereo support on my tv be?

 

[RogerWilco]

Ikea's speaker is designed for the living spaces of real people, cramped, cluttered, chaotic. They put it on a shelf or set it against the wall. BT, the lowest common denominator, gets the job done on Android and iOS. No assistant needed, it just plays music. Eneby even has an optional battery pack making it portable.

HomePod was designed for imaginary customers living in homes with multiple large rooms. It begs to be placed near the center of a room and demands our attention...hmmm...

 

[pete2106]

Those look pretty smart mounted on the wall. I could get on board with this. I hope they support Alexa too. I hate HomeKit.

 

[shevans]

Hmmm. How hard would stereo support on my tv be?

Very easy...

Buy two, one for left, one for right, taking the analogue line out of the TV to the corresponding speaker. Just a case of getting the correct lead but most TV’s have a pair of phono outs to make it simple.

 

[TimUSCA]

digital assistants are still a gimmick.

Speak for yourself. I user Siri at least 20 times a day for various tasks. It's not a gimmick at all to me.

 

[jadot]

I've already got around 6 Bluetooth speakers that I don't use on top of the 4 or 5 that I do. Who buys cheap bluetooth speakers any more? I suppose a lot of these will be bought as gifts.

However, if these could be multi room enabled I could see them being useful.

 

[nt5672]

Hmmm, its flat, thin, and without character. Looks like an Ive design. I wonder if Apple is going to be filing lawsuits? Ahhh, its square not rounded. That is so yesterday.

 

[Lioness~]

Fabulous, I can even buy them in Sweden
Not with HomePod, not that I pay that much for them anyway.

Still have some totally ok speaker connected to my Expresses though.
Will probably be some small Eneby anyway.

 

[RogerWilco]

Hmmm, its flat, thin, and without character. Looks like an Ive design. I wonder if Apple is going to be filing lawsuits? Ahhh, its square not rounded. That is so yesterday.

I think Apple's concern might be that Ikea is getting serious about home electronics. Look at the price points of these Eneby speakers -- there was some serious arm twisting in the supply chain to get that done -- even Tim Cook might be envious.