Last week I found out IKEA has been collaborating with Sonos for eight years. Where have I been? I’m Swedish, for god’s sake.
Here’s your ONE drop:
IKEA hid Sonos speakers inside lamps and furniture. They called it SYMFONISK (because of course they did).
A floor lamp that plays Spotify. A picture frame that streams podcasts. A bookshelf speaker that doubles as a bookend, in case your books needed moral support.
Peak Swedish pragmatism: Why have furniture and speakers when you can have furniture that is speakers?
Also, peak modern absurdity: Even our lighting fixtures need a WiFi password.
But as of May 2025, it's over. IKEA and Sonos broke up. What’s on shelves now is the last of it.
Naturally, this is when I decide to write about it.
Naturally, this is when we finally buy some. A lot actually.
They’re not the best speakers. Let’s be honest, they’re probably Sonos’ worst. But paired with a decent home system, they’ll do exactly what they’re meant to: sit quietly inside a lamp until needed.
Good ideas die all the time. Sometimes because they’re bad. Sometimes because the timing's wrong. Sometimes because they solve a problem no one actually had.
// Ann
PS. This is not sponsored. My only compensation will be the joy of blasting ABBA from a lamp until it dies.