Verizon today announced a pair of soundbars with Android TV built in. The Verizon Stream TV Soundbar and Soundbar Pro are made by luxury brand Bang & Olufsen. Both feature support for 4K resolution at up to 60 frames per second, Wi-Fi 6 (that’s 802.11ax), HDMI 2.1, and Bluetooth 5.0.
The Verizon Stream TV Soundbar sports five speakers — three full-range, and two woofers — has three HDMI ports (two in and one out) and retails for $400. The Soundbar Pro weighs in at $1,000 and has nine speakers — four full-range, three tweeters, and two woofers — as well as three HDMI inputs and one output.
This sort of product isn’t new — it’s exactly what you’ve seen from other retailers like the JBL Link Bar, and or the Anker Nebula, or the Roku Smart Soundbar. So the obvious question is “Why Verizon?” There’s no great answer here, other than it’s the sort of thing that businesses do when they want to do partnerships. It’s also the sort of thing you’d do if you’re a company that wants to get more insight on what people are doing and watching with their TVs and don’t own the operating system itself, as Google or Roku or Amazon do.
“Verizon is a leading provider of the best, most sought after communications, information and entertainment services for customers,” Chris Emmons, vice president, Devices and Accessories, Verizon, said in the press release. “We are thrilled to be working with Bang & Olufsen, a brand known for its world-class audio and TV solutions, to provide our customers with more premium home entertainment experiences.”
The Stream TV Soundbar and Soundbar Pro are available now from Verizon, with discounts available of up to 30% or 40% if you buy multiple accessories.
