The Bose Smart Soundbar 900 boasts Dolby Atmos in a compact design

Bose has announced the Smart Soundbar 900, the replacement for its flagship Bose Smart Soundbar 700. It costs a little more – around $100 more – and it’s very slightly larger than the 700, but it still remains smaller and lighter than other Dolby Atmos soundbars, such as the Sonos Arc.

With a length of 41.14 inches (104.5cm) it is almost 4 inches (10cm) shorter than the Sonos Arc, and around 1.1 inches less in height at 2.29 inches (5.8cm) – that makes it easier to fit beneath your TV if you have it on the same surface.

The new seven-speaker arrangement includes two transducers to lift the soundstage, as if you were using ceiling speakers. This works not only for Dolby Atmos content but also with stereo and 5.1 audio thanks to Bose’s TrueSpace technology.

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The inputs include the new eARC HDMI port which delivers greater bandwidth for uncompressed audio. There’s Bluetooth, AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect, and it can be linked to other Bose Smart Speakers through the Bose Music app. You can also pair the soundbar with the 700-series Bass Module and Surround Speakers.

In addition to the new audio features, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 comes with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice control. However, the Alexa controls are more substantial, allowing you to also control your TV or cable box with voice commands and make calls without your phone.

The Bose Smart Soundbar 900 is available for pre-order from the US website, priced $899 with shipping on September 23. UK and Australian prices and availability are still to be confirmed.