onn. 42” 5.1. Dolby Atmos Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer

The onn. 42" 5.1 Dolby Atmos Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer is Walmart’s own-brand soundbar package: a 42-inch bar, a wireless subwoofer and rear speakers, sold at a fraction of the price of the brands above it.

onn. is Walmart’s house electronics line, and the products are built to a price by contract manufacturers. What is unusual here is finding AirPlay 2 at this end of the market, since it is normally a feature that appears well above budget level.

What Apple Home actually does with it

This is an AirPlay 2 device rather than a HomeKit accessory.

• It appears in the Home app as a speaker you can play to, and as an AirPlay target in Control Centre.
• You can put it in a room and group it with HomePods for synchronised multi-room audio.
• Siri can send music to it by room name.
• It can be the audio output in a scene or an automation.

Television sound does not go through Apple Home at all. That arrives over HDMI ARC or optical from the television, and the soundbar’s own remote and app control the modes and the volume.

Before you buy

Set expectations by price. A budget 5.1 package with a subwoofer and real rear speakers will beat a similarly priced single bar for film watching, and it will not compete with the premium systems on clarity or build.

The rear speakers and the subwoofer still need mains sockets.

Availability is tied to Walmart, so outside the United States this is difficult to buy and to support.

Specifications