Vizio unveils 2017 sound bars with Chromecast and Bluetooth

Vizio has announced its latest sound bars, which incorporate Bluetooth connectivity and start from $80.

Ty Pendlebury Editor

Ty Pendlebury is a journalism graduate of RMIT Melbourne, and has worked at CNET since 2006. He lives in New York City where he writes about streaming and home audio.

Expertise Ty has worked for radio, print, and online publications, and has been writing about home entertainment since 2004. He majored in Cinema Studies when studying at RMIT. He is an avid record collector and streaming music enthusiast. Credentials

Ty was nominated for Best New Journalist at the Australian IT Journalism awards, but he has only ever won one thing. As a youth, he was awarded a free session for the photography studio at a local supermarket.

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Ty Pendlebury

April 25, 2017 5:00 a.m. PT

2 min read

Watch this: Vizio's 2017 speakers get Chromecast support

01:13

Update April 27 4:13 pm ET: Vizio has advised that the previously-announced $180 SB3630-E6 and $150 SB3621n-E8M will not be released

Vizio has unveiled its 2017 range of sound bars , with the top-of-the-line models featuring Google 's Chromecast built in.

The company has four new sound bars for 2017, priced between $80 and $250 culminating in the flagship 36-inch 5.1 Wireless Sound Bar System.

The 36-inch-wide SB3651-E6 sound bar offers wireless rears and a subwoofer that incorporates Chromecast built-in.

Chromecast built-in allows users to stream directly over Wi-Fi from compatible apps such as Spotify, iHeartRadio , Google Play Music and Pandora, as well as Android phones and Chrome browsers. It is also compatible across brands such as Sony and Onkyo enabling a multiroom music system to be created using Google Home.

The Vizio SmartCast app controls the company's TVs and sound bars

Vizio debuted its Google-compatible SmartCast app last year, and it allows control of compatible sound bars in addition to Vizio TVs .

All of the sound bars include optical digital, USB and analog inputs and all except the entry-level include coaxial digital. The SB3251 and SB3651 also include HDMI inputs.

In the past, Vizio's sound bars have offered excellent performance for the money, and we look forward to testing the capabilities of the new line. Last year's 45-inch sound bars stay a part of the company's line.

The full range is as follows:

SmartCast (Wi-Fi with Chromecast built-in) and Bluetooth