In brief: It's usually the case that if you want the best, you have to pay for it. But Sonos, maker of high-end, mostly expensive speakers, is giving residents in the Netherlands a way to try its products without handing over a small fortune, thanks to a speaker rental service called Flex.
As noted by The Verge, Flex is available in the shape of three different subscriptions. The cheapest option, called "For Every Room," starts at €15 ($16.50) per month and comes with two Sonos One smart speakers, which can be paired together or used in separate rooms.
At €25 ($27.50) per month is the "For your TV" package. As the name suggests, this consists of two Sonos One speakers and a Sonos Beam soundbar.
Finally, there's the €50 ($55) per month "For Home Theater" subscription, which is made up of two Sonos One speakers, a Sonos Playbar, and a Subwoofer, all of which should offer some head-shaking audio for your home theater setup.
While users are only renting the equipment, the plans could be ideal for those who can't or won't put down so much money in one go. In the Netherlands, a Sonos One is €229 ($251), a Beam costs €449 ($493), a Playbar is €799 ($877) and a subwoofer will set you back €799 ($877), which means the "For Home Theater" package, if bought, would be €2,026 ($2,227).
Other benefits include the speakers being automatically replaced with the latest models as they're released, subscriptions that can be altered or canceled at any time, and free delivery.
Sonos Flex is only available to 500 homes in the Netherlands right now, but it could expand globally should it prove popular.