Radar: Sony's ULT Tower party speakers are on SA pre-order from R6,999, up to R8,000 below list price

Sony's three new ULT Tower party speakers are on pre-order in South Africa through the company's own online store, Sony World. On 4 November the store listed the ULT Tower 5 at R6,999, the ULT Tower 7 at R11,999 and the flagship ULT Tower MAX at R21,999, all including VAT, with delivery charged at checkout.

Those are sale prices. Sony World shows regular prices of R7,999, R13,999 and R29,999 next to them, so pre-order buyers are being offered R1,000, R2,000 and R8,000 off respectively. Local launch coverage so far has quoted only the lower figures.

The gap that coverage missed is the one Sony World prints beside the sale price. The Tower 5 pre-order is R1,000 under its R7,999 regular price. The Tower 7 is R2,000 under R13,999. The MAX is R8,000 under R29,999. A story that quotes only R6,999, R11,999 and R21,999 is quoting the pre-order. It is not quoting what the same page lists as the price after the discount. Both numbers are on the store. Only the lower set has travelled into the local write-ups.

What is confirmed

The pre-order listings and prices are on sonyworld.co.za, which Sony opened as its direct-to-consumer store in South Africa. The speakers were launched locally at an event in Sandton, Hypertext reported on 2 November. Murat Gebeceli, marketing director at Sony Middle East and Africa, said there that "South African consumers are passionate about music and shared experiences".

Gebeceli's line is a launch remark. It does not add a ship date, a second retailer or an end date for the pre-order prices. The prices that can be checked are the ones on Sony World on 4 November.

All three are built around newly designed circular woofers and take DJ equipment and microphones for karaoke. The differences are in power, battery and whether the cabinet is meant to be carried or rolled.

The ULT Tower 5 is the portable one. Sony quotes up to 300W, up to 20 hours of battery life, IPX4 water resistance, carry handles and 100 minutes of playback from a 10-minute charge.

The ULT Tower 7 adds 360-degree Party Sound and wheels. Sony quotes up to 30 hours of battery life, IPX4 water resistance and 180 minutes of playback from a 10-minute charge.

The ULT Tower MAX is a different class of product. It has three large woofers, two facing forward and one to the rear, plus two mid-range drivers and four tweeters, with handles and wheels. Notebookcheck lists it at 2,150W, about 106cm tall and 56.3kg. Sony World's listing gives battery figures for the two smaller models but none for the MAX.

The quick-charge claims should stay attached to the model they belong to. One hundred minutes from a 10-minute charge is the Tower 5. One hundred and eighty minutes from a 10-minute charge is the Tower 7. The MAX has no battery figure on the Sony World listing. IPX4 is claimed for the Tower 5 and the Tower 7. It is not, in these listings, a MAX specification. The 2,150W, the 106cm and the 56.3kg are Notebookcheck's figures for the MAX, not a line Sony World prints as a South African spec sheet.

How the rand prices compare

In the UK, MusicTech reported prices of £1,299 for the MAX, £499 for the Tower 7 and £349 for the Tower 5. In the US, the MAX was listed at $1,499.99 and the Tower 5 at $449.99. All three went on sale in those markets in September, so South Africa is roughly two months behind.

This article does not convert those sterling and dollar prices into rand. A conversion would depend on a rate and on tax treatment the coverage does not apply. The comparison that is safe is the calendar: September on sale in the UK and the US, pre-order in South Africa on 4 November, with no shipping date on the local store.

There is also a cheaper option on the same store. Sony World's Black Friday listing has the older ULT Tower 10 at R13,499, down from a regular R21,999. That is R8,500 less than the MAX's pre-order price, for buyers who do not need the newest model.

The Tower 10 is the previous product, not a fourth member of the new trio. Its Black Friday price of R13,499 sits R1,500 above the new Tower 7's pre-order and R8,500 below the new MAX's pre-order. It is a different speaker on the same site, discounted from its own regular price of R21,999. That regular price happens to match the new MAX's pre-order price as a number. It is not the same product.

What is not confirmed

Sony World does not give a shipping date for any of the three speakers, and does not say when the pre-order prices end or whether the regular prices will apply after launch. The launch coverage names no other South African retailer. Until a delivery date appears, the firm facts are the three pre-order prices on 4 November: R6,999, R11,999 and R21,999, against regular prices of R7,999, R13,999 and R29,999, with delivery charged at checkout. If the pre-order prices move, the page is the check. The local coverage that quoted only the sale prices did not record the regular ones. Delivery is charged at checkout on all three, and the store still does not name the day any of them will ship.