Is Alexa-Sonos anything more than just a stupid skill?

Alexa is a big ecosystem. It isn't just music. It isn't even mostly music. So is it seriously the case that I can't use my Dot to hear my commands (shopping, weather, podcasts, news, grocery list, translation, etc.), and hear Alexa's voice respond to me through my Sonos speakers?

So this much ballyhooed integration is just. . . cueing music from time to time? This is truly pathetic if so. I hope someone can enlighten me.

Personally, I can't see the point in Alexa. I bought it solely to operate my play5 . It is like banging your head on a brick wall because the result is always not what you wanted.

I say "Alexa, play George Michael in the dining room".

She says "shuffling George Michael in the dining room".

"No, Alexa, don't shuffle"

Totally ignored!

"Alexa, play Rod Stuart album in dining room"

"Playing 'Merry Christmas Love' in the dining room".

That song is not an album, it is song on an xmas playlist!

"Alexa STOP!"

"Alexa play rod stuart "Some guys have all the luck album in the dining room"

"Playing "Some guys have all the luck" in the dining room.

Result: 1 song the title song but not the entire album!

"Alexa play 'Ladies & Gentlemen by George Michael in the lounge".

"Can't find 'Ladies & Gentlemen in your music library"

"Alexa play George Michael album in the lounge"

"Playing Ladies & Gentlemen by George Michael in the lounge"

WTF?

It's not there but it is there?

She can only shuffle music? Call me an old f**t, but I don't want my music shuffling. I actually like to know what the next song is going to be. For me that is part of the thrill of listening. Unlike the "moderns" I don't have the memory of a goldfish!

What is worse, is that I keep getting emails "what's new with Alexa?" Ask her this useless question that I don't want the answer to. Ask her that useless question. Are the "moderns" so utterly bereft of knowledge and something to do that they actually ask her/it the utterly useless and banal questions? Why on earth would you ask a computer to tell you a joke? I am afraid that I would have to slit my wrists when I heard how pathetic it was!

The question is .... when are we going to get something "new" from Alexa that is worth getting, like .... hmmmm .... functionality?

This is the worst money I have ever spent. She is unplugged. It is FAR easier to operate Sonos from my phone or my pc - whichever is closest.

Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention that Alexa "streams" by default - Amazon trying to flog "unlimitted" (obviously). With a crappy internet connection, the playback almost always fails somewhere and just stops for no apparent reason which Alexa cannot enlighten you about. Apparently - according to Amazon - there is a way eound this by connecting to you phone via bluetooth. However, I'm not sure anyone has told Alexa this because no amount or variation if commands has so far achieved the desired result.

The general result in interacting with Alexa is that the "History" cannot be printed, but I can hear a playback. That means that the interaction has reduced me to serious profanities! Absolutely EVERY interaction has had this result. LOL. Goodbye forever Alexa. You are good for absolutely NOTHING!

It is obvious that Alexa is not for you. Others feel quite differently. Horses for courses.

Alexa is a big ecosystem. It isn't just music. It isn't even mostly music.
So this much ballyhooed integration is just. . . cueing music from time to time? This is truly pathetic if so. I hope someone can enlighten me.
IMO, the way to use voice is by a combination of voice command equipped front end units and Sonos speakers - the latter for just the music play part of the Google Assistant/Alexa offering while also offering all that has made Sonos a leader in home audio over the last ten years. That way you get the latest access to Google/Alexa services as well as the latest tech - like the Echo Spots that have video - at the front end, and Sonos sound quality where it is needed most and makes the most sense - for music play.

Apple HomePods seek to disrupt this approach by offering do it all speakers out of the gate. Is that a better approach - few can say at this time.

Bearing in mind that these are still early days even for the latest tech voice control front ends where voice control is still largely in the clunky gimmick domain. If that bit is not acceptable, better to wait for some years till voice based applications mature into routine things.

The first paragraph is gobbledegook. The problem is that no amount of giving alexa commands results in the desired effect -unless, of course, you want something trivial like a joke.

Why on earth would I want it to order me a carrot, as the "what's new in alexa" and incur a £5 delivery charge for a carrot (or any of the items in the "what's new" ad? I think not.

Give alexa an entire shopping list with it's/siri's/cortana's dodgy accent recognition? I think not. God alone only knows what the actual delivery would comprise of!

So, we have established that it can't play the music that you want it to, Is probably an unreliable shopper unless you speak Queens English, not everyone wants a computer joke, and does it have enough attention span to get your news/weather reports from your chosen location? I can't comment on that because I never felt the need to consult a little round box of dubious loyalties and capabilities.

So what else would you do with it? Apart, of course, from avoidind in engagement with actual life?

Just to assist a little (perhaps?) ...

Here is the help document that provides all of the Alexa voice commands (syntax) that the Sonos system (Skill) presently understands. Anything given outside of these instructions, are unlikely going to work for the user.

Controlling Sonos with Alexa
CLICK HERE for voice control instructions.

The stored history of the Alexa 'voice instructions' that are being heard by the Alexa-enabled device and interpreted, are shown in the Alexa App settings. It will always show if a users instructions are being interpreted correctly, or not ... for example if Alexa is misspelling some words like 'Rod Stuart' instead of the correct spelling of 'Rod Stewart' etc. These 'misspells' can be reported through the Alexa App. However the Alexa voice recognition does improve anyway over-time, as more data is gathered in from the users voice instructions.

I’m sure we will see more useful instructions added to the Sonos Skill in the not too distant future and it is true that Alexa voice recognition and the Sonos Skill still have some way to go to achieve a near-perfect outcome everytime. I personally think what has been implemented so far however, is a good beginning, particularly if the precise syntax is adhered to.

Learning the available voice commands and their syntax, is a good place to start here and I thoroughly recommend it, because with quite a small amount of effort and learning, I’m sure some users would quickly benefit in their understanding of things and soon find that their own voice instructions do quickly start to improve and that their Sonos speakers begin to do the things that they ask for.