Contributor I

Question

Limitations of Alexa in SONOS One

Forum|Forum|8 years ago
October 26, 2017
34 replies
23989 views

The Sonos One webpage states "Everything that Alexa does -
Play songs, check news and traffic, manage smart devices and enjoy all those other helpful Amazon Alexa skills using a single Sonos speaker." However, reading the forum and other sites, this doesn't seem to be quite true.

We've be using an Amazon Echo Dot for a while, and find it to be really useful. I was looking for a multi-room speaker solution for an extension that we are building, and was considering Sonos Play:1 until I saw the Sonos One. However, I am concerned that if the functionality of Alexa is limited, this will irritate us.

I realise that Sonos will be able to add software updates and new features, but we don't have a roadmap as such. Could we reasonably expect that the Alexa integration in the Sonos One will reach parity with Amazon Echo, or will it always be a poorer cousin?

Sonos One

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upstatemike

While waiting for the Sonos skill to get the bugs worked out there is still the option to just plug a Dot into a ZP120 or Play5. This gives you the full fidelity of Sonos with the full functionality of Alexa since the Dot is an actual Echo and doesn't depend on the Amazon API. It is unfortunate that there is no line-in on the Play1 or Sonos One but if you have one of the products that does have line-in it is a pretty good option.

Local music library with carefully constructed playlists - no shuffling!, Integration with Homeseer Automation, No touch screen devices, No streaming services, No Apple products ever

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upstatemike

The Sonos One marketing slogan of "Does everything that Alexa does" clearly needs clarification. I was under the impression that as and when new Alexa skills became available, they would work on the Sonos One without Sonos needing to be involved, e.g. flash briefing, why does Sonos need to 'code' this to work on the Sonos One? What else are they going to need to do in future when new skills are released?

Because the Sonos One is not an Echo but rather an "Alexa enabled speaker" it must work through the Amazon provided API. Sonos has to wait until any given feature is made available in the API by Amazon and then do some coding to implement the feature on the Sonos One.

I'm aware of that, I'm talking about Alexa Skills, not Echo features (calling etc.). All Alexa skills should work on the Sonos One with no intervention from Sonos.

Yes that was a surprise. I think everyone assumed things like Flash Briefings were handled entirely by Alexa processing and could not be impacted by what Alexa device was in use. I still assume the issue is technical rather than an intentional restriction from Amazon. What would be the motive to limit something like that?

Local music library with carefully constructed playlists - no shuffling!, Integration with Homeseer Automation, No touch screen devices, No streaming services, No Apple products ever

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David Faltz

Lyricist III

The Sonos One marketing slogan of "Does everything that Alexa does" clearly needs clarification. I was under the impression that as and when new Alexa skills became available, they would work on the Sonos One without Sonos needing to be involved, e.g. flash briefing, why does Sonos need to 'code' this to work on the Sonos One? What else are they going to need to do in future when new skills are released?

Because the Sonos One is not an Echo but rather an "Alexa enabled speaker" it must work through the Amazon provided API. Sonos has to wait until any given feature is made available in the API by Amazon and then do some coding to implement the feature on the Sonos One.

I'm aware of that, I'm talking about Alexa Skills, not Echo features (calling etc.). All Alexa skills should work on the Sonos One with no intervention from Sonos.

Yes, that was a surprise. I think everyone assumed things like Flash Briefings were handled entirely by Alexa processing and could not be impacted by what Alexa device was in use. I still assume the issue is technical rather than an intentional restriction from Amazon. What would be the motive to limit something like that?

Agreed. Though I am sure Amazon would like to sell you the hardware, the real money and motivation should be getting everyone into their Ecosystem. Google is making a real push lately and their AI is leaps beyond Amazons. It is the ecosystem that gives Amazon their edge. Many people will be using Alexa for the first time though the Sonos One, you would think they would want it to show all the available feature that makes Alexa the must have device.

jgatie

Sonos has stated that things like Flash Briefing and Sports updates are not an intentional restriction by Amazon, they simply need more tweaking (whether that tweaking is to the Amazon API or the Sonos API, we don't know). They have also stated that some features offered like Calliing and Drop In are "Echo only" (Not "Alexa only", for those examining marketing slogans like the frames of the Zapruder film) and will probably never come to Alexa enabled devices.

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David Faltz

Lyricist III

Sonos has stated that things like Flash Briefing and Sports updates are not an intentional restriction by Amazon, they simply need more tweaking (whether that tweaking is to the Amazon API or the Sonos API, we don't know). They have also stated that some features offered like Calliing and Drop In are "Echo only" (Not "Alexa only", for those examining the marketing slogans like the frames of the Zapruder film) and will probably never come to Alexa enabled devices.

Good to know. Def could have an impact on my decision to keep it. The calling and drop in are a really cool features. I wonder if Google will open up the calling when they integrate? If they do, then I am sure Amazon will follow.

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David Faltz

Lyricist III

While waiting for the Sonos skill to get the bugs worked out there is still the option to just plug a Dot into a ZP120 or Play5. This gives you the full fidelity of Sonos with the full functionality of Alexa since the Dot is an actual Echo and doesn't depend on the Amazon API. It is unfortunate that there is no line-in on the Play1 or Sonos One but if you have one of the products that does have line-in it is a pretty good option. That is a solid idea. Actually.

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David Chance

Contributor I

I agree with you. There are quite a few features like drop-in, flash briefings, voice calls unless you hook up through your home phone line, etc that do not function. When purchasing the one, I assumed I was getting an upgrade in sound, not losing functionality of Alexa. Not sure that trade-off is worth it, especially when Amazon has just launched devices with better sound. Hope this gets worked out quickly or it is going back to Best Buy and I love Sonos.

Don't count on the new Amazon devices having better sound. From reading a few early reviews of both the Gen 2 Echo and the Echo Plus, at most the sound seems to be very similar to the Gen 1 Echo, while at least one reviewer says that to them the original Echo sounded richer with better bass.

It is very disappointing that all the little restrictions, omissions and shortcomings of the Sonos device has kept me from getting one myself.

Will some of the issues get worked out? Features that the Echos have get added? Right now it's basically unknown. Can the microphones be improved to be as sensitive as those in an Echo by software alone? I doubt that.

Is much better sound quality worth the trade-off in features (+$100)? Honestly, to me it's not.

melvimbe

Will some of the issues get worked out? Features that the Echos have get added? Right now it's basically unknown.

Except it's not entirely unknown since Sonos has stated what features they feel comfortable saying they are working on and when they expect to be able to deliver them.

Can the microphones be improved to be as sensitive as those in an Echo by software alone? I doubt that.

Sonos has stated that it can be adjusted through firmware update.

Is much better sound quality worth the trade-off in features (+$100)? Honestly, to me it's not.

I think I pretty much agree with this, however, only when you don't consider the multiroom, variety of products, and music source features that Sonos brings to the table that Amazon does not. And those features don't have to matter to everybody.

Danny

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David Chance

Contributor I

Will some of the issues get worked out? Features that the Echos have get added? Right now it's basically unknown.

Except it's not entirely unknown since Sonos has stated what features they feel comfortable saying they are working on and when they expect to be able to deliver them.

I didn't know that. Is there a document anywhere that has a list of these or a timeframe for implementation? All I have read is that Sonos likes to be vague and not give to much info out.

Can the microphones be improved to be as sensitive as those in an Echo by software alone? I doubt that.

Sonos has stated that it can be adjusted through firmware update.

Good news for sure, but again its unknown how much they can be improved. Reviews I've read say they have quite a ways to go to be the equal of a true Echo.

Is much better sound quality worth the trade-off in features (+$100)? Honestly, to me it's not.

I think I pretty much agree with this, however, only when you don't consider the multiroom, variety of products, and music source features that Sonos brings to the table that Amazon does not. And those features don't have to matter to everybody.

This would be a first Sonos purchase for me, basically a way to get better sound into my bedroom for casual listening. Also it would be nice to have access to content on my NAS without using my phone as a Bluetooth server to my Echo. But even with the Sonos it appears I would still need to use my phone to play NAS content.

jgatie

This would be a first Sonos purchase for me, basically a way to get better sound into my bedroom for casual listening. Also it would be nice to have access to content on my NAS without using my phone as a Bluetooth server to my Echo. But even with the Sonos it appears I would still need to use my phone to play NAS content.

Not ideal, but there is an option to upload your local library to Amazon and play it via Alexa on Sonos. It is $24.99 per year for 250,000 tracks.

Also, you can initiate play of any and all services via the Sonos app, and then control playback; pause, resume, skip, previous, volume, even ask "Alexa, what is playing" via Alexa. Again, not ideal, but it is something.

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