Paving the way for an Amazon powered Sonos?

Something else to test for is service stability. Sonos, while being the leader on this count, still suffers issues as can be seen from even just this forum. If all the other things that Show offers will be as vulnerable to this factor, it will be a constraint on penetration. As it has done for the mic/software tech for voice control, has Amazon pulled off something similar on the stability/higher up time fronts? As long as the broadband pipe works well for net delivered content, Show needs to not suffer any glitches in the home. Having to occasionally reboot all network connected devices before you can order a pizza or call Uber or make a video call will not go down well.

Happy that I found others talking about this. After spending thousands on the Sonos system, just a few months ago, my vote would be an add-on to the current system. I'm excited about the technology and would like to think my current system would be able to take advantage of it.

I'm excited about the technology and would like to think my current system would be able to take advantage of it.
I guess that depends on which of the Echo/Echo Show features excite you, because Sonos will not be able to integrate all of them, as far as I can tell.

Why would I want that? Sonos provides a high end sound system. Their app is also awesome. I just want to be able to say "Sonos play Nelly". I'm not looking for the system to be an assistant...Allison does a great job. The quality of sound between Sonos and echo, we both know are two different things. Apples and oranges.

Apples and oranges.
As confirmed by this review:
"When it comes to music, the Sonos Play:1 is far ahead of the Amazon Echo in terms of clarity and volume. Its dedicated app is also a well-crafted piece of software focused on delivering that music, or radio to any Sonos device in the home. For audiophiles, the Sonos Play 1 is the better choice.

But, the Echo is a mad professor’s lab in miniature, digital form, and the smart home lover will appreciate all it can offer. Those who like their Siri or Cortana on a smartphone will also enjoy Alexa’s growing utility and experience, making this a natural choice. For those looking for pure home automation and integration, the Amazon Echo is a better solution

Unfortunately Echo doesn’t support Sonos, and since Sonos is basically a glorified speaker, they appeal to two different use cases. So if you want your music to sound good, and enjoy smart home technology you’ll probably end up buying both."

The question is: will this summary have to change in 2017 once Sonos releases the Alexa integration? I do not think so, when I see the Show feature set. In a couple of years? - hard to say.

I don't think there is any doubt that a Play1 plus Echo Dot will sound better than an Echo Show. The real question is whether there is a difference in user experience and how that weighs against the difference in sound quality.

Because an Echo device is an all in one unit it is easy for it to pause any music that is playing when a competing activity is required like requesting to turn on a light or to answer an Echo intercom call. The music then resumes when the activity is completed creating a seamless experience for the user.

The question is, when you use an Echo dot to start music on your Play1, how will something like an incoming intercom call be handled? Will the Dot allow you to request to mute the Play1 before you accept the call? Or is the Dot tied up with the pending call and you have to scramble to mute the Play1 another way?

Also the Echo Show has a screen so it is allowed to play YouTube which might be a priority for some folks. I also see that Amazon has some Alexa enabled TV sets available for pre-order which will further promotes the depth of Alexa integration in many households.

The question is not really whether there is a difference in sound quality between Sonos and Echo but rather what the user experience difference is between Sonos plus Echo vs. native Echo only. With luck the combination will provide the best of both worlds. Hopefully serious user experience testing during the Beta will ensure that this is the case.

what the user experience difference is between Sonos plus Echo vs. native Echo only. With luck the combination will provide the best of both worlds.
With Echo Show in the frame, I don't see how the difference will be adequately bridged where user experience is concerned.

As far as user experience is concerned, I think you have to consider the user. Last Christmas, I had to decide on whether to get my kids Play 1s for their rooms or the full size echo. I knew the Play 1 was better sound, but I opted for the echo since it was easier to control, had alexa features, and wasn't tied into my sonos stuff. I didn't see a scenario where I would need the kids rooms to be tied into the other sonos zones, nor did I want to train my kids on how to navigate sonos. One thing I've also noticed with the echo is that I get a log of music was played on what device. In other words, I can 'spy' on my kids in a way.

The point is that sonos isn't going to be the best solution for all cases. I could have done an echo dot play 1 combo, but there really wasn't much point to that.

One thing I keep wondering is, why does Amazon want to integrate with Sonos? Well, there is the basic idea that they want to be able to integrate with everything, thus the availability of skills and smart skills. I think there is something beyond that though. It's pretty clear that Amazon wants customers to buy multiple echos for their homes. Yet with current design, the echo's pretty much work independently and don't know where they are. That's going to be a growing problem for Amazon as they add more features that could take advantage of those device aspects. Just as example, having to specify the name of the light you want Alexa to turn on is rather annoying when 99% of the time the light is in the same room as your Echo (same would apply in a Sonos integration). Making a call through echo is great, but it sucks that I can switch to a different room in the middle of a call. Having a intercom feature is nice, but sucks that I can't specify which room I want to call. It's great that you get a visual with Echo Show, but what if I want to throw it to my tv (through Fire)?

..And this is something Sonos is rather good with and perhaps could help out Amazon with. Maybe they don't want to, and maybe the methodologies are too different, but it seems like there could be some synergies there. It's possible that Amazon may want to go for multiroom sound, but it doesn't feel like a good direction for them to head and best left to Sonos and others. Sonos certainly doesn't want to do everything the Echo does.

Sonos certainly doesn't want to do everything the Echo does.
Spence, I think, disagrees. I remember his stated aspiration in a interview that he wants to own the mic/speaker side of things in automated homes of the future, for music and more. Yes, that isn't all the Echo does with Show, but it is much more than just voice control for Sonos. It looks like the intersection of the two circles of aspirations will not be a small area, so it will be interesting to see how things play out.
PS: His quoted words on Sonos focus now:
"There's voice. There's streaming music and that's just exploding, you see that obviously in the U.S. with streaming revenue overtaking everything else and growing the industry again, which is awesome. And then the third thing is the push around the connected home. Meaning there's a lot more products around the home that will emit sound and we think they should be emitting sounds through Sonos."
Does that include the fridge giving you a shout or a call to buy milk on the way home? Perhaps!

It looks like the intersection of the two circles of aspirations will not be a small area, so it will be interesting to see how things play out.

Did a quick comparison chart to get a feel for the overlap. They are different enough that I don't think Sonos looks at it as a directly competing product:

.............................................Echo Show.............................Play1

Price.....................................$229.......................................$199
Sound..................................Stereo.....................................Mono
Spotify..................................Yes.........................................Yes
Pandora................................Yes.........................................Yes
Amazon Music......................Yes.........................................Yes
iHeartRadio...........................Yes.........................................Yes
Tunein...................................Yes........................................Yes
Audible..................................Yes........................................Coming Soon
YouTube................................Yes.........................................No
Other Music Svcs...................No...........................................Yes
Other Internet Svcs.................Yes.........................................No
Bluetooth.................................Yes.........................................No
App Controller .........................Yes........................................Yes
Hard Button Remote.................Optional................................No
Voice Control..............................Yes......................................Coming soon
Display.......................................Yes ......................................No
Local Controls.........................Full Touchscreen....................Vol/Transport buttons
Connected Home......................1000+ skills...........................6 endorsed partners
Multi-room................................No..........................................Yes
Personal Library.......................Yes must upload.....................Yes from LAN
Alarms.......................................Yes.........................................Yes