Sonos today introduced its newest speaker, and the device is getting a boost from a familiar mobile assistant.
The Sonos One features Amazon Alexa built in. That means that you can ask Alexa questions and perform actions, much like you would with an Amazon Echo device. You can use the One to control smart home devices, stream music from services like Pandora and iHeartRadio (Alexa voice control for Spotify is coming soon), and more.
Because it’s a Sonos device, the One also includes a focus on audio features. It’s got a pair of Class-D amplifiers, a tweeter, and a woofer, as well as six microphones for listening to you. It also supports multi-room listening, letting you play tunes throughout your house if you’ve got multiple Sonos speakers. If you get two Sonos One devices, you can link them up to get stereo sound, too.
Sonos also plans to add new features to the One in the future. In 2018, the Sonos One will gain support for Google Assistant and Apple AirPlay 2, the latter of which will let you control music playback using a Siri device like an iPhone.
The Sonos One is now available for pre-order for $199, and it’ll launch on October 24th.
One other detail announced today is that Sonos will bring Alexa to existing devices via a software update. You’ll need an Amazon Echo device and the Sonos skill for Alexa.
