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Sonos is a leading American audio technology company that is best known for pioneering wireless multi-room audio systems, which make it easy for listeners to stream music and other content throughout their homes. The company continues to innovate, creating wireless speakers, home theatre systems, headphones, architectural components, and integrated home audio solutions that revolutionise how people listen and connect to sound.

Guest Writer

 make it easy to listen to your favourite music, audiobooks, or podcasts, no matter where the day takes you. And of course, they each offer their own unique features for an easy listening experience. So, which speaker should you choose and when? Continue reading to find out.

Here’s the scenario: You’re getting ready for the weekend and want to set the mood with a solid playlist and maybe a few podcasts. You just got 

, so you’re excited to put it to the test. That said, you are still getting up to speed on the differences between the newest portable speaker and your other on-the-go speaker, 

. As you progress through your day, you’ll need to make choices about which one serves up better sound in different scenarios — mornings in your bedroom, afternoons at the park, evening dinners outside. Good thing we’re here to help. We’re going to guide you through both the big and subtle differences in the two speakers so you can grab the best one for your next listening adventure. Ready? Let’s get started.

The weekend is finally here. Birds are singing their morning music, and the initial glimmers of sunrise stream through your windows, blanketing your bedroom in a soft light. You decide to kickstart your Saturday morning with a feel-good playlist that matches your energy. But wait — your partner is still asleep. No problem. With a single press of a button, you send your tunes to the kitchen, where you’ll brew your coffee and get started on breakfast for the two of you. Which speaker do you choose to have by your bed in this scenario? Roam or Move 2?

Great call! With Roam, you can send sound to another speaker using Sound Swap by simply pressing and holding the play button. The sound will begin playing on the nearest speaker and stop playing on Roam. Roam is also designed to be placed vertically or horizontally, so you can choose what makes the most sense for your space.

You’re finally caffeinated and ready to tackle the day. To take advantage of the morning sun, you decide to go for a short walk in the park. You remember that there’s a small clearing along your route and decide you’d like to spend a little time there stretching and catching up on the latest episode of your favourite podcast. Which speaker do you bring with you on the walk?

Nice choice! Roam weighs .95 pounds (.43 kg), compared to Move’s 6.61 pounds (3 kg). And at 6.61 inches (16.79 cm) long, you can easily carry it in a day pack, stuff it in a roomy pocket, or hold it in your hand.

Image of a woman doing yoga while listening to music from an Olive Sonos Roam

Image of a white Sonos Move 2 on a red table in a backyard

Refreshed from your hike, you decide you want the rest of your day’s fun to revolve around being outside. So, it’s decided: You’ll invite a few family friends over for dinner on the patio and some backyard stargazing. But first, you need to clean your outdoor space. The patio furniture is covered in dust. Leaves are strewn everywhere like old confetti. And the plants are in desperate need of some extra water. It’s decided: The family will give the backyard some much-needed TLC ahead of tonight’s dinner. You want to play tunes to energise everyone for the job ahead. But the area is big, and you want a speaker that will be heard throughout the entire yard. Which one do you bring?

Exactly! Move 2’s size and spacious stereo sound allow for a wider soundstage and more powerful bass than Roam. And because it’s rated IP56, it can stand up to an occasional splash from the garden hose. Speaking of sound, both Move 2 and Roam have Automatic Trueplay tuning, meaning that they automatically adapt to your surroundings for sound that's astonishingly detailed and perfectly balanced.

After you finish sprucing up the backyard, you prepare to drop off the kids at your parents’ house — this way, you can grocery shop for tonight’s dinner while your kids enjoy time at your parents’ pool. It’s a win-win. Prior to heading over, you grab the pool toys and a few snacks, then reach for a speaker so the kids can stream music. But as you do, you wonder which device is best suited for a pool day. One major input is durability. After all, between the kids and your parents’ dogs, you can pretty much guess that whatever speaker you bring will end up in the water (it’s just physics). So, which one do you choose?

Wow, you’re good at this. While the Move 2 can handle occasional splashes, Roam is rated IP67, meaning that it can be submerged in one metre of water for up to 30 minutes. That’s more than enough time for you to peel off your cover-up and dive into the water after your submerged sound system.

Image of a man loading up his truck with camping gear and a white Sonos Move 2

It’s the afternoon now, and you’re arriving home from your parents’ house. You have groceries for tonight and two happy, sun-soaked kids. When you pull up to your garage, you spot your neighbour waving at you from across the lawn. Turns out they’re going car camping next weekend and are wondering if they can borrow one of your Sonos speakers. They won’t be able to charge the speaker once they’ve set up camp. Which speaker do you lend them?

Yes! While Roam boasts up to 10 hours of battery life, Move 2 offers more than double the listening — up to 24 hours. That means your neighbours can enjoy an entire day’s worth of audio — which will come in handy if their kids need some white noise to help them sleep in the wilderness. What a good neighbour you are.

As the kids jump in the shower to rinse off the chlorine from the pool, you head to the garage to work on your latest project — a beautiful wooden bench hand-made to complement your outdoor furniture set. All it needs is one last coat of stain, and you have just enough time to finish before prepping dinner. You want to listen to Rosalía’s latest record as you work, but the WiFi tends to be spotty in the garage. Which speaker allows you to listen over Bluetooth instead?

Right again. Move 2 and Roam both offer streaming over Bluetooth and WiFi. And when it’s time to head to the kitchen to ready the evening’s meal, you can sync your Bluetooth stream to other speakers in your Sonos system to spread the infectious Latin beats throughout your home. So really, you can’t go wrong with either speaker.

Image of a group of friends having dinner outside listening to music from a white Sonos Move 2

A closeup image of an Olive Sonos Roam being held up in front of a waterfall

All that working worked up an appetite. Thankfully, it’s time for dinner on your newly clean patio. The grille is fired up, and the table is covered with a couple side dishes, refreshing drinks, plates, and cutlery. There is very little room for a speaker on the table. Which speaker should your reach for?

 was specifically designed to fit Move 2’s ergonomic handle, allowing it to be securely hung up indoors and out. Create the perfect mood for an alfresco meal without taking up any table space.

The sun has set. The dishes are washed. And the night sky is filled with stars. You drag a cozy blanket out to the backyard, pile on a few pillows, and ready yourself for some stargazing. It’s time for music, but not just anything will do. This is one of those moments when music isn’t just background noise — it’s integral to creating an experience. You want to play an album that conjures up favourite memories or creates a mood perfect for constellation-finding. And because you want crisp, full audio for this immersive experience, you decide to pair a couple of speakers. Which ones do you choose to stereo pair next to you?

Nailed it. Both Roam and Move 2 are great options for this scenario. They can be stereo paired on WiFi for richer sound and placed wherever is most convenient for your makeshift listening setup.

 offer incredible sound, portability, WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities, long-lasting battery life, and the ability to seamlessly integrate into your home system. But they each have their own unique attributes that make them especially suited for certain listening scenarios. Whether you choose to enjoy it with Roam, Move 2 (or both!), we hope you enjoy your next day off.

Image of an Olive Move 2 and an Olive Roam side by side on a kitchen countertop next to some potted plants

When to Roam, When to Move

Everything we make is intentionally designed to be easy to set up, control, and enjoy. But the Sonos experience can be as rich and multi-layered as you’d like. To make sure you’re getting the most out of your Sonos products, we present the ‘Essential Guide’ series.

, we’re pushing the boundaries of what a home speaker can deliver. With Era 100, that means powerful, room-filling sound in an elegant and compact form. While the groundbreaking design and spatial audio experience on Era 300 can envelop you in sound—making you feel like you’re inside the music.

Whether you’re brand new to Sonos or a long-time owner, the ‘Essential Guide’ series is for you. We’ll walk you through the entire Sonos journey step by step, from setting up Era 300 and Era 100, to diving into more advanced features. Ready? Let’s get to it.

The setup process for Era 300 and Era 100 is easy.

If this is your first Sonos product, you’ll need to download the Sonos app from the 

. Make sure you’re connected to WiFi, then place your speaker in its desired location and plug into power. Once you’ve created your Sonos account, the app will automatically search for new speakers and guide you through the rest of the setup process.

If you’re adding Era 100 or Era 300 to an existing Sonos system, simply follow the app-guided instructions to set up your new speaker. You can also find detailed setup instructions from the user guides 

A black Sonos Era 300 being taken out of its sustainable packaging

Featuring recycled plastics and crafted using 100% paper-based materials certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, Era 100 and Era 300 mark a major step toward our goal of delivering responsible packaging. We redesigned our signature clip system to use 41% less plastic, and replaced the cushion, handles, and cable ties with paper.

You can learn more about our sustainability initiatives 

An animation of soundwaves from an Era 300 using Dolby Atmos spatial audio

Era 300 is our first all-in-one speaker to deliver a spatial audio experience. Powered by Dolby Atmos technology, the speaker’s six drivers project sound left, right, forwards, and up, placing sounds within a three-dimensional soundstage, giving your music and films a sense of height, and opening up countless new sonic possibilities.

Because of the way spatial audio works, the placement of Era 300 is important. For the speaker to most effectively project sound, you should leave space above and to the side of the speaker rather than fitting it into a bookshelf where the sound beams might get blocked. We recommend that you leave at least one inch (2.5 cm) of space around the back of the speaker, and optimally two feet (.61 m) above it. You can learn more about placement tips here.

 ensures that your system sounds great by tuning your setup to the precise acoustics of your living space.

A pair of black Sonos Era 300 speakers on matching stands in a living room

A black Sonos Era 100 on an end table next to some books and a plant

With its two angled tweeters, powerful woofer, and Sonos-engineered acoustics, Era 100 produces rich, detailed stereo sound.

If you’re placing Era 100 on a counter or shelf, make sure that it’s not pushed right up against the wall. There should optimally be at least one inch (2.5cm) of space behind and to either side of the speaker, allowing sound to project outwards.

Just as with Era 300, you can fine-tune your speaker using Trueplay™ technology.

The Sonos app offers seamless control of your entire system from the palm of your hand, from playing music and grouping speakers to scheduling alarms and adjusting the EQ.

Below are a few of our most popular features in the Sonos app that will help you quickly find your favourite music or discover something new.

Even with millions of songs, albums, books, and podcasts at our fingertips, we often find ourselves going back to those handful of favourites over and over again. Save them to ‘My Sonos’ as you explore and then tap the star icon in the toolbar at the bottom of your screen to quickly access all the content you love.

Tap the magnifying glass icon in the toolbar to search by artist, song, album, playlist, station, genre, composer, and more.

When you’re not sure exactly what you want to listen to, tap the music note icon at the bottom of the screen, and let Sonos Radio or your favourite music service lead you down a path of music discovery.

A Sonos user controlling a black Sonos Era 300 from their phone using the Sonos app

Sonos Radio is our free radio service available in the Sonos app. Access thousands of radio stations from around the world, listen to 

, discover new music, and enjoy original content free. You can also preview stations and 

Tune in to Sonos Sound System, our signature station, to learn stories behind the music, find new artists, and hear the latest releases. Or check out exclusive stations curated by music icons including Thom Yorke, Brittany Howard, and Lorde. Follow 

 on Instagram for the latest, including fascinating deep dives into radio culture.

And if you want to listen in high-definition, ad-free, and with access to even more original content, including stations curated by Ghostface Killah, Björk, FKA twigs, and Blacksmith Radio, check out 

While the Sonos app remains the best way to access all the settings for your system, sometimes it’s quicker and easier to reach for the 

 on the top of your speaker. All of our speakers have touch controls or buttons that allow you to manage your experience without the app.

Tap Play/Pause once to play or pause content.

Tap and hold Play/Pause to play what your last active speaker is currently playing.

To adjust the volume, swipe your finger across the slider, or tap either end to turn the music up or down.

Tap the right arrow to skip to the next track.

Tap the left arrow to play the previous track.

Note: You can also disable touch controls in the Sonos app. From the Settings menu, tap System, choose your speaker from the list of products, and then toggle Touch Controls in the Hardware section to off.

A Sonos user engaging with the touch controls on a black Sonos Era 300 on a bookshelf

A Sonos user engaging with the touch controls on a white Sonos Era 100 on a table

Era 300 and Era 100 offer new levels of connectivity with WiFi, Bluetooth, and USB-C line in:

Stream over WiFi for the highest audio quality, and enjoy your music uninterrupted from calls or notifications.

For those moments when you want to let your friends DJ, you can connect to Era 300 or Era 100 using Bluetooth.

All you need to do is press the Bluetooth button on the back of your speaker until you hear a chime and the status light starts flashing blue. From here, find your speaker in your device’s Bluetooth settings. Once your device is connected, the status line will turn solid blue.

If you have a turntable, CD player, or other audio device, you can also connect it to Era 300 or Era 100 using the speaker’s USB-C port and 

If you want to stream to Sonos without leaving your favourite audio app, then you can use something called ‘direct control’. Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music, Pandora, and other services all let you 

. Just look for the button that allows you to play to an external speaker.

And if you have an iOS device, including iPhone and iPad, or a Mac, you can play sounds from your favourite apps out loud on Sonos 

If you want to add an extra layer of hands-free help for setting reminders or getting answers to questions, you can also use 

To make sure your voice control is on and ready to take requests, look for the white light on the top of your speaker. This signals that the microphone is on and your voice assistant is ready to respond. To mute your voice assistant, simply tap the speech button on the top of your speaker.

If you’re not into voice assistants, use the switch on the back of your device to completely disconnect the microphones. Just note that this will also disable certain features, like Trueplay™, which utilise your speaker’s microphones to adjust the EQ to the room.

An animation of a Sonos Era 300 using Trueplay™ to tune itself to a room

With sound, so much depends on the environment in which you’re listening. If you’re listening in a cozy room with thick carpet and tons of pillows, your speaker is going to sound different than if it was placed in a larger space with harder materials.

 measures the effect that your room’s size, furnishings, and other surfaces have in relation to your speaker’s placement, then fine-tunes the EQ to make sure it sounds exactly as it should.

There are two methods for Trueplay™ on Era 100 and Era 300: 

With Quick Tuning, your speaker plays a series of chimes, listens to how it sounds in the room, then compares the results to similar rooms that were measured using Advanced Tuning. Because this method does not rely on your phone’s microphone, Quick Tuning can be enjoyed by both iOS and Android users.

Advanced Tuning is our traditional Trueplay™ method that uses the microphone on your iOS device to adjust the EQ to the room. This process requires you to manually move your device around the room so your speaker can measure the sound in different environments. While Advancing Tuning requires a bit more effort, in return, you’ll benefit from a more precise tuning.

Whichever device you use, you’ll be prompted to tune your speaker with Trueplay™ when you open the Sonos app during setup, but you can always come back to it later by visiting 

If you’re looking for an even wider and more detailed sound experience, then you can pair two matching speakers in the same room.

Pair two Era 300 or two Era 100 speakers, add them to your Sonos system using the Sonos app, and then follow the in-app instructions to 

Sonos pioneered multi-room listening with a simple vision: Help music lovers play any song anywhere in their homes.

But how we live in our homes is ever-changing. Sometimes we continuously flow from room to room, crossing paths with partners, family, and housemates. Grouping our music across rooms helps us share those sounds, creating collective listening experiences, and bringing us closer together. But there are also times when we camp out in separate areas of the house, happy to stay put and have our individual experiences. With multiple speakers, the Sonos system adjusts to the unique ways we live in our homes.

If you want to explore how to expand your listening experience, visit 

 for more information on portable speakers, architectural speakers, and more.

, we’re bringing new sound experiences into the home, from the enveloping experience of spatial audio with Dolby Atmos on Era 300 to richly detailed stereo sound on Era 100—enabling you to feel more connected to your music than ever before.

A black Sonos Era 100 and a black Sonos Era 300 on an orange to yellow gradient background

The Essential Guide to Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Era 100

Every Sonos product, from our most powerful soundbar to our smallest portable speaker, is designed with simplicity and ease of use in mind. But we also offer countless ways to refine and personalise your sound. Whether you’re new to our products or consider yourself an expert, our ‘Essential Guide’ series is here to help you get the most out of your Sonos experience.

With the release of Ray, we’ve made it easier than ever to enjoy blockbuster sound at home. The compact and powerful soundbar connects to virtually any TV, works with all your streaming services, fits neatly in an enclosed space, and won’t blow your budget.

Whether you’re new to Sonos or adding Ray to an existing system, our ‘Essential Guide’ will help you get the most out of your new soundbar. If Ray is the start of your Sonos system, we’ll take you through the entire journey step by step, from unboxing and initial setup to advanced features, and the possibilities when you group Ray with other Sonos speakers. If you’re a longtime owner, then hopefully you’ll learn something new, or rediscover features you haven’t used in a while.

Once you’ve unboxed Ray, you’ll start by placing it under your TV (ideally one that’s 55” or less), neatly tucking it into a shelf, or mounting it to the wall with our 

. Despite its compact size, Ray provides a surprisingly wide soundstage that can easily fill a small or medium-sized room.

Ray comes with two cables: one for power, and one for connecting to the optical audio output from your TV. Once everything’s plugged in and powered on, open the Sonos app on your smartphone or tablet and follow the instructions to get Ray connected to your home WiFi network. If you’re not automatically prompted to start the setup process when you open the app, you can find it in 

The app will walk you through syncing your TV remote, but in case you skip that part of the process initially, you can go to 

User connecting optical cable to the back of a Sonos Ray

As part of our ongoing commitment to sustainability, Ray comes packaged in our custom uncoated kraft paper, which is designed to minimise the use of inks. The external box helps streamline deliveries to reduce the carbon footprint, and the internal protection removes EPE foam from our supply chain. You can learn more about our sustainable packaging efforts and our broader ecological work 

The Sonos app offers full control of Ray (and your entire Sonos system) from the palm of your hand. You can find a complete tutorial on using the app 

, but below are a few of our favourite features:

Speech Enhancement — For more detailed dialogue, tap the speech bubble icon on the Now Playing screen. This will amplify voices while keeping sound effects, music, and all other audio at its normal level. You’ll never miss a word, even if you need to keep the volume down.

Night Sound — Not wanting to wake sleeping housemates or irritate neighbours? Tap the moon icon in the Now Playing screen to reduce the intensity of loud sound effects and enhance quieter ones, allowing you to enjoy crystal clear audio without disturbing others around you.

My Sonos — Even with millions of songs, albums, books, and podcasts at our fingertips, we often find ourselves going back to a handful of favourites over and over again. Save your most essential music to My Sonos and access it instantly by tapping the star icon at the bottom of the Sonos app.

Search — Tap the magnifying glass icon in the toolbar to search by artist, song, album, playlist, station, genre, and more.

Browse — When you’re not sure exactly what you want to listen to, tap the music note icon at the bottom of the screen and let Sonos Radio or your preferred music service lead you down a path of music discovery.

You can also stream to Ray over WiFi without leaving your favourite music app.

Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music, Pandora, and other services all let you control your Sonos system directly. Just look for the speaker icon.

Alternatively, if you have an iOS device, including iPhone, iPad, or a Mac, you can stream audio from your device to Sonos via Apple AirPlay 2.

User operating the top panel buttons on a black Sonos Ray

User sitting on a bed watching TV with a black Sonos Ray

The Sonos system was designed to be flexible and adjust to the way you listen. And as omnipresent as phones are in our lives, sometimes it’s really nice to forget about them. That shouldn’t mean the music has to stop.

Ray is no different. Like all of our speakers, it has touch controls and buttons that allow you to manage your experience even when your device is not in reach.

Press the Play/Pause button once to mute the TV or pause and resume your music.

Press and hold the Play/Pause button to group Ray with your last active speaker.

Press the button to the right of Play/Pause to turn the volume up. Press the button to the left of Play/Pause to turn the volume down.

Swipe right across the touch controls to skip to the next track. Swipe left across the touch controls to play the previous track.

If you’d prefer to only control your Sonos system from the app, you can turn off each speaker’s touch controls. From the 

, choose Ray from the list of products, and then toggle 

Ray’s convenient size and zero-stress setup are only part of the story. What really sets it apart is its exceptional sound quality.

The custom acoustics include two powerful tweeters for clear highs, a pair of meticulously engineered elliptical woofers for full mid frequencies, and proprietary anti-distortion technology for perfectly weighted bass. Split waveguides project sound from wall to wall, and advanced processing accurately positions elements in the room so you feel like you’re at the centre of the action. Even better, our unique Trueplay™ software tunes your speakers to the precise acoustics of your space.

With sound, so much depends on the environment in which you’re listening. A cosy room with thick carpet and tons of pillows will reflect and absorb sound very differently than a larger space with bare walls and hard floors. The exact same speaker placed in those two spaces won’t sound the same, no matter how well it’s engineered.

With an iOS device, our Trueplay™ tuning technology will measure the effect that your room’s size, furnishings, and Ray’s placement have on what you hear, then fine-tune the audio output to make sure you hear everything as it was intended to sound.

You’ll be prompted to tune your speaker with Trueplay™ during setup. If you choose to wait, you can always come back to it later from the Settings menu. Tap 

, select Ray from the list of products, and then tap 

Ray is the perfect start to your Sonos home cinema.

On its own, Ray can make your shows, films, and games sound fuller, with crisper dialogue and more impactful bass. But by adding rear Sonos speakers, you can experience 360-degree sound. Ambient effects like footsteps, whispers, and elements of the score will completely immerse you in the world on screen.

For an incredible surround sound experience, you can learn more about combining Ray with Sonos One or One SL in our guide to creating the ultimate home cinema experience 

. If you prefer your speakers to blend discreetly with your home decor, Ray also works beautifully with the 

Ray isn’t just designed to enhance your viewing experience, but to bring stunning high-res audio into your home, too. One of the best ways to do this is with Sonos Radio: our expertly-curated selection of stations designed to soundtrack everything from early-morning alarms to late-night partying. With exclusive stations curated by musical luminaries like Erykah Badu, Brian Eno, and The Chemical Brothers, as well as thousands of global radio stations and our own selection of Sleep Sounds to help you fall asleep, Sonos Radio brings you music for every moment.

Sonos pioneered multiroom listening with a simple vision: help music lovers play any song anywhere in their homes with exceptional sound quality.

But how we live in our homes constantly evolves. Sometimes sound is a shared experience with our friends, housemates, or partners, but sometimes we want a separate soundtrack in different rooms. And other times we want to take our music outside without breaking the flow. Adding multiple speakers to your Sonos system expands the possibilities for listening.

Adding a Sonos Roam to Ray is a perfect example of this. 

 on your device or in the Sonos app, you can pair whatever’s playing on your soundbar with our ultra portable smart speaker, taking your music from the heart of your home to the palm of your hand. From there, you can head to another room or leave your home without missing a beat.

A white Sonos Ray on a media console below a TV

The Essential Guide to Ray

When it came to creating a voice control experience unique to Sonos, the team behind Sonos Voice Control™ took a listener-first approach that prioritized privacy, sound quality, and inclusivity along with hands-free ease.

“Voice control makes technology very accessible,” says Joseph Dureau, Vice President of Voice Experience at Sonos. Dureau leads the team behind Sonos Voice Control, a new innovation that offers listeners hands-free control of their music and systems with any voice-enabled 

 product. His interest in the technology, however, extends beyond his professional life.

As a father to two young children, Dureau is always trying to limit screen time for himself and his family. “Being able to control music with my voice helps me stay present,” he explains. “I don’t need to pull out my smartphone to change the song or adjust the volume, and my children don’t see me constantly looking at a device.”

Drawn to the convenience of voice control, Dureau and his team wanted to find a way to improve upon the technology in a way that only Sonos could, making it even more intuitive, private, and inclusive. Oh, and it had to sound good, too.

A white Sonos Roam with examples of voice commands in animated speech bubbles

“Everything we do aims to empower listeners,” says Dureau. “When we think about a new feature, product, or partnership, it has to be rooted in our ethos. And it has to be easy.” With the addition of Sonos Voice Control, the team has realized this ambition on a new level with a one-of-a-kind experience.

Sonos Voice Control stands apart from other voice assistants that have become synonymous with smart speakers.

First, the setup is nearly effortless: There are no extra apps to download or new accounts to create. Sonos Voice Control offers complete command of your Sonos system with any voice-enabled product, regardless of generation.

Unlike other voice assistants, Sonos Voice Control has a better grasp of natural language, so it understands the way people actually talk. For example, it understands “Hey Sonos, up a bit” as well as “Hey Sonos, louder.” Whatever comes more naturally. You can also quickly follow up one request with another without having to repeat “Hey Sonos” (also known as the wake word) every single time. “It seems like a small detail,” says Dureau, “But it creates a lot of friction.”

Also, Sonos Voice Control processes all requests locally on the speaker or soundbar, which significantly reduces the time to music. It’s as instant as tapping a control in the app. Most of the time, Sonos Voice Control just does what’s asked without a repetitive verbal confirmation.

Local processing also allows for limited playback controls on Bluetooth®, including pausing, resuming, and volume adjustments. Plus, because no data or audio transcript is ever sent to the cloud, Sonos Voice Control doesn’t compromise on privacy.

With the increase of smart devices in our lives, privacy has become a top priority for customers. It’s also the number one reason why listeners never set up or use a voice assistant despite being drawn to the ease. So, naturally, privacy became a top priority for the Sonos Voice Experience team.

“We don’t use any customer data to feed our engines,” explains Dureau. All requests are processed locally on the Sonos product. “At no point is your voice going to be sent to the cloud, transcribed, or listened to by anyone.”

Rather than making shopping frictionless or leveraging data to enhance voice AI and search engines, Sonos Voice Control services the listening experience. “It’s like a voice version of the app,” says Dureau.

“At Sonos, we want to make everything sound as good as we possibly can,” says Greg McAllister, Senior Manager of Sound Experience. Throughout his storied career as a sound engineer, McAllister has worked on everything from Hollywood blockbusters to award-winning albums alongside Sonos Sound Experience Leader Giles Martin at London’s famed Abbey Road Studios. When it came to choosing a voice for Sonos Voice Control, he wanted it to sound as “natural as possible.”

Rather than use a sterile-sounding option generated by AI, McAllister and his team sought the perfect human voice, which they found in Giancarlo Esposito, the beloved big-screen and Emmy-nominated actor known for 

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