Sonos has introduced it’s first “voice experience,” offering users a new way to control their wireless speakers and sound systems.
According to the company, Sonos Voice Control is “the simplest way to control your music.” It works on every voice-capable Sonos speaker and processes requests entirely on the device. This “local processing” is meant to deliver faster response times to users in comparison to the Sonos app.
Following the announcement, Joseph Dureau, vice president of voice experience at Sonos, said user privacy remains a top priority.
“One of the most natural ways to connect to your music is with your voice, but when we speak to our customers, we hear that privacy concerns mean many are choosing not to use voice control,” said Dureau.
“No audio or transcript is sent to the cloud, stored, listened to or read by anyone,” said Sonos.
Available on new voice capable products or as a free update for existing customers, Sonos Voice Control is currently compatible with Sonos Radio, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and Pandora.
Much like Google or Alexa-enabled devices, users just need to say “Hey Sonos” to get started. Voicing the new feature for U.S. customers is actor Giancarlo Esposito, best known for his roles in Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and The Mandalorian. More voices will be added over time.
The feature is available in the U.S. June 1 and in France later this year. The company said additional markets will follow.
