Sonos now has a voice assistant for its smart speakers that lets you control playback — here's how it works and why it's safer than using Alexa

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• Sonos launched a new voice control feature for its lineup of smart speakers.
• The music assistant lets you control playback with hands-free voice commands.
• It's also designed with privacy in mind, so your voice is never recorded or stored in the cloud.

Sonos announced the launch of its very own voice assistant. The new Sonos Voice Control feature is now available on select Sonos speakers with built-in microphones, like the Sonos Move and Sonos Beam.

Though these speakers already support digital assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant , this new feature was built specifically with Sonos products in mind. The company also developed its assistant with privacy as a priority, so customers don't have to worry about their voices being recorded.

Below, we break down all the ins and outs of the new feature, including supported controls, devices, music services, and more.

What is Sonos Voice Control?

Sonos Voice Control is the company's new voice assistant feature that lets customers control select Sonos speakers through spoken commands. Once set up, users can simply say "Hey Sonos" to activate the feature and initiate a command.

With Sonos Voice Control you can ask your speaker to play music, adjust volume, skip tracks, move playback to a different room, group devices, and more. Some commands also work over Bluetooth , so you can control portable Sonos speakers when you're on the go. 

Sonos even teamed up with Emmy-nominated actor Giancarlo Esposito to bring the voice of its digital assistant to life. Esposito is best known for his roles in "Breaking Bad," "Better Call Saul," and "The Mandalorian."

Unlike Alexa or Google Assistant, however, Sonos Voice Control is strictly designed to manage playback and music. This means you can't use it for other common digital assistant functions, like answering questions or checking the weather.

Does Sonos Voice Control record your voice?

Sonos says that its voice assistant works locally, meaning that it processes your requests on the device itself and never records or saves your voice to the cloud. 

What speakers include support for Sonos Voice Control?

Sonos

Sonos Voice Control is available on all of the company's smart speaker models. This includes the Sonos One, Sonos Move, Sonos Roam, Sonos Beam, and Sonos Arc.

What music services does Sonos Voice Control support?

Sonos Voice Control currently supports Sonos Radio, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and Pandora. 

What's Sonos Voice Control like to use?

Based on initial testing, Sonos Voice Control works well with simple setup and speedy performance. To give the new feature a whirl, I tried it out on a Sonos Beam (Gen 2) with the Sonos Radio service.

Setting up Voice Control couldn't be simpler. I just needed to update the speaker through the Sonos app on my smartphone. Once updated, I was able to select Sonos Voice Control as an option in the speaker's settings. 

Initiating commands with the "Hey Sonos" wake word works well without any issues. Requests for play, pause, volume adjustments, and radio stations all led to speedy results.

Unlike Alexa, you can also quickly follow up voice commands without having to say the wake word again. For instance, I can say "Hey Sonos, play rock music" and then increase the volume by just saying "volume up" once it starts. It's a small feature, but it adds a little extra convenience. 

If you're looking for a full-fledged smart speaker assistant, Alexa is still a better option, but as a feature meant purely for music control, Sonos' solution is a simpler and safer alternative for those who prioritize privacy. You can even have Alexa and Sonos Voice Control set up at the same time, so you can use Sonos' voice assistant for playback while still having the option to ask Alexa questions.