Features

Although you can switch Alexa and the Google Assistant off entirely, it’s often worth having them listening, particularly as they're more deeply integrated here than with many rivals.

Alexa is particularly well implemented, in that you can talk to the One exactly as you would Amazon’s own Echo, so instead of having to say “Alexa, play Bowie on Sonos”, you simply say “Alexa, play Bowie”, and one of his classics will spring forth from your One. That might sound like a small detail but, in terms of regular interaction, it’s a big difference.

If you want to voice-control music in other rooms, specify where (eg. “Alexa, play Bowie in the lounge”) and the One will send music to the Sonos kit you’ve ascribed to that ‘zone’ – even a non-Alexa-enabled Sonos speaker, such as a PlayBar or Play:5. “Alexa, play Bowie everywhere” sets all your Sonos speakers to synchronised Ziggy Stardust mode.

If you’re worried that having Dancing In The Street blaring from your One will prevent Alexa or the Google Assistant from hearing your request to skip Dancing In The Street, a combination of noise cancelling, something called “smart voice capture” and a custom-designed six-microphone array ensures that you can always be heard.

The Sonos One launched only supporting Amazon Music with voice control but has since added Spotify, Deezer, TuneIn, YouTube Music, Apple Music and Audible into the voice control mix, which is very welcome.

Having held out on hi-res music support for so long, Sonos finally brought hi-res capability with its Sonos S2 platform update last summer. That allowed Sonos S2 app users to play 24-bit files from a local drive, and now there's also support for 24-bit streaming via Qobuz. To benefit you'll need a subscription to either of Qobuz's tiers, Studio Premier or Studio Sublime, plus the Sonos S2 app, which supports 24-bit 44.1/48kHz for FLAC. For Tidal users' sakes we hope Sonos will soon support Tidal Masters too.

Of course, you can also use Alexa or Google Assistant on the One exactly as you do on an Amazon Echo or Google Nest speaker, so as well as playing music you can set timers and alarms, check the weather, add items to your shopping list – all small features, but useful nonetheless. We’d suggest the One is particularly good as a kitchen speaker.

We have loud music playing from the One in the kitchen and can still get Alexa’s attention from the adjoining room with only a slightly raised voice.

You know when your chosen voice assistant has heard you, too, as any mention of her name is met with a chime of acknowledgement, signalling that you can continue your request. That might make the experience sound disjointed, but it’s quick and natural.

With an Echo Dot you look for a visual clue that Alexa is listening. The One’s chime is quicker and more in keeping with audio communication, so it leads to more natural-feeling interactions.

The quality of the microphones make the One less likely to mis-hear your requests and instructions – we find it makes fewer mistakes than our third-generation Echo Dot. Correctly hearing the request is only half the battle, though, and Alexa is still capable of misunderstanding.

The most common issue is when you say, for example, “play Ladytron”, and she instead starts playing a song with those words in the title. That can be annoying at first, but you can avoid that by saying “play some music by Ladytron” instead.

It's worth remembering that, while voice control is obviously the big headline for the One, you can of course still use it as you would any other Sonos speaker. Sonos's own app remains the best in the business for its usability and for bringing practically every streaming service (and your own stored tunes) together under one roof, and the addition of AirPlay 2 means Apple device users can send audio from almost any app they use. Spotify Connect is on board, too.

You may find references to Gen 1 and Gen 2 versions of the Sonos One. The Gen 2 – the only one available now – gets an upgraded processor, more memory and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), but both models apparently perform and sound identical. Again, those who would prefer to save a few bucks over having voice control functionality can get the Sonos One SL instead; it's identical to the One but forgoes built-in mics and voice assistant.

Sound

When we first heard the One  we suspected it was a slight sonic upgrade on the Play:1 but, having listened to both in our testing rooms, the two speakers sound pretty much identical.

That’s no bad thing, though, because the Play:1 was already near the top of the sonic charts for wireless speakers at this price point.

We’d recommend going to the effort of TruePlay tuning the One with an iPhone (if you have one), as it opens the sound up. We prefer the sound with the Loudness setting left on, but experiment to discover which combination works best for you and your room.

We set it up the way we like, and get a delivery that’s weighty, full-bodied and loud – not traits you’d generally expect from a wireless speaker of this size. The soundstage is spacious and impressively organised, with vocals given plenty of breathing room, making them instantly more engaging.

That’s not to say that instruments are left out – they emerge in an impressively stereo-like way from either side of the singer. It’s rather sophisticated and natural in that regard.

The One’s weight makes for deep, solid bass for a speaker this size, and there’s enough rhythm to just about keep up with Trivium’s Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr, and enough tonal shading to make the most of Flea’s finest Red Hot Chili Peppers basslines.

Treble is crisp and clear, but treads a fine line between excitement and harshness. You’ll occasionally notice the odd sharp edge or hint of sibilance, but it’s not enough to be bothersome. More often, it’s simply clear and sparkly.

• Sonos Beam vs Playbar vs Playbase: which is better?

As with the Play:1, two Sonos Ones can be combined to create a stereo pair capable of filling a room with hi-fi-like focus, and for the money that would be quite an accomplished little system. When the One launched, we thought it a shame that you couldn't form a stereo pair consisting of one One and one Play:1 – after all, buying two smart speakers for one room feels like overkill – but now at least you can now pair a One and One SL in stereo.

Unsurprisingly, you can also use the One as a surround speaker for a Sonos Beam, Arc, PlayBase or PlayBar-based system, with or without a subwoofer. The Sonos Amp also allows you to create a 4.1 system, with a phantom centre channel, from a pair of wired front speakers and a pair of Ones acting as surrounds.

The One isn’t the only way to add voice Alexa to a Sonos system – you can add an Echo or Echo Dot to your multi-room system, which brings with it the ability to send music to your Sonos speakers.

That’s not as neat, though, as you need to specify which room or speaker you want to listen on. A system comprised of Sonos Ones, on the other hand, will respond based on proximity – unless you instruct otherwise.

The combination of the Sonos Play:1’s audio talents and voice control’s usefulness and intelligence is a real winner, particularly as the One costs broadly the same as its predecessor.