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Sonos announces an updated Sonos One with no Google Assistant whatsoever
- Sonos announced an updated version of the Sonos One smart speaker.
- The updated Sonos One features upgraded internals and a Bluetooth chip.
- The Sonos One Gen 2 launches tomorrow, March 7 for $199.99.
Arguably the best third-party smart speaker with Amazon Alexa integration, the Sonos One is getting a few upgrades that should make it more future-proof. According to The Verge, however, there’s still one big feature missing.
Called the Sonos One Gen 2, the upgraded smart speaker features a faster processor and more memory compared to the original. Sonos didn’t say how the upgraded internals would be used, though they could lead to new features in future updates.
For example, Sonos acknowledged that a lack of horsepower prevented older Sonos speakers from getting native AirPlay 2 support. Even though older Sonos speakers can still stream AirPlay 2 audio, they must be connected to a Sonos device that officially supports the standard.
In addition to upgraded internals, the updated Sonos One also includes Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). According to a Sonos representative on the company’s Dutch forums, the Bluetooth chip can’t be used to stream music. For the time being, BLE is only used for easier first-time setup and quicker communication between the Sonos One and your device.
Interestingly, the Sonos representative also said the updated Sonos One features four microphones instead of the six found in the original. According to the representative, Sonos concluded that it’s not necessary to have six microphones due to its experience with the Sonos Beam.
Overall, the updated Sonos One is the exact same as the original Sonos One. That’s not a bad thing, since our sister site SoundGuys was very impressed with the speaker’s sound quality and loudness.
That said, it’s still disappointing to not see Google Assistant support. Sonos originally announced that support for Google’s voice assistant would arrive in 2018 before delaying the support to 2019. We still don’t have a time frame for when to expect the update, but at least the original and updated Sonos One will get Google Assistant at some point.
The new Sonos One launches tomorrow, March 7 for $199.99. You’ll want to look for “Gen 2” on the box and the speaker itself. The original Sonos One will drop to $179.99 at participating retailers.