Sonos Adds Presets As Voice Assistant Early Access Nears
A Sonos app update adds one-tap playback Presets, while US users face conflicting reported dates for early access to the new AI voice assistant.
Sonos is rolling out an app update with Presets for quickly starting music and is preparing early access to Sonos 27voice, its new AI voice assistant. Both The Verge and Engadget say the assistant’s early-access program is limited to the US, but they report different dates for when testing begins.
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Early-access dates differ
According to The Verge, US users can join a waitlist for Sonos 27voice on November 6, with access starting November 12. Engadget, by contrast, says the assistant will be available to test in early access on November 6. Engadget also says users must request access through the Sonos app and be approved.
Engadget reports that Sonos is starting with a smaller group to gather feedback before a full release in 2027. It says the early-access assistant is available only in English. The reports do not resolve the difference between the November 6 and November 12 access dates.
What the assistant can do
Sonos 27voice is designed to handle playback commands as well as requests phrased in everyday language. The Verge says users can ask it to start music, shift playback between rooms, group or ungroup speakers, and set timers. Sonos also describes requests that identify an album through a clue about its cover or ask the assistant to find an artist’s latest album and play it in a particular room, according to The Verge.
Engadget says the assistant can select music by mood or genre for a specified speaker or area of a home. Citing Sonos’s support page, it also reports that Sonos 27voice can answer broader general-knowledge questions, provide current weather information and interact with supported smart-home accessories. Those capabilities go beyond the playback controls of Sonos’s previous Voice Control feature, Engadget says.
Presets and the wider app update
Presets let users save a combination of music and playback settings for one-tap access. The Verge says a preset can specify a room and volume and appear on the app’s home screen. The update also adds track-skipping gestures on the Now Playing screen or mini player and a way to rearrange favorites, according to The Verge.
Both outlets describe System Health, an iOS-only feature intended to help users identify setup problems. Engadget says it can show a speaker’s connection status and Wi-Fi network. The update follows Sonos’s troubled 2024 app redesign; The Verge says the company introduced its Sonos 27 software update in September, including support for connecting AI agents to the app. Engadget notes that Sonos 27 itself is limited to hardware on the company’s S2 platform.
Sources
This story was compiled by AI from the reports below. Read the originals for the full details.