Sonos One vs Amazon Echo
Which is the best speaker for you between Sonos One and Amazon Echo? What would you consider before setting your hand on one of these smart speakers? Well, it is pretty simple for you to make the right decision with the help that we are going to offer you on this page. Keep navigating through the page and be sure to take home the finest smart speaker that will fit all your needs.
The world keeps on advancing day in day out. Also, the introduction of smart speakers into the market keeps on rising. This releases a sheer number of smart speakers which has put the consumers’ mind at a standstill while they have trouble to pick the right smart speaker to take home. Amazon Echo was the first to be introduced in the market and it is still dominating in the field. However, the Sonos One speaker is currently gaining massive popularity despite its late release.
Therefore, after an in-depth analysis and evaluation of the speakers’ design, features, specifications, cost and hardware difference among others, we came up with a detailed comparison between the two. Below is the exhaustive comparison between the two smart speakers.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Design and Appearance
What crosses your mind when you hear of design? Design is the eye-catching feature that will draw the first attention of the consumer’s eyes. The shape, appearance, and color are the most important tools in the design process of smart speakers. As they always say, the first impression matters, so it is with products such as these smart speakers.
The Sonos One speaker has an incredible design displaying an indented top with rounded edges and a tapered bottom that allows for the floating effect. Also, it is surrounded by a metallic grille which stretches almost 360-degrees around the speaker.
Its size is slightly bigger measuring 6.4 in x 4.7 in x 4.7 in and weighs around 1850 g (1.08 lb) which is heavier than the Amazon Echo. The size and weight are not just in vain but come with the ability to produce better sound quality. The Sonos One come in standard colors which are black and white. However, more color choices are being introduced to beautifully fit into different environments. These include the vibrant red, light grey, forest green, soft pink and pale yellow colors.
In addition to this, the Sonos One speaker is designed with a capacitive control pad at the top panel which allows you to perform touch controls like pausing/playing, microphone on and off, and adjusting the volume. It also has a status LED light which illuminates to let you know that Alexa is listening to you and goes off when you stop talking to it. Moreover, the power cord is located at the bottom of the speaker while the Ethernet port and the pairing button are located at the back of the speaker.
The Amazon Echo on the other side is designed in a cylindrical shape which is available in several colors including grey, charcoal, sandstone, oak, silver, and walnut which are likely to blend in with most of your home décor. There are plenty of fabric colors for you to choose from depending on the color of your choice.
Furthermore, its size is quite smaller than that of Sonos One and so is its weight. It measures around 5.8 in x 3.4 in x 3.4 in, in size and approximately 821 g in weight. This makes it easy for you to carry around while traveling but is disadvantageous when it comes to the quality of sound produced as compared to that of Sonos One.
Even more, unlike Sonos One speaker which has touch control, Amazon Echo has physical buttons at the top surface. This includes the action button, the volume button, and the microphone button as well. It also has a light ring at the top which lights up when Alexa is listening to you. Also, the power port is located at the back of the speaker alongside the audio output which is not available in Sonos One.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Sound Quality
What is sound quality? This is the audio output from a product that captures the listeners’ reaction to how acceptable the sound of the product is. Therefore, this is one of the most captivating features that draw the users’ attention who intend to take the desired smart speaker home. So, between Sonos One and Amazon Echo, which one has the finest sound quality?
Sonos One provides an excellent sound quality feature. It is an implausible sounding speaker with a clear, smooth and rich sound. It also has a controlled bass that gives you a tremendous power to refine your sound. However, the speaker does not support Bluetooth compatibility or line-out abilities. On the contrary, it can connect to other devices purely through the Wi-Fi connection.
Even more, because of the bigger size and mass, the Sonos One smart speaker produces a louder sound than the Amazon Echo. This is the advantage that comes with its size and weight since as it withstands flashier sound.
Amazon Echo is one of the best products that Amazon has ever made as it produces good sound quality. However, it sounds muffled with booming bass. Compared to Sonos One’s sound quality, Amazon Echo’s sound quality is way below that of Sonos One. However, to support its audio quality, Amazon Echo has the Bluetooth support capability where you can connect it with other speakers. Also, it has a 3.5mm output jack which will allow you to connect to any other speaker.
Moreover, due to its smaller size and weight, Amazon Echo speaker may not get as loud as the Sonos one speaker. This, therefore, will not be a priority for you when you need to play lots of music in your smart home space. Hence, in terms of sound quality, Sonos One smart speaker would be the best pick for you.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Features and Specifications
The features and specifications of smart speakers are also one of the vital considerations to put into place while considering which of the two speakers to take home. The question remains, is it Sonos One or Amazon Echo? The specifications and features would include Alexa support, smart home control, multi-room audio ability, music services compatibility among others.
Therefore, in terms of Alexa support services, both Sonos One and Amazon Alexa have Alexa integration support. Alexa is a smart voice digital assistant that allows you to perform several tasks in your smart home just by the use of a voice command. You can be able to utilize all the voice services that come with Alexa in both smart speakers. Also, with the help of Alexa app, you can add several skills which will allow you to achieve many tasks like asking Alexa to turn the Philips Hue lights on, checking the traffic and playing your music among others.
Sonos One supports more than thirty music services including Pandora, Spotify, Deezer, Google Play Music, Apple Music, and 7digital among other music services. The list is endless and it keeps on growing each day. However, some of these music services might not be available in some countries. On the other hand, Amazon Echo supports music services as well but are limited as compared to those of Sonos One. They include Spotify, Amazon Prime Music, Pandora as well as Apple Music which you start them using Alexa.
Amazon Echo has an advantage over Sonos One speaker when it comes to calling and messaging. Using Alexa, users of Amazon Echo are in a good position to place a call and send text messages by voice commands. This, however, is not an option for the Sonos One smart speaker.
Most noteworthy, both Sonos One and Amazon Echo smart speakers have the multiroom audio capability. This allows you to sync up with many speakers in your home to create a great home theatre experience. However, the Sonos One speaker has additional features like the stereo pairing which allows for connection with other wireless speakers.
Moreover, Sonos One speaker offers support for AirPlay 2. The Amazon Echo speaker, however, does not support this feature. But it has support for Bluetooth and line-out ability for external speakers. Therefore, from the detailed description given above, it is evident that Sonos One smart speaker outshines the Amazon Echo in several ways.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Quality of Voice Assistants
Just from the name assistant, the voice assistant is a digital assistant assists you to perform various tasks by the use of a voice command. After hearing a wake word command, voice assistants can achieve various actions like placing a call and playing music. It can also turn the lights on, answer questions and place orders among other important days to day activities. There are numerous types of voice assistants which include Apple Siri, Google Now, Microsoft Cortana, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant. For smart speaker-based voice assistants, we have Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Amazon Echo is designed with Amazon Alexa as its voice assistant. It is known to have the best quality of voice assistant which is a delightful smart home controller. Introduced back in 2014, Amazon Alexa took the world by storm and is still performing a great smart home control. Therefore, the quality of Alexa on Amazon Echo is impressive.
Even more, this voice assistant is not only limited to Amazon products but also available in other smart speakers including the Sonos One. Therefore, as Amazon Alexa is built into the Sonos One, you can be able to perform the same voice commands that are used on Amazon Echo. This will involve turning the lights on, checking weather updates as well as playing music among other tasks. Hence, the quality of this voice assistant in Sonos One is just as impressive as that in Amazon Echo.
However, the Sonos One smart speaker has an advantage over Amazon Echo. Which is it? Well, since the promise of Google Assistant support for Sonos One back in 2017, this voice assistant is finally here, thanks to the Sonos Company efforts. Google Assistant is now fully supported in Sonos One so you can now control your smart home with ease. It has an advantage for quick search queries and Google-powered responses as well.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Cost
The cost of a product is also a major deciding factor when you want to purchase a particular product. Depending on the size of your wallet, you can decide to take home a start speaker of your choice that is within your reach. However, they always say cheap is expensive. This means that your choice for smart speaker regarding its cost might come at a price. That is, cheap commodities will cost you later on.
Therefore, in terms of price or cost, the Sonos One speaker and the Amazon Echo have some big differences. These smart speakers are available in different retail markets like eBay, Amazon, Newegg, Best Buy and much more. Each of them has set different prices for smart speakers but the difference is slight.
The average cost for Sonos One is approximately $199 while that of Amazon Echo is approximately $99. As you can see the price of Sonos One is twice as much as that of Amazon Echo. The prices are quite affordable and from time to time there are always great deals available.
Sonos One vs Amazon Echo: Conclusion
Finally, it all comes down to making the right decision on considering which smart speaker to take home. Is it Sonos One or Amazon Echo? After a quick read and understanding of the descriptions we have provided to you above, this question is now easy to answer. It is now your calling to select the smart speaker that will rightfully fit the desires of your heart.
When it comes to sound quality, Sonos One is the best sounding speaker around with richer audio output. If you are a real music lover, what else are you looking for? However, its price doubles that of Amazon Echo but it is still quite affordable. It is also compatible with AirPlay 2, multi-room audio functions, multiple music services support, and has support for Google Assistant.
Amazon Echo has support for Bluetooth and line-out abilities for external speakers, which Sonos One does not support. Moreover, it is readily available and more affordable as compared to its counterpart and has several skills. Also, it is rich with the choice of finishes, hence the best pick for you to fit with your home décor. Due to its small size, it makes it easy for you to carry around while traveling.
