Sonos channels 2013 with Alexa-less One SL

What do you call a Sonos One without Alexa built-in? Sonos used to call it a Play: 1 but now it’s called a One SL. From the outside the new One SL looks identical to the voice-powered version, but shout commands at this one and you’ll be met with nothing but stony silence. Instead, you’ll need to use the Sonos app to control playback from any of the 100+ streaming services it supports, just like it’s 2013 or something. Available in black or white, it comes with two Class-D amps inside, Apple AirPlay 2 support, and the usual Trueplay tech that magically self-tunes it to sound good in any room. As usual, it’ll pair up with any other Sonos speakers you have in your gaff and can even be used as a rear speaker for your Sonos-powered surround-sound system. The One SL will be available from 12 September for £179, which is £20 cheaper than the One, or £30 more than the soon-to-be-discontinued Play: 1. Bargain?

Tom Wiggins Contributor

About

Stuff's second Tom has been writing for the magazine and website since 2006, when smartphones were only for massive nerds and you could say “Alexa” out loud without a robot answering. Over the years he’s written about everything from MP3s to NFTs, played FIFA with Trent Alexander-Arnold, and amassed a really quite impressive collection of USB sticks.

Areas of expertise

A bit of everything but definitely not cameras.