![]() ![]() Sonically it's weighty and full-bodied, and the Move can carry a tune as well as the next Sonos speaker, but it's big and expensive, which brings it up against some more capable speakers. Think more in terms of a speaker you'd stick in the back of the car for a picnic rather than something you'd actually carry around with you while trail walking. So while it certainly has a battery, we're not sure how many people will be taking it on holiday or to the park. Compared to the majority of portable Bluetooth speakers, and indeed anything Sonos currently offers, it is relatively tall (24cm) and heavy (3kg). Physically, the Move towers over the One. It still provides everything you'd expect from Sonos, with full multi-room streaming functionality and access to Google Assistant, but if you were expecting a battery-powered, Bluetooth version of the Sonos One, think again. The Sonos Move is the first Sonos speaker to be portable and the first to offer Bluetooth streaming. Money is increasingly invisible in our modern world, but when it comes to money management skills, we need to smarten up.Ĭlaer Barrett is the editor of FT Money, and presents a daily financial news bulletin on Eddie Mair’s LBC drive-time show at 5.Another Sonos speaker, but this one is a little different. The level of income did not alter the pattern of spending every last penny - the bank found that those earning £90,000 a year were just as likely to do so as those earning £9,000. Based on an anonymised analysis of 750,000 UK customer accounts, the bank found that only half of adults regularly put money aside when they are paid each month and a quarter spend more than they earn. Separate research from NatWest this week made for alarming reading. They have had to set up voice recognition controls with NatWest online banking to do so, and given the sensitivities over banking fraud, it could be some time before anyone can ask: “OK Google, can I transfer some money?”Įven so, I am broadly in favour of using technology to make it easier for people to engage with their finances on a day-to-day basis. The level of income did not alter the pattern of spending every last penny - those earning £90,000 a year were just as likely to do so as those earning £9,000 Nevertheless, NatWest Bank is coming to the end of a three-month trial with rival Google Assistant where 500 customers have been using voice controls to check their balance, listen to recent transactions and remind themselves which transactions are pending. Starling says: “In the end, we decided for reasons of security (and domestic bliss) that she was a little too indiscreet to be allowed to broadcast people’s financials to anyone in earshot.” Digital challenger bank Starling tells me it has had some “very interesting chats with Alexa” about launching a skill that could tell customers their account balance or monitor their spending (“Alexa - how much did I spend in the pub last night?”) The British reluctance to talk about money could yet be a problem for smart speakers. There are several skills that can tell you the share prices of listed companies, and the Bond Checker skill can check your Premium Bonds with NS&I. After setting up security, its users can ask Alexa to increase their monthly contributions. ![]() The Smart Pension skill, set up by the auto-enrolment pensions platform of the same name, goes further. As one points out, it would be very useful if you could ask: “Alexa, when is my motor renewal date?” or “does my policy cover bicycle theft?” It won’t work for all Aviva pensions, and user reviews are eager for it to be extended to other insurance products. ![]() Although gimmicky, it’s an excellent engagement tool. The Aviva Pension skill enables Alexa to tell you what the balance of your pension is, and what your regular contributions are (providing you have set up a voice enabled Pin number). So it’s easy to spend money, but other “skills” are skewed towards saving it. This is how you can use Alexa to order an Uber, a Domino’s pizza or items from Amazon itself (and, yes, you can set up parental controls to prevent your children from ordering truck loads of sweets and chocolate). Similar to an app, a “skill” is an experience that a third-party developer has created that can be enabled on your smart speaker. I’ve checked in with the human beings who handle Alexa’s press inquiries in Europe and they confirm that they don’t currently have any personal banking “skills” available - but I sense it won’t be long. ![]()
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