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Redesigned Sonos app and compatibility with voice-over screen reader in IOS

G
Userlevel 1

Hello has the forthcoming redesigned Sonos App (announced on 23rd April 2024) been tested for compatibility with the voice-over screen reader in IOS? I am totally blind and currently use sonos very successfully with the S2 app on both my Iphone and Ipad. can you confirm whether the app has been tested with voice-over and that it will continue to be accessible to voice-over users. I am slightly reluctant to update if the app ends up being less accessible to me. at present the current app works beautifully with the exception of a few minor quirks. Thanks for any info you can supply. Best wishes Angus

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Best answer by Corry P 26 April 2024, 10:23

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13 replies

H

Hi, I have the same question. I've been a Sonos user for almost a decade, and I always fangirl about the accessibility of the system to me as a blind user. Will the redesigned app be accessible with Voiceover? If we don't get confirmation, I'm going to try to update on a secondary device first and see how it goes. I essentially upgraded almost my entire system over the past six months and I am enjoying the new hardware. I hope accessibility doesn't get broken. 

buzz

In this Community we don’t know more than anyone else and, like you, we have no experience with the new interface. I have no experience with Voiceover.

Do you use Alexa or SVC (Sonos Voice Control)? I don’t expect any changes to them.

Are you using the desktop SONOS application with Voiceover? If so, I don’t expect any immediate changes, however, many of us are worrying that desktop controllers will fade away at some point. I prefer using the desktop controller for routine SONOS system operation.

H

Hi, I've sometimes seen responses from staff here so I thought it was worth replying to bump the original post and to help demonstrate that Sonos has a good-sized blind user base. I sometimes use Alexa to control my system, and I occasionally use the desktop controller, but my 32-speaker system would become unusable if the iOS controller did not work with Voiceover, the built-in screen reader on the iPhone. Sonos has in the past demonstrated a commitment to accessibility, so I am going to be optimistic and assume they will do the same this time. But I'm going to keep my main device on the current version of the app until I can verify. Thanks. 

Corry P
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

Hi @Geordieshorts74 & @HolyBraille 

Welcome to the Sonos Community!

Apologies for the delay - I wanted to ensure I had a correct answer for you.

Yes, the new Sonos app has been tested with voice-over and will continue to be accessible to voice-over users. We aim to keep improving this experience and our ultimate goal is to have an even better experience for voice-over users with our new app update.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein
G
Userlevel 1

Hi Cory, many thanks for your reply and your confirmation Re sonos’ commitment to accessibility with IOS and Voice-over - that’s good to know! 

I’m going to try the app on a secondary device first before updating my own, but it’s good to know that accessibility has been taken to account when designing the new interface. 

Reading various articles on the new app, I think it has a lot of potential, not least that people can design their home screen to best suit their needs and preferences. I wish you the best of luck with the role-out of the app, and thanks again.  

S

I am also a Voiceover user and have been a Sonos user since 2009. I used to Beta test and along with a few other active blind advocates we were able to convince that their products had a large appeal to blind users and that accessibility should be an integral part of the app and become rooted in the Sonos Philosophy just as it is with Apple. I am very happy tot hear that this next big Sonos app update maintains Sonos’ commitment to accessibility and I’ll share what I read here with other blind Sonos fans.

H

Yes, this really is fantastic news. Sounds like the new version of the app has a lot to offer, and I am looking forward to it. ,,,

S

I look forward to it as well and thanks for asking the question on here; when I received the email the other day I was certainly wondering about it, but didn’t even think of asking the community.

 

H

Yes, thank you @Geordieshorts74 for posting here. I googled to see if anyone had raised the issue and was glad to find this post. I switched to Sonos after trying a competitor’s product and discovering that the accompanying app was pretty much unusable with my screen reader. I haven’t looked back since. It’s rare to find accessible consumer electronics, and I truly enjoy the Sonos ecosystem.

J

Yes, the new Sonos app has been tested with voice-over and will continue to be accessible to voice-over users. We aim to keep improving this experience and our ultimate goal is to have an even better experience for voice-over users with our new app update.

 

Hello, and thank you for this reply. I am hearing some reports of other blind users that have tried both the beta on the iPhone and the web app and reporting a rathre subpar experiene currently. DO you know if the accessibility features have been rolled out into the current betas or if this is something coming later on? As a user of the current and soon legacy Windows app as well as the Android version, I would hate to be put in a position where I need to sell all of my speakers to move to another platform. Are there screen reader and other accessibility users on the beta test group, and are issued actively being triaged? In the meantime, will the current apps still function for a period of time without a forced update?

 

Thanks for your response, and I hope to try an accessible new app experience soon.

Bumper
Userlevel 6
Badge +13

@Jage  sounds like you are referring to the recent article by Jonathan Mosen. 
 

The current app will continue to work for the foreseeable future as long as you don’t update the iOS  app or firmware on your speakers. Jonathan provides instructions on how to ensure you have this locked down near the end of his post, link below. 
 

https://mosen.org/sonos2024/

J

Thanks I wrote this before he posted that but that article is correct and accurate.

Bumper
Userlevel 6
Badge +13

Thanks I wrote this before he posted that but that article is correct and accurate.

Thank you for posting on the Reddit thread, the more exposure the better. 

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