The New Sonos App and Future Feature Updates

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L
Userlevel 3
Badge +2

@LJG777,

If you have a PC/MAC - you can likely correct your system time with Sonos Controller Desktop App. Maybe that will resolve your date/time issue🤔?

Ok I’ll try that - I have a MAC - so should I open the WebApp - or the MacOS app?

@Ken_Griffiths  - Couldn’t find a way to change the date time,  FYI - this is what my app looks like...you can see Sonos Voice Control added - but when I click ‘ add a voice assistant’….

 

I get this sayin Alexa is already added (which it isn’t as it would appear in the above list)

 

 

L

I’ve updated the app but now I cannot pair my brand new Sonos roam. I keep getting an error that the Roam cannot be added on my current device. I’ve factory reset, rebooted the roam and my phone, check d for updates, tried my husbands phone. I’m getting seriously pissed off. Any workarounds? 

J
Userlevel 2

This is among the worst customer experiences I have ever had. I hate that I didn’t recognize that the nature of your products are that you could and would turn them to hot garbage on a whim based on an “update.” And that is what’s happened here. 

B
Userlevel 2

Thought it might be useful to summarise what has happened that I am aware of. If nothing else, it’s been cathartic for me to write things down :-)

  • The key driver for releasing the new app now was two new products that had been designed to only work with the new app (even though one of the products will only be shipped on 5th June, almost a month after the new app was introduced)
  • This new app involved a complete replatforming of the way that Sonos works. At least part of this change is the move to make it cloud-based. Lots of questions as to what that actually means for individual users, data, etc. These questions have not been addressed
  • Replatforming is a complex process that frequently unearths issues and problems that were not known about or anticipated and often over-runs
  • Choosing to mandate a deadline for replatforming based on a hard deadline for product release created a (in)significant risk that the new app would not be ready by the date at which it was forced to be released
  • Sonos acknowledge that they knew the software had bugs when it was released - e.g., alarms. There may well be other bugs that Sonos does or does not know about
  • The new software was also released with the deliberate loss of a large number of  existing features (i.e., not bugs). Some might consider these to be basic functions, e.g., adding songs to a queue of music, sleep function. This is not a comprehensive list of the functions that were removed
  • The new software seems incredibly unstable. Work-arounds and solutions work for some people and not others, or are too complicated to be easily widely replicable. Where solutions do seem to work, they do not work consistently time after time after time
  • Lots of edge cases have not been properly catered for. Given the sheer amount of music services Sonos supports, combined with product options and individual customisations, there will be a lot of these which will take a lot of work to address
  • Customer service is currently overwhelmed. Web support is often unavailable or unable to help; the wait times for the helpline are very long
  • One of the currently advised work-arounds is to use the existing desktop app for Mac or Windows. This desktop app is not available to everyone as it has been removed from download links in advance of being sunsetted
  • The timelines provided by Sonos above are not for an exhaustive list of all the work required or features to be reinstated. That list has not been released publicly and will likely extend far beyond the timelines detailed above (i.e., not all features previously present will be available by mid-June)
  • Sonos has a long-standing customer base. One of its key differentiators and sources of value (as stated in multiple public announcements) is the loyalty of these customers and the way that you want to maintain them in the Sonos ecosystem. A large number (but definitely not all) of these customers are angry/ annoyed/ upset with these changes and how they have been implemented and communicated

Given that, a few questions for Sonos. No, I’m not expecting immediate answers but to Sonos - these should be on your crisis communications roadmap:

  • Does Sonos commit to restore functionality to what it was before the new app was released (i.e., to what was available in the latest version of the gold app)? Does that commitment include all edge cases, and if not, what will not be resolved?
  • What is the full list of work to be done to the app, and what are the current estimates for when things will be done? (Yes, this will be horrifically long both in number of tasks and duration, but probably time to tell us all the bad news at once rather than drip-feeding it out)
  • A lot of people would like to temporarily go back to using the latest version of the old gold app (i.e. v16). What is the reason that they cannot (other than just saying ‘you can’t)? Have a lot of other changes been made behind the scenes that mean that this is not possible? If so, what?
  • It is an imperfect solution, but can you commit to maintaining the availability of the desktop app whilst you work to improve the mobile app? Could you make it available for download for those who do not already have it?
  • What are the improvements for users that you hope to bring by releasing this new app? (Not generalities about ease of navigation, actual features that necessitated replatforming)
  • What are the implications for customer data/ security/ other from moving to the cloud? How will Sonos mitigate any potential downsides from this move?
  • What is the process by which you will communicate progress on resolving these issues to us, the users (not the press or trade journals)?
  • What are the concrete steps or commitments that Sonos will make to ensure that a) situations like this do not happen again or b) if they are unavoidable, that the impact of them will be communicated to users well in advance?

Sorry for the essay. But...I’m feeling much more zen now. Feel free to tell me where I’m wrong!

100% - spot on!!!

L
Userlevel 1

Gee the feedback mountain just grows and grows and you  must admit you have a terrible short term disaster on your hands . 

Please don’t continue to defend the indefensible ( your sounding like a politician’s manifesto and that’s not good look ) 

Options ?
1 Give everyone not happy their money back including premium music app spends that can’t be properly used . Not viable as you would be bankrupt 

2 Roll back the app to last one ( even with its niggles much better than this one) . Probably not viable as huge egg on your face and very few people would upgrade to new app when you’ve “fixed” it as they wouldn’t trust it . That would also put a hole in your intended new product stuff.
 

3 Rather than just pick up info on the forums as you seem to be doing and writing cringeworthy stuff about courage et al contact each user personally by email asking for forgiveness and get yourselves to a verified shortlist of priorities to fix and state when you will complete the fixes .

Not sure if you have the in-house capability for this?  

 

I feel sure you didn’t set out to concoct such a fiasco so some sympathy . Admittedly fixing it all would be beyond my pay grade but you are constantly demonstrating it’s also beyond yours and that’s not a viable option. 

 


 


 

 

S
Userlevel 2

New app is SLOW and unreliable. When you press a button it takes a long time for the system to respond accordingly, and not infrequently it says some kind of «error». Why release this unfinished thing at all? Previous version worked much better. Seriously disappointed.

Rhonny
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

I wonder if 30 pages is now sufficient? Isn’t it now just like a bath, that filling it beyond the top will just spill water pointlessly onto the floor? No matter how irate anyone is, there cannot now be any complaints or bugs that Sonos isn’t aware of. Getting to 60 pages won’t make any material difference at Sonos’ end.

G

I wonder if 30 pages is now sufficient? Isn’t it now just like a bath, that filling it beyond the top will just spill water pointlessly onto the floor? No matter how irate anyone is, there cannot now be any complaints or bugs that Sonos isn’t aware of. Getting to 60 pages won’t make any material difference at Sonos’ end.

It's not only this thread. There are others with even more pages.  Then, there are probably a thousand or more single or low entry messages.  

Very few seem to actually bother to read the thread content, and just fire off an angry, furious diatribe against Sonos & often against the CEO.  There is seldom any discussion of the issues & consequences of the update.

I can't see this changing in the near future, other than a slow reduction in posts as and when Sonos introduce 'fixes' or as users give up complaining or migrate to different systems. 

I doubt anybody will read what I've contributed above! 

🎵 First We Take Manhattan Then Berlin 🎵
O
Userlevel 6
Badge +8

Very few seem to actually bother to read the thread content, and just fire off an angry, furious diatribe against Sonos & often against the CEO.  There is seldom any discussion of the issues & consequences of the update.

 

I think part of the issue here is the community platform is poor, with limitations that make it hard to follow conversations in large threads and that make excessive repetition more likely. If anyone agrees contribute to the following thread….

 

T
Userlevel 1

Keith, I appreciate you and the team trying to stem the bleeding.  I don’t envy your position of having to clean up self-inflicted consequences from management decisions.

That said, these timelines strike me as tripling down on the tone deaf and self-congratulatory  “courageous” marketing messages being sent out.

You are telling me, the market leader Sonos speakers won’t be able to add a song to the listening queue for a month.  This capability was available last week, but no longer due to an unannounced impact of the “upgrade.”  

If I tried to suggest surprising users by taking away core functionality and promising to bring it back in a month, I’d be laughed out of a job.

The most obvious way to get back to current state parity is to provide access to the v16.1 app.  No need to rush development and testing on the v80.x.  Let those for whom the new app works continue.  Let those for whom the new app does not work migrate when core feature parity is achieved.  The last thing you want is to make the above promises and introduce new bugs.  

Yet, for unspoken reasons, this option is never mentioned.

I’m all for change and creating a new platform for the business.  I would like to see Sonos succeed.  However, I haven’t seen evidence of Sonos having the judgment to know how and when to course correct.

Best of luck.

I wholeheartedly agree Leefc. Well put. 
 

 

Ken_Griffiths

@LJG777,

If you have a PC/MAC - you can likely correct your system time with Sonos Controller Desktop App. Maybe that will resolve your date/time issue🤔?

Ok I’ll try that - I have a MAC - so should I open the WebApp - or the MacOS app?

@Ken_Griffiths  - Couldn’t find a way to change the date time,  FYI - this is what my app looks like...you can see Sonos Voice Control added - but when I click ‘ add a voice assistant’….

 

I get this sayin Alexa is already added (which it isn’t as it would appear in the above list)

 

 

What’s odd in your App screenshot @LJG777 is the Alexa assistant is showing as though it has already been added to your speaker - just wondering if you have some kind of corrupt install in your case. Have the Sonos support staff commented on that issue when you spoke to them previously? 

Ken_Griffiths

@LJG777,

Also in the desktop controller App, under the Alarms section, does the time/date show correctly for your Sonos system?

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John Guarr
Userlevel 4
Badge +4

Keith, I appreciate you and the team trying to stem the bleeding.  I don’t envy your position of having to clean up self-inflicted consequences from management decisions.

That said, these timelines strike me as tripling down on the tone deaf and self-congratulatory  “courageous” marketing messages being sent out.

You are telling me, the market leader Sonos speakers won’t be able to add a song to the listening queue for a month.  This capability was available last week, but no longer due to an unannounced impact of the “upgrade.”  

If I tried to suggest surprising users by taking away core functionality and promising to bring it back in a month, I’d be laughed out of a job.

The most obvious way to get back to current state parity is to provide access to the v16.1 app.  No need to rush development and testing on the v80.x.  Let those for whom the new app works continue.  Let those for whom the new app does not work migrate when core feature parity is achieved.  The last thing you want is to make the above promises and introduce new bugs.  

Yet, for unspoken reasons, this option is never mentioned.

I’m all for change and creating a new platform for the business.  I would like to see Sonos succeed.  However, I haven’t seen evidence of Sonos having the judgment to know how and when to course correct.

Best of luck.

I wholeheartedly agree Leefc. Well put. 
 

 

I totally agree and am very upset.

A

This is the Bud Light of music apps. 
way to ruin the taste for your loyal clientele. 

S
Userlevel 2

Im very very upset for spending my hard earned money for a product that I supposedly deserve. I will never ever buy any product from Sonos again and will not recommend getting or even trying this to any one. I just really wish that I could go back and fix my mistake for purchasing this. Im so frustrated.

L

Can anyone help me go back to S2 and avoid getting the new app overriding? I can install the S2 and remove to auto updates but it keeps updating to the new app... Which is total crap. 

H
Userlevel 1

is there a date for when hitting play on a BBC Sounds show will actually play a BBC Sounds show - rather than restarting whatever was previously playing, from the start?

J
Userlevel 3
Badge +1

Haven't read this thread, other than the first few posts, but cutting and pasting from another thread I posted in that directed me here for some answers on what was happening, after I was directed to this Community by the Sonos support page because support was closed and I was in the middle of a dinner party and had no clue the app had changed to not only remove functionality (you can't add a song to the queue?!), but also in a way where it would disconnect from the speakers such that I had to get a ladder out to unplug some of the speakers. Thankfully, I had a cheap Bluetooth speaker on hand I could stream Deezer to, but not the experience I was expecting.

 

...

 

Thanks for that link. I've clearly been living under a rock.

It's interesting, this is literally the third major software rollout screwup I've seen over the last year (not talking Sonos).

I don't know how the industry works, but with all three it's like it's been driven by coders who don't actually use the software or alternatively (and as I type this, I realize now much more likely) by management looking to avoid complaints and save.on support costs by dumbing it down for the masses by removing functionality.

I've said to our own IT guys rule #1 should be do no evil (don't remove functionality), but they often tell me I'm the only guy who complains. I didn't believe them at first, but I've come to learn I get pissed off by stupidly designed software, whereas most others (and I mean nearly all!) just shrug their shoulders and say to themselves, 'it doesn't do X" - end of story and they just move on.

I guess when you get to a certain, you can make more money catering to the masses than the "enthusiasts", who are more difficult to keep happy (time and money), which I totally get. In thinking about, my most efficient work software is awesomely designed, but no sales traction or development. It just works, but everyone else is happy with Microsoft's limitations (the third party tool overlays a Microsoft product), so my hunch is limited commercial success.

 

...

 

Yup, been under a rock. Sonos is a public company looking to expand revenue, and niche features are expensive to support and gimp up the "easier, faster, and better" version of the app that works for 95%+ of users. Onto 🎧.

Below is from the Q2 earnings call transcript. I always steer clear of pubcos spewing gobbledygook (at least when combined with hyperbole), but at least I now understand the rationale for the new app, and it gives me a kick in the bum to see if the competitive landscape has changed since I last checked...

Best of all, our redesigned app is easier, faster, and better. It once again raises the bar for the home music listening experience and sets up our ability to expand into new categories and experiences. Our app is a proof point of what we have always said. We are the story of software eating audio. Our software truly differentiates our products from everything else on the market and is key to unlocking the opportunity ahead for us. Speaking of which, the second is that we are just weeks away from unveiling our newest product. This launch will give us a foothold into a new multi-billion dollar category, expanding the number of categories we play in from five to six and further diversifying our business. This has been a multi-year investment and we expect it to pay off in spades in Q3 and beyond.

 

Rhonny
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

Can anyone help me go back to S2 and avoid getting the new app overriding? 

I can help but you’ll need to be prepared to travel at 88 mph and have access to 1.21 gigawatts of power.

S
Badge

 

B
Userlevel 5
Badge +2

Everyone you can email the CEO here

ceo@sonos.com 

It would appear that no one at Sonos is taking any notice of the users on here.  

Perhaps he might get the hint when he gets 2000 emails??

I emailed a couple days after the release came out. It took days to get a response and I doubt the ceo actually saw it as the response was a canned response from the support department.

P

Dear Sonos: I bought your stock and products starting in 2018.  After the last update I have lost my library of over 309 cds and playlists.  I have since sold my stock in the company at a loss and now have 14 products that are worthless.  I do not want to stream music and pay.for songs I already own.  I want my music!! 

You really have pissed off a lot of people and forgot your original purpose that you were successful at.  Now not so much..

B
Userlevel 5
Badge +11

is there a date for when hitting play on a BBC Sounds show will actually play a BBC Sounds show - rather than restarting whatever was previously playing, from the start?

Works fine for me. iOS.

G

Nothing works now

all my speaker and my setups are gone and the app cant find my speakers Nice to have speakers for 5000 usd i cant use , Nice work you did Sonos.

J
Userlevel 3
Badge +1

Nothing works now

all my speaker and my setups are gone and the app cant find my speakers Nice to have speakers for 5000 usd i cant use , Nice work you did Sonos.

Just posted the same thing in a new thread asking how to connect to Deezer. Reset Sonos app, rebooted router, uninstalled and reinstalled Deezer service, nothing changes. Last night, I had to unplug one set of speakers because Sonos couldn't find them to stop the music. Today, my sub can't be accessed, and now I'm just trying to get Deezer to play on a single set of Fives, to no avail. Feeling dumb for spending so much $ on a proprietary system where the company's focus is marketing and not usability.

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