I would argue that the most fundamental user action when using music software is to click on a song.
In 6.4 there are at least 3 possible outcomes:
1. Overwrite the queue with that song and all others on the same album (queue not edited);
2. Ask for confirmation of item 1 (queue has been edited);
3. Place the song in the queue and start playing (when you click on a song as the result of a search).
In cases 1 and 2, additional songs overwrite the queue. In case 3, just a single song is inserted.
The Sonos UI is therefore inconsistent and counter-intuitive.
The argument that this behavior makes the app more like Spotify, iTunes etc misses the point that the Sonos music system is designed to be used by groups of people as well as individuals. It needs to act as a jukebox as well as an ipod.
Here's one possible solution: swap the actions of pressing a song and pressing the dots. This returns pressing a song to the old and familiar action. The dots graphic would also be changed to a big play arrow or similar to indicate instantly playing the song. There would still be the three possibilities above, but now this is a special action to the right of the song name and not the most common user action.
Nobody loses here. Every action currently available is still available. It has the advantage of restoring consistency to the interface.
Cheers, Peter.
Why 6.4 is bad design and how it might be fixed
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I like this idea. It would be similar to Albums view on the mobile (android) controller, ie. a small one-tap hot spot to trigger play, and any tap on the remainder of the item opens other possibilities to refine the action. The hot spots in each case would be on the right of the object, which is also consistent.
I would hope that would be the case. To fully achieve this they would need to restore a non-destructive popup menu option which adds a new selection to the end of an exhausted queue, and also starts it playing.
I would also like to see an adoption of the new Apple facility, where a third option is added to the "This queue has been edited" confirmation box; ie. "Insert into queue", to be added to the "Cancel" and "Replace queue" options.
+26Nice summary and suggestion Peter! I'll pass it along for you to the team. Thanks for taking the time to present this.
Thanks Ryan. Just to add to that thought, when swapping the actions of tapping a song and tapping the three dots, maybe the three dots can now be three different icons depending on the context and therefore the action. For example, replace, query and insert song.
Cheers, Peter.
Cheers, Peter.
Well said Peter, great idea.
I logged into the forum hoping I wasn't the only one who found the new tap to play feature frustrating at times.
I logged into the forum hoping I wasn't the only one who found the new tap to play feature frustrating at times.
The argument that this behavior makes the app more like Spotify, iTunes etc misses the point that the Sonos music system is designed to be used by groups of people as well as individuals. It needs to act as a jukebox as well as an ipod.
I agree - this is the most important point. It's all about sharing the queue. Good suggestion!
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