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exdirtfarmer
exdirtfarmer
Enthusiast II
March 6, 2018

Legacy Program

  • March 6, 2018
  • 13 replies
  • 1255 views
SONOS has done an absolutely admirable job keeping all there original hardware compatible and functional, and I commend them for that. I mean over and above what should be expected of them, but they have chosen to drop support for the CR-100. There will be more casualties to come, as new features are seemingly being hindered by their aging platform of the original devices.

They have had the beta program operating for years allowing public beta firmware and software to be tested by those that choose to become members. The system has the ability to load a different Fork of the Firmware and Software to do this.

It is time to develop a Legacy Program as well to allow people to choose their path. Move on to version 9 with new features and free support (but without CR-100) or continue with the features we have today on 8.x

There is no reason why this could not be done.

Give the CR-100 and the other legendary Sonos Legacy devices a chance to continue to be used as they are used today.

Shutdown development of new features on the Legacy platform (and charge support if you must) but please give us original SONOS supporters a reasonable option, other than leaving the gear in the recycle bin after a new firmware/software accidentally gets installed.
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    chicks
    chicks
    March 6, 2018

    Voice control is slower than a button or scroll/click wheel - Fact.

    Smartphone type apps are slower than a dedicated controller - Fact.


    You must like alternative facts. Try searching for a random album/artist/song using that ancient click wheel, then tell me it’s faster.

    If all you want to do is play 4 or 5 songs or stations, buttons may be marginally faster, but certainly can’t be used from across the room. Voice is superior in nearly all my use cases, and it’s just getting off the ground.

    My CR100 has gathered dust for a long time. First the phone/tablet, now voice. The CR100 doesn’t have a chance in my home, not even close.
    melvimbe
    melvimbe
    March 6, 2018
    I have to agree with chicks. You can't really support multiple software versions like that. The best you can do is make it easier for customers to stay on their existing version without any kind of technical support. That version will likely fail rather quickly though as streaming changes, phone versions change, and wifi changes. It may seem like it's easy to support an old version along with your new, but it just isn't.


    This is the best argument I have ever seen for why it was a spectacularly bad idea to move away from dedicated controllers and become dependent on the whims of third party hardware and OS vendors in the first place. With all of those costs it is crazy to even support one firmware version across multiple third party platforms when a dedicated in-house controller could eliminate those expenses and uncertainties entirely.

    I'm sure Sonos would have continued to sell the CR100, and/or updated versions of it, if people were still interested in buying it. And I think you are correct that software development is more difficult on phones/tablets than it would be on their dedicated devices. But you also need to factor in the additional hardware development line that you'd have to deal with, and all those customers that you would lose because you didn't have an app.

    Personally, I didn't buy sonos until they had an app because the proprietary controller pricetag put the cost of the system out of my price range. Even if I could, it would afford the controller, the app is a big selling point because I wouldn't want to carry another device around with me as I move about the house.
    Danny
    exdirtfarmer
    exdirtfarmerAuthor
    Enthusiast II
    March 6, 2018

    There is no reason why this could not be done.


    No reason? How about the cost of supporting multiple versions of the Android, iOS and Windows apps, as well as the firmware for each Sonos device, and the cloud services that they communicate with? Must be difficult and costly enough already, with a single version to deal with across all these platforms. Imagine having to add more upfront questions about the customer's system, on every single support call. Not to mention additional procedures and documentation for every support tech. Could add several minutes to every support call. Very costly.

    Oh, and of course the legacy app would need to be kept updated, as Apple deprecates various functions that the legacy app might be using. So, additional design and development costs, both very expensive, every time Apple or Google or Microsoft decides something must change. And, of course, change management, and documentation of every change. The list goes on and on. Oh, and Apple only allows a single version of an app on its store, so there's that little detail. Google too, i would imagine.

    I love how these things are always so simple to those who've never been involved in large software development projects, lol.

    Those are reasons why it "won't" be done, not "can't" be done.

    If there was a will, some type of basic baseline firmware and distribution mechanism could be put together. A basic firmware to function the way it functioned when I bought it. Choosing my music from my library or line in from my zp80/100.

    updates.sonos.com back on the blacklist. Life will go on.

    Over and Out.
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