The New Sonos App and Future Feature Updates

I don't see any update in the release plan for the local libraries, does this mean that this is what we got? So no more album art and very very slow and incomplete?

They’re not exactly verbose release notes, and Sonos are very careful to use phrases like “browse” not “local library browsing”.

One of the problems with local libraries versus subscription/streaming services is that there is no one agreed tagging standard for artwork (embedded vs folder.jpg, supported sizes) or other tags (the still-not-fixed compilation/guest-artist bug). So it’s possible that Sonos will basically take the view that “we do the minimum to satisfy compatibility with all the streaming services”, rather than what Wiim, Denon, pre-2024-Sonos etc do and just support “everything”.

 I’m sure Sonos knows how to do local library album art; at least on IOS.  The S2 orange app proves that.  In the 80.x app the local library art shows when you open the Album category.  The thumbnail art in that category is shown just fine.  When you choose an album the large album art is shown as well.  The issue is when you put that album into the queue the art is missing.

 My local library files are not named folder.jpg, they are named like this example … Shostakovich, Symphony No. 10.  All album art is also embedded in the tags.  Obviously Sonos has no trouble finding it.  

 The only time I’ve had to name album art folder.jpg was when using MPD example would be Bryston.

So album art is now showing fine on IOS but unfortunately still not on Android?

Still no album art on Android App.  😒

Depends what you mean by fine… it shows on the main playing screen, but not in any list of tracks as it used to… once upon a long ago... in a world that Sonos forgot… 

At 85 pages this thread is a tough read. One thing I am missing is link to Artist details when a song is playing.  The old app (which the current developers have clearly never used) had links in the three dots menu (...) that gave you a link to the artist and album playing.  This great whn playing in shuffle all songs and you liked a track and wanted more from that artist.  A useful feature just gone, forever?

Please, please, please. It’s been almost five months and the Android app still have problem launching on devices with Android 11. There are cases across the board from Oppo (ColorOS), Xiaomi (MIUI), OnePlus (OxygenOS) and Motorola. Even my Pixel 2, which is straight out from Google is struggling to open the app. From “it’s still kinda usable” way, it moves, but you have to wait at least 40-60 secs on SONOS logo splash screen. After that, you wait another 10-20 secs and hope it finds your system or “system not found”, which consumes you another minute again.

Have another Zenfone 5 (2018, Android 9) as spare and it can open in about 20 secs on the first launch, so definitely not “weak hardware” issue.

While many Android user may accept that their app could have fewer features from iOS, how do you earn Android users’ back if you can’t let them open and setup properly at first?

@Keith N have been lurking on reddit for a while and know that trello board thing, would you mind put this as a separate issue once app team are informed about this issue?

edit: typos

Android users wait almost a month since the last update and get Light Mode/Dark Mode settings?

Pretty sure that’s not high on anybody’s list.  It wasn’t showing on any of the roadmaps or promised feature restoration lists. Nobody on this thread, or on any other thread, has been crying that they might leave Sonos because Dark Mode doesn’t work.

Make queues work properly. Make local library search and indexing work properly. Make Album Art work properly.

You wouldn’t believe how important Dark Mode is to some people. And not for “productivity apps” like a coding IDE tool you spend all day looking at, but any app you use for a minute here or there. Priorities are hard and everyone has their own “must haves”. There’s a reason why Sonos want to get dark mode working. There’s a reason they were bragging on Twitter yesterday about getting your expensive hifi to once-more function as an alarm clock. Our priorities (a working, preferably easy-to-use music system like the one we used to have) are irrelevant next to the kinds of things Sonos think are important (terrible new UI design and non-core functionality).

So yeah, we all have to just be nice and patient and hope Sonos one day restore the functionality our systems used to have.