Will My Old Speakers Continue to Deactivate?

Sonos struggles to get anything right these days. Even with their community website. I diligently typed a question, then added the two photos. When I added the two photos, my question disappeared. Maybe my question is obvious from the title and images.

Maybe not. Here goes: I bought two new Play:5s from Sonos the day before the announcement that old Sonos speakers would continue to work. At the time I purchased the new speakers I was required to start the ‘Deactivation Timer’ for the two older speakers. After the announcement, I received and installed the new speakers, and I moved the two old speakers to my office. All speakers were working fine. But today, a week later, the two old speakers have now stopped working. They show up on the controller as shown in the images I have added above. Are these old speakers with the ‘Deactivation Timer’ still counting down going to deactivate (turn into bricks) -- even though Sonos has announced that old speakers will continue to work?

Yes, because you chose the “trade in” route, to get the 30% discount on your new speakers. During that process, you agreed, through multiple screens/click through settings that the speakers you ‘traded in’ would be deactivated, and that it was a process that could not be reversed. 
 

It is possible you weren’t paying close enough attention to what you were agreeing to, but the terms are still available on Sonos website here: https://www.sonos.com/en-us/tradeup

If you took the 30% discount to get new speakers (used it or not) the timer will continue, that is what you agreed to by accepting the offer.

The “continue to work” only applies to devices you did not promise to recycle.

After considerable frustration (not to mention extreme annoyance), I am firmly of the opinion that (despite the CEO stating to the contrary) this whole saga has been pre-planned well beforehand with no thought whatsoever for existing customers - in fact, the total opposite.  

I had an idea for my Play 5’s (rather than dump them) …. use the “Aux In” socked and either direct wire or use a Bluetooth adaptor with my iPad, phone, second tablet or my wife’s tablet but no ….. Mr patrick spence and his team have already thought of that “let’s remove the app option to switch on “Aux-in” so they can’t do that” !!!   So much for “looking after their existing loyal customers (let alone the planet) and make their whole systems scrap” !!!! 

I now find that, even if I were to upgrade to series 2, I would also have to buy a new iPad, phone, second tablet and yet another tablet for my wife before anything could be operated as all of these are “no longer supported” !!! 

We have spent in the region of £2,000 on Sonos (considerably less than some of you I know), assuming another £2,000 to replace it (less 30%) = £1,600 …. plus the £2,000 we have already invested.  So that’s £3,600 for (effectively) a £1,600 system plus, of course, a new iPad, phone and two new tablets …. shall we say we are now in excess of £4,000 ….. for a £1,600 system ?

It would cost Mr spence absolutely NOTHING to give us the option of using the Aux-in route and/or absolutely NOTHING to publish an earlier app which does work with “legacy” products !!!

Just use the current Sonos App with your speakers and their line-in for many years still to come, did you not read the announcement?

The trade-up scheme for the discount off newer products is entirely optional and will always be your decision alone. There’s no need to update, just carry on as you are. I will try to see you back here with your ‘even older’ speakers still fully working in another 5 years time…most probably. 👍

I’m sorry Ken, I did read the announcement but I obviously wasn’t clear in my rant.

My iPad, phone, second tablet (not even a year old) and my wife’s tablet are all “no longer supported” so I cannot access the appropriate menu to switch over to “Aux-in”.  Depending on which device I try, I either have the line-in option greyed out or not even visible !  

I think the future proof option is to disconnect all my bridges and amps, abandon Wi-Fi and purely use line-in (with or without Bluetooth) as one would with an old fashioned “traditional” speaker.

UPDATE …. After more experimenting, I today discovered that if I disconnect the Play 5s from Wi-Fi and connect my iPad phone or tablet via the headphone and line-in and it works (without the need to go via the sonos app to select line-in).  For some strange reason, the phone doesn’t but no matter …. at least I now don’t have to scrap all my Play 5s !!!!

I’m afraid none of the things you mention here philBC have anything to do with the recent Sonos announcement and your current experience you are seeing now, would be the case for you in any event, if your controller devices do not meet the current system requirements as shown HERE.

The reason this is the case is that the device manufacturer, (Apple, Google or whoever?), have also stopped supporting your mobile device.

The good news is that Sonos still partially support the 'key’ playback/control features for these devices to allow you to play your music, but I guess that will end too one day (albeit that’s probably years away, rather than months) … you will probably find a few newer apps from other developers that will stop working on those devices too.

There comes a stage when we all have to move on and upgrade or standstill and lose new features.

Like I say however the things you are currently experiencing is not related to the Sonos annoucement due in May, which actually may benefit you in that it will ‘most likely’ mean a separate Sonos App and an easier method and opportunity to then standstill with your legacy Sonos products that you have already and not be upgraded beyond the capabilities of some mobile controllers.

My brother is in a similar position and has a real old iPad v2 or 4 (I think?), but is so fed up of a good many things now not working and it’s really sloooow.. so he has just opted to buy a refurbished newer one just to keep him ticking along. Android is cheaper, but he doesn’t like that system so he’s just looking for that next bargain online. Such is life when you wish to stay aboard today’s technology train, I guess.

You strike me as someone who is choosing to get off the train at the next station, but like I just I have a different view of things and I personally want to stay aboard and will look to upgrade wherever I can afford to do that. There’s no rush according to Sonos we can standstill till we decide to upgrade and keep what we have already. In my case here, everything is fully working as I upgraded my mobile.

Hi again Ken,

With respect, I purchased all of my sonos system when I was working and now that I am in retirement and on a limited income I am left no choice but to explore more “money saving” opportunities.

Rather than dump my (very expensive) Play 5s, it now looks like I can re-cycle them with a Bluetooth adaptor and abandon “smart” products which (in my opinion) are only “smart” for the supplier, not the customer.  Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE sonos but I’m afraid they have gone too far and I am no longer in a position to replace them.

My “get around” at least will keep the Play 5s going all be it all the little white boxes will be destined for the dump. 

One controller solution is to purchase an inexpensive Android pad. However, pay attention to the version of Android that the pad uses. Some of the cheap pads are using an older version of Android that might soon fall into a “non supported” bin. You’ll need to work out the long term math -- purchase a cheap pad now that may have a more limited period of viability, or an expensive pad with a longer period of viability.