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dpennyca
Contributor I
November 1, 2023

Sonos Remote

  • November 1, 2023
  • 12 replies
  • 7742 views

With the removal of functionality on apple IOS, is there a chance for Sonos to consider a dedicated remote (like there used to be)?

I know my family would celebrate a central remote rather than relying on those with phones connected to the system to select music, speakers or change volume.

Now that Apple have removed the ability to adjust volume via side buttons and no longer able to control from lock screen, the interaction with our sonos system is a lot less intuitive (my daughter has gone back to just using spotify - she can control the sonos volume from there, and my wife now just uses a separate bluetooth speaker as she sees Sonos as ‘too much of a faff’)

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    Ken_Griffiths
    Ken_Griffiths
    November 2, 2023

    If there isn’t a hub, then what would a remote connect to? WiFi is quite ‘expensive’ in terms of power/energy requirements. The tiny rechargeable cell in my iPort remotes lasted maybe a month or two. A few minutes after the last button press they went into a sleep mode to conserve energy, and WiFi reconnection could often take several frustrating seconds’ wait.

    Hubs have the virtue of gatewaying to much more economical wireless technologies such as Zigbee, Z-Wave, or even Thread. They can mesh, and also help preserve IPv4 address space. And in my experience the IKEA Zigbee remotes are extraordinarily responsive. 

    Yes, I guess using a Hub maybe unavoidable - nice though if Sonos were to perhaps do their own ‘basic’ remote with just some core functionality.

    harry smith
    Avid Contributor I
    November 20, 2023

    I often read people say you can just use your phone as a controller and cry. I set up a Sonos amp to play through a speaker in my bathroom a few years ago. The cr100 was deliberately constructed to be waterproof with physical buttons and worked flawlessly without any lack of response. Until Sonos killed it. I think they envisaged it as a pool side accessory. You can’t immediately change the volume using a phone with soap filled hands in the bath. And it didn’t need an extra hub. I don’t want unreliable voice control. I got the iPort and it died; didn’t like the steam I guess. My cr200 also broke but I think everybody’s did. Please bring back the cr100. 

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