Am I the only one that finds the SONOS 8 App EXTREMELY difficult to use???

  • 4 December 2017
  • 27 replies
  • 1302 views

Userlevel 3
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iPhone App is almost unusable. Very difficult to figure out where to click when you are in a given room and want to change the music source or station from a given music source that is playing, or want to make a change to a different room. U never know what screen will come up when you click. WHY DON'T ALL THE OPTIONS STAY LIVE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN FOR BROWSE, ROOMS, SEARCH ETC.

I find it extremely difficult to navigate. Is there a decent video clip that explains this or is this new app version simply a terrible step backwards.

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27 replies

Userlevel 7
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Hello there, Brooklyn Cellist. Thanks for the feedback. I am happy to forward this along to the team. While it's not a video clip, you may find this thread by Ryan S super helpful. Check it out.
Userlevel 3
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Thread is not very helpful honestly. Id you are going to launch an interface that is this klugy then you need to atleast go through all the basic functions in an understandable step by step way.

The interface simply isn't intuitive. Basic tasks require multiple clicks navigating between multiple screens. Seems like Sonos got so focused on Alexa that they forgot that most users don't use Alexa .
Userlevel 5
Badge +11
iPhone App is almost unusable. Very difficult to figure out where to click when you are in a given room and want to change the music source or station from a given music source that is playing, or want to make a change to a different room. U never know what screen will come up when you click. WHY DON'T ALL THE OPTIONS STAY LIVE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN FOR BROWSE, ROOMS, SEARCH ETC.

I find it extremely difficult to navigate. Is there a decent video clip that explains this or is this new app version simply a terrible step backwards.


They stay at the bottom of the screen in all views except what’s playing which is accessed by swiping up, tabs disappear, and swiping down, tabs reappear.
Userlevel 5
Badge +11
Thread is not very helpful honestly. Id you are going to launch an interface that is this klugy then you need to atleast go through all the basic functions in an understandable step by step way.

The interface simply isn't intuitive. Basic tasks require multiple clicks navigating between multiple screens. Seems like Sonos got so focused on Alexa that they forgot that most users don't use Alexa .


The interface is set out in a logical way. You had to do multiple clicks in the previous version. Select room. Select music. Very logical.
Userlevel 3
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When I am in a room playing music... there is nowhere u can click on to change your music selection??. The drop down menu for Browse, Room Search, etc. is not present when you are playing music in a room. You first have to swipe down in order to get the menu to reappear... that is not at all intuitive.
Userlevel 3
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anyway.. guess ill get used to it... and then they will come out with a revision 🙂
Userlevel 2
The app is really confusing ... I use iPad and android . Both are crap now. I found it hard to jump between the different groups and no menu when looking at the current playing Sonos . Can you please fix.
Userlevel 6
Badge +1
The interface is set out in a logical way.
Maybe from a computer nerds perspective who likes to program stuff. For everyone else it's counter intuitive, as numerous threads illustrate.
The interface is set out in a logical way.
Maybe from a computer nerds perspective who likes to program stuff. For everyone else it's counter intuitive, as numerous threads illustrate.
Perhaps you could try occasionally to post without including a personal insult?
Userlevel 1
I agree! The new interface is horrible and difficult to navigate! I am frustrated every single time I use it. One night I was trying to play music in our room and somehow turned on in all rooms and it was blasting and I could not get back to the all rooms screen and turn it down! Woke the whole house up at 1am with music blasting and it took 5 minutes to figure out how to make it stop. Please put it back the way it was. My entire household hates it.
Userlevel 2
Not sure what the insult was from John B. I am in IT and a menu system always works well if lost in an app. My wife wont use the app anymore, she just press the play button on the speaker and gets what ever is going. The windows Phonos app works well, everything is on one screen. but the volume sliders do not slide in sync and the app opens slow.
Userlevel 4

They stay at the bottom of the screen in all views except what’s playing which is accessed by swiping up, tabs disappear, and swiping down, tabs reappear.


Which I only discovered by accident. And it really makes no sense to hide the controls. It's not like a video player where you are looking at the screen all the time, or that there is a lack of space for them on screen. Also, the standard gesture for displaying hidden player controls is tapping on the screen. So even if hiding the controls can be justified, there is no need for Sonos to use their own "clever" way of showing the controls.
Userlevel 1
The new sonos app is ABSOLUTELY HORRID!!! I have never been so emotionally upset over a friggin app in my life. I literally want to throw my speakers WITH THIS APP out the window. All I want to do is select apple music, in a room, with a specific genre of music. LIKE I COULD BEFORE! WHAT THE HELL CHANGE IT BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The new sonos app is ABSOLUTELY HORRID!!! I have never been so emotionally upset over a friggin app in my life. I literally want to throw my speakers WITH THIS APP out the window. All I want to do is select apple music, in a room, with a specific genre of music. LIKE I COULD BEFORE! WHAT THE HELL CHANGE IT BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Tab bar, Rooms button, tap required room, Browse, Apple Music
Userlevel 6
Badge +1
Perhaps you could try occasionally to post without including a personal insult?
Maybe that's exactly what I was reacting to 😉
Perhaps you could try occasionally to post without including a personal insult?
Maybe that's exactly what I was reacting to ;)
No. I have disagreed with some of your comments and the way you have conducted the debate at times, but I have never resorted to personal insults such as calling someone who you don't know a 'computer nerd'.
Userlevel 6
Badge +1
Perhaps you could try occasionally to post without including a personal insult?
Maybe that's exactly what I was reacting to ;)
No. I have disagreed with some of your comments and the way you have conducted the debate at times, but I have never resorted to personal insults such as calling someone who you don't know a 'computer nerd'.

Funny how you take personal offence with me equating the new app with computer nerd logic. When someone implies people are stupid for not using this easy to use and logical interface the way they should, you are perfectly fine with it.
A ridiculous comment.. But whatever
Userlevel 5
Badge +11
The interface is set out in a logical way.
Maybe from a computer nerds perspective who likes to program stuff. For everyone else it's counter intuitive, as numerous threads illustrate.


No computer nerdy stuff required. It is now logical, makes sense and is easy to use once you’ve looked at the screens. It is different, not counter intuitive. A brand new user would find it just fine.
Do you use Windows? If so how can anyone use Windows 10. It is different.
Userlevel 5
Badge +11

They stay at the bottom of the screen in all views except what’s playing which is accessed by swiping up, tabs disappear, and swiping down, tabs reappear.


Which I only discovered by accident. And it really makes no sense to hide the controls. It's not like a video player where you are looking at the screen all the time, or that there is a lack of space for them on screen. Also, the standard gesture for displaying hidden player controls is tapping on the screen. So even if hiding the controls can be justified, there is no need for Sonos to use their own "clever" way of showing the controls.


Really. I discovered that when ooh look, something new let me take a look at this. Why do you want to look at that screen. It’s default is exactly the same as what is shown when it is reduced at the bottom of the screen. I only look at the full screen to view what’s coming up in the queue. Looking at the full screen is learned behaviour from the previous version of the app and is not necessary.
Userlevel 2
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I think Sonos has effectively admitted the app is unintuitive by starting to post 'How to ...." guides in this forum. I'm just giving up on the V8 app - it just is not fit for purpose. As a Web Designer myself I'd be ashamed to have been involved in anything this bad.
Userlevel 7
Badge +17
I think Sonos has effectively admitted the app is unintuitive by starting to post 'How to ...." guides in this forum. I'm just giving up on the V8 app - it just is not fit for purpose. As a Web Designer myself I'd be ashamed to have been involved in anything this bad.

indeed - I dont ever recall seeing a 'how to change rooms' guide in previous versions.
Userlevel 7
Badge +17
Went to show a visitor how good sonos is yesterday. Wanted to select his favourite genre from GPM. Picked up the iphone and it was grouped and had control of the empty kitchen play:1, on now playing screen. My god what a struggle to not loose the music selected, but just to un-group and send music & control to the actual room we were in.
I could hear it playing away happily to itself in the kitchen 😠 , yes I managed in the end, but it was a battle I only won by perseverance & luck.
Not sure I sold the "sonos experience" to him............
Userlevel 4

Really. I discovered that when ooh look, something new let me take a look at this. Why do you want to look at that screen. It’s default is exactly the same as what is shown when it is reduced at the bottom of the screen. I only look at the full screen to view what’s coming up in the queue. Looking at the full screen is learned behaviour from the previous version of the app and is not necessary.

How nice for you. I'm glad the app suits your purposes. Unfortunately I find the changes irritating as hell. I bought Sonos products based to a large degree on the controller application. Only to find it replaced with this current piece of sh×t.
Userlevel 1
I agree that the update to version 8 was a big step backwards. We have Sonos speakers in most rooms and they used to be very heavily used by all of the family (including some who are anti-tech). Since the update rolled out, the old bluetooth speakers have been dug out of cupboards and been brought back into service or, more damning, they are just using the speaker on their phone. My very expensive Sonos system is now a set of very expensive bookends. I have persevered but I still find myself staring at the app in bewilderment trying to figure out what to do next. All of us used to be able to navigate the previous version without any real thought being put into it. It was just intuitive. I am not technically naive, I spent my career in IT and have programmed systems from assembler up to some of the latest languages.I like the idea of owning a system that can change (and hopefully improve) over time. V8 has just demonstrated, in a big way, that it also has a downside.