Not very elegant Sonos and Apple

  • 10 December 2014
  • 28 replies
  • 3593 views

Userlevel 2
Hi,

Today happened what I dreaded for some time. I was forced to update my Sonos systems and now both my iPad 1 tablets will not work with Sonos anymore. We have them wall-mounted so we can control music all over the place. I am very disappointed to say the least. We had planned to buy some more Sonos systems but the announcement at the beginning of this year stopped us. I hate companies that don't give me control over what is mine. Sonos nor Apple own the gear at my home, I do.

Paul

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28 replies

Userlevel 2
Badge +5
Hi,

Today happened what I dreaded for some time. I was forced to update my Sonos systems and now both my iPad 1 tablets will not work with Sonos anymore. We have them wall-mounted so we can control music all over the place. I am very disappointed to say the least. We had planned to buy some more Sonos systems but the announcement at the beginning of this year stopped us. I hate companies that don't give me control over what is mine. Sonos nor Apple own the gear at my home, I do.

Paul


There is a third party sonos app on the play store that works with the iPad 1 and sonos, not got it myself but it has been recommended on this forum. Have a search !
Folks speak highly of SonoPad, as a third party alternative supporting iOS5.1.1+.

Search the forums.
Userlevel 3
Badge +1
Please, not this discussion again. There are numerous threads about that in this forum already.

And there are numerous reasons why it is like it is. Blame Apple, not Sonos in this case.
When will people realize Apples planned obselecence. Keep buying apple stuff over and over and over again.
That must be frustrating! Flush the iPad1 on Craigslist or something. You'd be surprised what you can get.

The challenge with all CE is innovation vs stability. Sonos do a great job balancing this. Maybe you don't need a full iPad to replace the Gen 1, would a mini a refurb or a 'droid do? For many assets I'm a believer in buy and hold but for some I turn over quite frequently.
Userlevel 3
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For many assets I'm a believer in buy and hold but for some I turn over quite frequently.

For Apple devices, a rapid turnover works very well, the prices you can get after e.g. one year on eBay or other sites are great! I tend to sell my old stuff and buy new devices as soon as they come out. That works great for iPhones, iPads, even Macs.
When will people realize Apples planned obselecence. Keep buying apple stuff over and over and over again.

Are any mobile devices any different? I have an original Motorola Droid (from 2009) and it's nigh unusable now. The same is true of my iPhone 3GS (from 2007). My iPhone 4S performs much better than the Droid does, while running an up to date OS, unlike the Droid. Yes, it's a little slow, but it's a pretty weak machine.

The original iPad was released in 2010, about 4 years ago, which is like 28 years in dog years! 😉 So cut it some slack.

Seriously, mobile devices are still in their growth stage, like laptops were 6 years ago, or desktops 10 years ago. They're still finding the asymptote on their easily attainable power curve. These days, you can get a laptop for $200 that's decent enough for light tasks.

If you buy a recent vintage computer, you should have very little to worry about subsequent OS upgrades needing too many resources. We're not quite there yet with tablets and mobile phones, but we will be in a few years.

To the OP, use SonoPad. It works more like the original Sonos app than the current one, so you might like it better.
Userlevel 4
Badge +2
When will people realize Apples planned obselecence. Keep buying apple stuff over and over and over again.

Never heard such codswallop! Apple is among the best in keeping compatibility for old devices.

The issue here lies totally at Sonos's door. Luckily third parties have come to the rescue.
Userlevel 3
Badge +1
I totally agree to reddot's post. Thank you.:)

Never heard such codswallop! Apple is among the best in keeping compatibility for old devices.

The issue here lies totally at Sonos's door.


Being an Apple user myself, it is not true, that this is only a Sonos problem. It is all about API levels. If Sonos wants to offer cool, new functions, the have to let go older devices. That - up to now - has only happened mid 2014 to the iPad 1, a device Apple has abandoned with iOS 6 already in September 2012.

The iPad 1 was the first of its kind, the level of improvements from iPad 1 to iPad Air 2 are incredible: the Air2's CPU is 12x faster, the GPU 180x faster (source)! No wonder that it is left behind.

Btw., that improvement does not even come close to the PC's first years. 2 decades ago it was completely normal, that a computer is not fast enough anymore 2 years. Why should a 4,5 (!!!!!) old device still be supported.

Besides all that, the iPad2 is still supported with iOS8, because it was technically possible (presumably because of the 512 MB RAM, instead of 256 MB). Good luck installing Android 5 on a device from spring 2011!:p
Userlevel 1
Never heard such codswallop! Apple is among the best in keeping compatibility for old devices.

The issue here lies totally at Sonos's door. Luckily third parties have come to the rescue.


Absolute nonsense, Sonos is still supporting v 2.x android devices even after android v5 has been released, why? Because the OS allows them to. iOS doesn't without dropping lots of features they want to implement, so they can't maintain compatibility. You really couldn't be more wrong.
Userlevel 2
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But there is no physical reason an iPad 1 can't run a sonos controller of any generation and it can't be beyond the wit of sonos's developers, just not profitable.
Userlevel 3
Badge +1
But there is no physical reason an iPad 1 can't run a sonos controller of any generation and it can't be beyond the wit of sonos's developers, just not profitable.

How often do we have to repeat this? It is an iOS API thing. If a developer wants to use the "latest and greatest" on iOS, in this case new frameworks, (s)he has to cut compatibility somwhere.

Have a look at https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/Miscellaneous/Conceptual/iPhoneOSTechOverview/iPhoneOSFrameworks/iPhoneOSFrameworks.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40007898-CH6-SW3 where you have a complete (?) list of frameworks and with which iOS version they became available.

In the case of the new Sonos app, one could assume that:
MediaToolbox.framework, iOS 6.0, MT, Contains interfaces for playing audio content

could be the framework that made it necessary to cut off iOS 5.1.X (on iPad 1).
Userlevel 2
Badge +5
How often do we have to repeat this? It is an iOS API thing. If a developer wants to use the "latest and greatest" on iOS, in this case new frameworks, (s)he has to cut compatibility somwhere.

Have a look at https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/Miscellaneous/Conceptual/iPhoneOSTechOverview/iPhoneOSFrameworks/iPhoneOSFrameworks.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40007898-CH6-SW3 where you have a complete (?) list of frameworks and with which iOS version they became available.

In the case of the new Sonos app, one could assume that:

could be the framework that made it necessary to cut off iOS 5.1.X (on iPad 1).


So it's physically impossible then ? none can ever develop a new app for an iPad 1 then ?

When it comes down to it, a controller for a wifi music system is not exactly cutting edge software. I can fit the program to control a nuclear reactor in to 0.5mb on a 286 and support it 25 years later, I'm sure an iPad 1 is not stretched by controlling a few speakers.

i can only see this as a choice not to develop a compatible app under the older ios
Exactly - fit for purpose! I've evolved my strategy a bit: store refurb current model OS X devices. Every other year shop new IOS devices except the iPads. TBH a MBA11 for me smotes any tablet. I am slowing down a bit waiting for the 4k situation to resolve itself.

For Apple devices, a rapid turnover works very well, the prices you can get after e.g. one year on eBay or other sites are great! I tend to sell my old stuff and buy new devices as soon as they come out. That works great for iPhones, iPads, even Macs.
Userlevel 3
Badge +1
"store refurb" might not be a possibility for everyone. But even if eBay is too much work for some, there are several websites/services which buy old devices without more work than sending it away.

IT develops so quickly and my Apple devices are by far the ones I use most. That is why I always like to have the last generation. I have an iPad Air right now, but in the next days an Air 2 will be bought nevertheless and the Air will be sold (for a good price).
Sorry to clarify online store refurb; AFAIK Canada, US, UK, Australia offer this, unsure of Europe.

True on the velocity. It used to be so easy keeping it all aligned but now the collisions heck and collusions are laughable.

Back to the tunes & Sunday chores!

"store refurb" might not be a possibility for everyone. But even if eBay is too much work for some, there are several websites/services which buy old devices without more work than sending it away.
I'm not an iOS developer, but it is my understanding that there are certain rules when submitting programs for sale on the App Store. One must use the later frameworks, and unless one is VERY careful, your program will use features not supported on the older iDevices. Certainly, one could make an effort to avoid the non compatible features, but one will then be severely criticized by the public for not supporting the latest features of the user interface. Dammed if you do, dammed if you don't.

I purchase desktops on a long cycle, approximately ten years. On the latest cycle, the old machine was requiring 10-20-30 seconds to render a typical graphics intensive page. The machine works as well as ever, but it simply does not have the resources to run modern operating systems or applications. The replacement machine is "blink", done. As was mentioned in a prior post, the iPad Air 2 is significantly faster than an iPad Air which is significantly faster than older iPads. I use some Apps that are "liquid" on the iPad Air 2, but a little "jerky" on the earlier iPads. I must be careful about my use of processor intensive App features or the user experience will suffer. In this case it is not so much the case of working or not, but a satisfying user experience or not.
Userlevel 3
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In this case it is not so much the case of working or not, but a satisfying user experience or not.

Perfectly phrased. To be fair: the iPad 1 - even if only browsing web sites - is NOT AT ALL fun or "satisfying" anymore (for quite some time). That alone should be reason enough for an update. There is much good stuff: lightning fast performance, Retina display, smaller, lighter, more features (because of newer OS versions and newer/more powerful apps), LTE and so much more.
Userlevel 2
There is a third party sonos app on the play store that works with the iPad 1 and sonos, not got it myself but it has been recommended on this forum. Have a search !
Folks speak highly of SonoPad, as a third party alternative supporting iOS5.1.1+.

Search the forums.


Just bought and installed SonoPAD. Brilliant app en compatible with iPad 1 iOS5. Thanks for this solution.

I really wonder why Sonos gave up support for the older iPads.
Userlevel 1
Just bought and installed SonoPAD. Brilliant app en compatible with iPad 1 iOS5. Thanks for this solution.

I really wonder why Sonos gave up support for the older iPads.


Be curious to know if it provides all the features the official app does.
Be curious to know if it provides all the features the official app does.
From http://sonopad.com/
Limitations
All music services except Last.FM and Amazon Cloud Music are supported
No portrait mode on the main screen of your iPad yet.
No playing of music stored on iPad yet-
No options to set alarms or sleep settings
No support for discontinued WD100 dock
Userlevel 1
No playing of music stored on iPad yet-

I suspect that's the main one that requires the later iOS versions.
I suspect that's the main one that requires the later iOS versions.
That could be it. Although the ability to stream local iOS content came in at 3.8.3, the requirement for iOS 6+ appeared at 3.8 (possibly anticipating 3.8.3).
It's an interesting feature / version trade-off. I wonder how many folks stream from device? It's not a thing in our place (complete music library and many services) but I guess part of BYOM?
Userlevel 4
Badge +7
Please, not this discussion again. There are numerous threads about that in this forum already.

And there are numerous reasons why it is like it is. Blame Apple, not Sonos in this case.


How is it Apple's fault? The Original iPad is now over 8 years old and well outside what anyone could have expected the lifespan of what is essentially a large mobile device to be. Apple haven't suddenly bricked the device (aka the Sonos CR100), they just stopped making updated software for it. Sonos are the ones who have decided to not allow the older software to control their system anymore, not apple.

I hate people blaming apple for making things obsolete. An 9 year old, late 2009 MacBook is still compatible with the latest MacOS High Sierra and a 5 year old iPhone is still compatible with the latest iOS which once again is almost unheard of for a mobile phone.