Sonos no longer support IOS streaming


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Just got the message Sonos will no longer support IOS devices . Looks like it’s time to sell my speakers .

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Userlevel 4
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So Apple makes changes and Sonos decides it can’t be bothered updating software . I use my phone to play my music and no I don’t want to join a streaming service or stream from my Mac. Oh or I could buy a new Sonos speaker that supports AirPlay. Ah ha there’s the logic behind this .


Steward123 is entirely correct. The Sonos announcement says "The way this feature was originally architected has become unreliable with newer versions of iOS."

Let me translate. What they are saying is that when they (Sonos) developed the original architecture (design) for this feature, they got it wrong and as a result they are having trouble adapting it for later versions of iOS. This is not an Apple problem as some have stated, it is a Sonos problem.

Rather than invest the time and effort to revise the design of this portion of their app to fix it, Sonos is simply dropping it and in the process abandoning those iPhone users who we early adopters of their excellent product and hence do not have support for the AirPlay feature in their speakers and amps.

I, like Stewart, use my phone as my primary source of music for portability reasons - home, office, car. I, also like Stewart, don't want to subscribe to a streaming service which will replace my song versions with theirs, and reject songs that I have recorded from vinyl records because they don't have an acceptable digital rights signature.

Sonos, do the right thing here and invest the time and effort necessary to fix this issue rather than taking the quick and easy path of dropping a feature that some find very valuable! We have supported you through our purchase of your products. It is time for you to do the right thing and support us.
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Steward123 is entirely correct. The Sonos announcement says "The way this feature was originally architected has become unreliable with newer versions of iOS."

Let me translate. What they are saying is that when they (Sonos) developed the original architecture (design) for this feature, they got it wrong and as a result they are having trouble adapting it for later versions of iOS. This is not an Apple problem as some have stated, it is a Sonos problem.

Rather than invest the time and effort to revise the design of this portion of their app to fix it, Sonos is simply dropping it and in the process abandoning those iPhone users who we early adopters of their excellent product and hence do not have support for the AirPlay feature in their speakers and amps.

I, like Stewart, use my phone as my primary source of music for portability reasons - home, office, car. I, also like Stewart, don't want to subscribe to a streaming service which will replace my song versions with theirs, and reject songs that I have recorded from vinyl records because they don't have an acceptable digital rights signature.

Sonos, do the right thing here and invest the time and effort necessary to fix this issue rather than taking the quick and easy path of dropping a feature that some find very valuable! We have supported you through our purchase of your products. It is time for you to do the right thing and support us.


Thankyou Bob It’s nice to hear somebody else who is not happy about this ,other than earlier posters being up in arms about the fact that some people should feel aggrieved that they will not be able to play their library from the I phone .
Userlevel 3
Its incredible that Sonos could not update its architecture for adapting IOS as it is one of the most used sources for music throw iPhone, iPad, etc
Please solve it. I can not expend more money updating Sonos interfaces
Userlevel 4
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So Apple makes changes and Sonos decides it can’t be bothered updating software . I use my phone to play my music and no I don’t want to join a streaming service or stream from my Mac. Oh or I could buy a new Sonos speaker that supports AirPlay. Ah ha there’s the logic behind this .
Userlevel 1
This is ridiculous. I bought Sonos speakers BECAUSE I wanted to play music, listen to podcasts etc from my iPhone. Sonos, are you going to upgrade my speakers for free?

i want my money back.
Akubra91
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I am also not happy about being held hostage by APPLE AND SONOS.
Bad enough you have to buy a new I phone every couple of years to do the same thing your old one did .
But this is bullcrap
If I wanted to be on apple music Google or any other streaming music site I would be already .
Should not have to pay to use speakers that I own to play music That I own .
Maybe get rid of Alexa and all the the robot crap
I bought this system to play music on from my I phone and I pad .
You should also support your product

I also have to deal with this crap in my work as a musician and sound tech .
Some of the mixing boards I work with only work with older model ipads
BUT THEY STILL WORK .

Soon we will all be drowning in old iphones and obsolete tech
We can all rant all we want but nobody will do anything about it .
But they will take our money .

Think I will put together a nice analog system and plug my ipad into it
or I could just plug my ipad in to my TV until I can sell my sonos to some sucker .
If I sound like an unsatisfied customer it's because I am .
Userlevel 2
This is incredibly disappointing. To say this in an unadvertised feature is completely incorrect. In fact, for me, it was the primary reason why I invested in a comprehensive Sonos system (see Sonos's advertisement highlighting this precise feature: https://www.ispot.tv/ad/77HU/sonos-featuring-questlove-song-danny

While I don't blame Sonos per se as it is obviously a change in how Apple wants their platforms used (or not used) with sun-setting of iTunes and the break-up of the individual apps, I have GOT to believe there would be a way to pull content from the device and Sonos should absolutely pursue.

Yes it still streams, of course there are other options like building out a media server - but for many of us who have spent decades curating our music to truly have on our device - this is a huge step backwards.
Userlevel 7
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What is more incredible is people not reading the explanation on why this has become a problem. Apple will have no interest in resolving this as they are now a wireless speaker provider, and besides they have AirPlay 2 for this very purpose. Yes annoying, and apple has history with this sort of thing, and I say that as an iOS user.

i am also amazed that anyone bought a Sonos system based on this unadvertised feature. It came as a surprise when I saw it, never used it either. A nas solution is far more reliable and saves space on my phone.
Userlevel 1

Just got the message Sonos will no longer support IOS devices . Looks like it’s time to sell my speakers .This is factually not true.

Sonos currently supports iOS 10 and higher.

They are just removing one, small, feature. Playing music that is downloaded and stored on the iOS phone or tablet.

Plenty of other ways to listen to your music.

  • Music Library
  • Plex Server
  • Upload your music to Google Play Music
  • Line-In
  • Airplay
  • etc.

This is NOT one small feature, if you only have your music on your phone, and you do not have internet reliable enough for PLEX etc.., and you use your system set up as Surround. The airplay function IS NOT available in that setup even though Alexa still is available. Makes no sense to disable the AirPlay this IS a Sonos issue.
I have a large number of replies to my account. I would be most happy if I were to be in the employ of Sonos, but alas, I am not. Nor, for that matter are any of the other posters. Sonos has a policy that if you're an employee, your account is marked as such, as you can see by posts by people like Ryan, Jeff, Edward, Ditte, etc.

I've no desire to attack anyone. My objective, as most of the large number of posts people you may be talking about, is to assist others in enjoying the outstanding system that Sonos makes. To my knowledge, none of these folks are paid by Sonos, they're just people who like to help others. However, many of us do feel beholden to correct postings that have incorrect information in them, so that others are aware of the facts, rather than speculation fed by anger.

I want to share the options that people have to continue to use their Sonos devices that they've invested in, and can take just a little time, or even if you want, some additional money invested....but that's not required. I suggest that those who are interested in continuing to use the speakers they've invested in, they should peruse the main thread on this situation, which offers, and discusses many options, ranging from free to not?
Userlevel 4
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I’m sorry but this seems like an easy get out for Sonos to me the article states that playing music from an I phone etc is becoming unreliable not that they cannot fix the issue at cost to themselves.
Definitely not the end of the world but easier to pass the cost on to the consumer .
I have two play 3s and a sub so I have invested around £1100 on Sonos gear ,( I’m sure a lot here have invested much more) and now to carry on playing from my I phone I need to spend another £150 for a play 1. Definitely the easiest and most beneficial scenario for Sonos.
in the process abandoning those iPhone users who we early adopters of their excellent product and hence do not have support for the AirPlay feature in their speakers and amps.

This takes the prize for the funniest comment so far. Early Sonos adopters bought their equipment before playing from a mobile device was possible on Sonos.
OK having a party, sitting on the porch outside or by the pool , having a great time, cranking the tunes....
someone says Play that song ...... Ok Just let me run inside and sit down at the computer and put it on be back in a few..... REALLY ??? Talk about a buzz kill !!!

I have over $10k of Sonos gear in my home and it was great- UNTIL NOW!!!
Can even begin express my disappointment.

NO BLUE TOOTH SOLUTION ?

If you read through the threads it is VERY OBVIOUS that the many PRO CHANGE responses in these various threads are written by SONOS or some PR firm....... Im sure this will be removed now for saying that- but really how could anyone support this change besides Sonos?

From the beginning when this company started I have supported and enthusiastically purchased many products, I have even endorsed Sonos products to many of my Clients in the Hamptons that have AV systems costing 100s of thousands.

I would totally purchase a product that would hack into the software and make my equipment work the way it did in the past. Yes Sonos software has always been its weak spot but being weak is better than just giving up, this was a change that seems totally driven to selling more product.

I won't be surprised if Sonos is soon purchased by one of the big guys that are monopolozing everything..... This certainly seem like a maneuver by a company that is selling out and no longer concerned about its customers that have been with them since the start.

Is there something I am missing?

I will retract my comments immediately and continue to purchase and endorse Sonos products If I am wrong and missing something. Am I missing some silver bullet here? Maybe Sonos needs to hire some 12 year old kid to figure it out.
Userlevel 5
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@thekell

The best option for me has been a free Google Play Music account. You can upload up to 50,000 tracks for free, and your iTunes created playlist transfer as well! Since this is a cloud based account, you can access all of your music from any device that you log into, anywhere you are. It has worked exceptionally well for me, and is a much better solution than playing music stored on your phone for many reasons.

Pros:
  1. Doesn't drain my phone battery.
  2. My music doesn't take up valuable storage space on my phone.
  3. Doesn't stop playing when I walk out of range. I can start playing music in the house, and leave. The music keeps playing for my wife.
  4. No more cut outs in music when my phone sleeps.
  5. My entire family has access to our whole catalogue, as opposed to my phone being the only source of our collection.
  6. If you buy more music on iTunes, or make playlists, you can set the Google Music Manager to update automatically.
  7. Even your rare or personally recorded tracks will upload and play just fine.
Cons:
  1. You must set this up from a computer, not from your phone.
  2. You have to set up a Google account, and provide a credit card (The card is only charged if you purchase tracks from Google. Storage of personal uploaded tracks and playlists is free).
  3. You must have a cellular or wifi connection to play your tracks.
  4. The initial upload is painfully slow, but it eventually will match your iTunes.
I probably missed a few things, but hope this helps.
Hi. First you need to get your facts straight. Sonos is no longer able to supoort playing content stored on iPhones and iPads, as a result of changes Apple has made to iOS. The Sonos app for iOS will still be supported for playing all other sources.

Go ahead and sell. You will be the loser and someone else will benefit.
Userlevel 5
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Just got the message Sonos will no longer support IOS devices . Looks like it’s time to sell my speakers .

This is factually not true.

Sonos currently supports iOS 10 and higher.

They are just removing one, small, feature. Playing music that is downloaded and stored on the iOS phone or tablet.

Plenty of other ways to listen to your music.

  • Music Library
  • Plex Server
  • Upload your music to Google Play Music
  • Line-In
  • Airplay
  • etc.
Userlevel 2
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You can purchase a Mirroring dongle and plug that into your TV's HDMI slot then run your tunes pictures and videos wirelessly by bluetooth .
Then you don't have to subscribe to anything .
Wonder how long it will be before I can't play my TV through my sonos rig ?

Or when these posts will stop appearing here .
Could not log in here for a while today for some reason .

Also received an offer for 15% off on sonos gear 😆
At one time we were going to buy 2 more speakers to go with the playbar and sub we have
not now .
Steward123 is entirely correct. The Sonos announcement says "The way this feature was originally architected has become unreliable with newer versions of iOS."

Let me translate. What they are saying is that when they (Sonos) developed the original architecture (design) for this feature, they got it wrong and as a result they are having trouble adapting it for later versions of iOS. This is not an Apple problem as some have stated, it is a Sonos problem.


This just serves to demonstrate your complete ignorance of Sonos' system design. It is an absolutely fundamental part of Sonos' design that the app is just a controller. It is not a music player. It instructs the speakers to fetch the music from the specified source - and that applies to music stored on the same device as the app - the app is still not 'playing' the music. I strongly suspect that it is something in this process which is clashing with the latest iOS. Sonos could not have introduced this feature in any other way without a fundamental change to the nature of the app. Never worth it for a 'nice-to-have' additional feature.
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It is not a music player. ....the app is still not 'playing' the music.

Dear John, I have re-read my post very carefully and can find in it no mention of the words "play", "player", or "playing", other than one reference to "AirPlay".

It is not a music player. ....the app is still not 'playing' the music.Dear John, I have re-read my post very carefully and can find in it no mention of the words "play", "player", or "playing", other than one reference to "AirPlay".

You were claiming Sonos had messed up the implementation. I was explaining that the nature of the way Sonos plays music meant that there was no other way to implement. If you had understood that you would not have said Sonos had messed up.
Userlevel 1
I have a NAS with music on it at our other house that has great internet service. I do not think I should have to spend more money to make the $2000 I spent on all this stuff 3 months ago to make this continue to work Why can’t the AIrPlay work when I’m surround model is used? Alexa still does !
A PLAYBAR is not AirPlay 2 capable.
Userlevel 4
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I suppose i should just accept that Sonos is only concerned about making money which is fine but I did expect some loyalty towards existing customers who bought their equipment to use with their I phones etc .
Solely blaming apple is a lame excuse it would be better to just come out and say “we can’t be bothered sorting this”. I’m beginning to sound like a worn out record now.
Userlevel 7
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A PLAYBAR is not AirPlay 2 capable.

Oops. You’re right of course. It’s the Playbase that’s Airplay capable.
Userlevel 4
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They made the effort to work with apple to get airplay 2 working because that involves selling more play ones but when it involves retaining a feature that a lot of people bought their speakers for it’s not worth the expense or are Sonos saying it is impossible to resolve , I hadn’t seen that statement . All that a lot of people here are saying is that they want to use their Sonos speakers as they always have .