Retired Sonos Staff

End of Software Updates for Legacy Products

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Please note that we’ve created a new thread with some clarifications to questions that have come up several times in this thread. Please see here to continue the discussion if you still have any questions. The information contained in this thread is outdated and may no longer be accurate.

We have some important news regarding our oldest Sonos devices shared on the Sonos Blog today. The text of that blog post is being included here for your convenience:

Starting in May 2020, some of our oldest products will no longer receive software updates or new features. We want to explain why and your options.

When we first set out almost 20 years ago to invent the technology to easily listen to any song in any room, most of the ways we listen to music today did not exist. In fact, the first Sonos products were introduced before the first iPhone was announced and when Myspace still ruled social media.

In order to invent multi-room music and smart speakers, we combined the worlds of high-fidelity audio and computing. Every Sonos product has a microprocessor, flash memory, and other hardware components typically found in computers and smartphones.

Since launching our first products, technology has advanced at an exponential rate; from streaming services and voice assistants to wireless networking and Bluetooth capabilities. Through all of this transformation, we have continued delivering new features via software updates. We’re extremely proud of the fact that we build products that last a long time, and that listeners continue to enjoy them. In fact, 92% of the products we’ve ever shipped are still in use today. That is unheard of in the world of consumer electronics. However, we’ve now come to a point where some of the oldest products have been stretched to their technical limits in terms of memory and processing power.

This coming May, these legacy products—our original Zone Players, Connect, and Connect:Amp (launched in 2006; includes versions sold until 2015), first-generation Play:5 (launched 2009), CR200 (launched 2009), and Bridge (launched 2007)—will no longer receive software updates or new features.

Today the Sonos experience relies on an interconnected ecosystem, giving you access to more than 100 streaming services, voice assistants, and control options like Apple AirPlay 2. Without new software updates, access to services and overall functionality of your sound system will eventually be disrupted, particularly as partners evolve their technology.

To help you through this transition, we’re providing two options:

Option 1: Continue using these legacy products, recognizing that your system will no longer receive software updates and new features.

Option 2: Trade up to a new Sonos product with a 30% credit for each legacy product you replace.

If you’re not sure if your products are affected, you can check in the System tab in your sonos.com-account

If you choose to participate in the trade up program, your legacy products will be put in Recycle Mode, a state that deletes personally identifiable information and prepares these products for e-recycling. Recycle Mode also protects unsuspecting people from buying legacy products that are approaching the end of their useful life and won’t provide the Sonos experience customers expect today. Recycle Mode will only apply to the legacy products listed above.

We ask that you take your legacy products to a nearby certified e-recycling facility. This is the most environmentally friendly way to recycle. That said, if there isn’t a facility in your area, we are happy to pay for you to ship your products back to Sonos for responsible recycling.

Ideally all our products would last forever, but for now we’re limited by the existing technology. Our responsibility here is threefold: build products that last a long time; continually look for ways to make our products more environmentally friendly through materials, packaging, and our supply chain and take responsibility for helping you through the transition once products near the end of their useful life.

We’ve always believed in freedom of choice, whether that means choosing a certain streaming service or way to control your listening experience. We hope the choices provided here—continuing to use these products without new software updates or trading up to our modern products—enable you to make the choice that’s right for you.

We are honored to have a place in your home and want to make sure that we help continue to bring the best experience we can, even when products reach the end of their useful life.

More information.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.

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Dutchmarc

Lyricist I

I was always a fan of your company but now you lost a loyal customer. Will invest my money better in a reliable and future proof company. Did you also tell Ikea that all their speakers will be running out of life in the upcoming years e.g the used electronics in the Ikea speakers is exactly the same as the used electronics in the Sonos 1.

A very disappointed ex-customer

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gizze

Enthusiast II

Haha…

Of course, there’s no guarantee that Bluesound (which doesn’t work as well, or sound as good, as Sonos anyway) won’t do the same kind of thing.

If I replace Sonos, I’ll be looking for solutions where I can influence/control the software. This means Raspberry Pi units with good sound hardware, and open source distributed audio software.

It was in response to someone saying “I wonder what the competition will come up with?”

I would argue with the sound thing, I have used the Node 2i recently, it is pretty impressive.

However, I am now using on my main system, Raspberry Pi, Khadas Tone Board Dac and Volumio to control it all.

Sound is amazing!

Total cost was £35 for pi, £80 for dac and £22 a year for Volumio.

The dac is stunning, it has replaced a £2k Meridian dac.

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jacobA

Lyricist I

I loved Sonos and was a big advocate for Sonos. I will no longer buy any Sonos product due to the fact that what I have bought will no longer work. You lost a good customer today, who used to tell everyone to buy your products. I will let everyone I know NOT to buy your product.

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Michael Mantkowski

Enthusiast I

Such crap - a Connect doesn’t need to do voice control either, and I’d be more happy if some things were disabled for it, and it alone - but holding the whole system to ransom is inexcusable.

As the OP said, you can opt for no more updates.

You’re literally missing my point.

If a Connect had some new feature disabled for it - fine. But it still should play nice with newer equipment that can support the new feature. They are keeping the WHOLE system ransom due to one older device. Not only that, but when a music service inevitably changes their API, the integration will stop working, so over time the speakers will break. This is unforgivable.

This is exactly what I was thinking… Why can’t the older units continue to operate as is, streaming the music throughout the house. Buy newer ones to enhance the brain trust and let the other ones slave off them. Maybe I am terribly misinformed about how the system works, but somehow I think this could happen.

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Neil McRae

Trending Lyricist I

Sonos has been considering this for well over a year, as this quote comes from Sonos’ November 2018 10-K filing:

We may choose to discontinue support for older versions of our products, resulting in customer dissatisfaction that could negatively affect our business and operating results. We have historically maintained, and we believe our customers have grown to expect, extensive backward compatibility for our older products and the software that supports them, allowing older products to continue to benefit from new software updates. We expect that in the near to intermediate term, this backward compatibility will no longer be practical or cost-effective, and we may decrease or discontinue service for our older products. Therefore, if we no longer provide extensive backward capability for our products, we may damage our relationship with our customers, and the value proposition of our products with existing and prospective customers may decline. We may lose existing customers if their older products cannot integrate with newer versions of our software, and this may also result in negative publicity that could adversely affect our reputation and brand loyalty and impact our ability to attract new customers or sell new products to existing customers. For these reasons, any decision to decrease or discontinue backward capability may decrease sales and adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.

haha so some financial analyst folks at Sonos had actually, honestly looked at how detrimental this move could be to the company and somehow someone convinced the bigwigs to do it anyway?

you could not make this up! I imagine Sonos offices are like an episode of the office.

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John B

I loved Sonos and was a big advocate for Sonos. I will no longer buy any Sonos product due to the fact that what I have bought will no longer work. You lost a good customer today, who used to tell everyone to buy your products. I will let everyone I know NOT to buy your product.

Why do you think your products will no longer work? That is not what the announcement says.

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LycraLout

Lyricist I

Hmmm. What lifespan do my old Play:1 speakers have? Given that they’re not listed as a product in the store any longer. I don’t want to fork out for a new Connect to Port replacement to find that not long down the road I have to replace all my Play:1 speakers too.

Does anyone know the official line?

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julesft

Lyricist I

All my Sonos system was bought at the same time only 4 years ago. Expect play 1 x2. 2 Sonos 5 and amp would now need replacing. Extremely disappointed

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JJH22

Contributor I

I own 19 Sonos devices including Playbar (x1), Amp (x1), Port (x1), Play:5 (x3), Play:3 (x1), Play:1 (x4), Sub (x2) , Connect:Amp (x2), and Play:5 Gen 1 (x3).

With this announcement, you’ve stated that you’ll no longer support updates to my newer Sonos products because my Play:5 Gen 1 (3) and Connect:Amp (2) devices aren’t “modern devices.”

You’ve lost a “forever” customer. You’ve lost an advocate. You’ve lost a champion. And now you have a bitter former customer who will explain to anyone who asks why they should never buy a Sonos speaker. Those criticisms started today as I shared my story with 5000 Facebook friends. The moral of the story is simple. Don’t buy Sonos products because the company will eventually blackmail you to purchase new Sonos products or face forced obsolescence.

I predict that this will be marked as the “we jumped the shark” day in Sonos history.

I can’t remember the last time I was so furious at any company.

Rob. I couldn’t have said it better. I feel exactly like you. I’ve been an advocate to so many people as I was a die hard forever customer. I have loved Sonos but receiving an email that my expensive products will no longer be supported via software upgrades and an offer of only 30% discount for the latest products is beyond disappointing and is clear that Sonos are in business for $ only and don’t care about their customers. I should have bought better known brands when I started in 2014 with “collecting” Sonos pieces. Little did I know I am buying future Duds! Sonos advertised: Sonos a system you can forever add to- well how can you lie like that. Shame on you Sonos.

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chobbsy72

Lyricist I

This is a poor show. I appreciate that older products may eventually cease to get upgrades but to hold back the whole system just comes across as a ransom.

I have 2 x Play 5’s that are now “legacy”. What is crazy is they still look good and sound amazing, so bricking these seems hugely wasteful. Do they not know there is a climate emergency?

Please rethink your approach fast as you are alienating your customer base.

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