There’s not much more outrage that I can add that hasn’t already been included, but I still feel the need to vent. I have 10 Sonos products from the unfortunate Play5 through the Move. Several costing upwards of $700 US each. I think it may be time to “Move” on. I’ve had vintage stereo gear and speakers that were 30 years old and running strong, but ditched all for this “high end” wireless system. That meant getting rid of much vinyl, CDs etc. Oh what a regret. 

Bad, bad move Sonos. You better start thinking about the future customers that will now choose other systems even if you toss your loyal customers. I was even one of the testers for the Alexa integration.

Wise up Sonos. Someone there must have the vision to make this right.

Bob

AGREED

The public will not see this thread. Go out and place reviews on youtube (Sonos channel especially), then all the big and small retailers. 

Get the word out to the PUBLIC. 

Well Done Sonos,

Having been investing in your kit since 2010

I’m now left with ‘essentially’ a £1000 bill for support. (cost of direct replacement kit -30%)

I understand that some equipment may not meet the standards for the ‘New’ features, but as a premium manufacturer, I believe you should be treating your loyal customers, in a better way.

If I follow this through to it’s logical conclusion, ALL my kit will need to be replaced at some point.

I would strongly advise that you start listing EOSL (End Of Support Life) dates on your products, before you get sued.

Sonos' extraordinary plan to remove support from loyal early customers is appalling and appallingly carried out. I have 5 Sonos products, 2 of which require a so-called "upgrade".  I have recommended Sonos to family, friends, and businesses. No more.  It's especially galling to be told that once you press the "recycle" button there is no way to stop the process -- and this is before you have told me how much it would cost! Are you trying to go out of business?  I will be moving to a new system after 8 years of being an outspoken advocate.
I hope this note can be read by the head of the company.

My old Kenwood amp from 1992 that my Connect is plugged into still works to this day without missing a beat. It will continue to work long after Sonos brick the Connect.

Hi,

I have a number of SONOS products, but am dismayed to see this.  It’s not an acceptable stance to take from SONOS. 

More to the point, I cannot justify investing more money into a company that treats it customers this way. So SONOS, unless you re-think this and come up with a better solution to the one announced, I will never buy another of your products.

Of course it’s not. You could still give bug fixes, security updates and that kind of basic stuff for the old version and extra unneeded (Alexa, voice controls etc.) updates for the new speakers.

How stupid do they think we are? You can write anything for your customers and we are just pack of lambs? Customers will accept everything and they will continue buying our products?

Sonos is (Or has been..) premium product with a premium price. You can easily imagine what kind of people are average Sonos multiroom system buyers. You should not underestimate of intelligence of average Sonos user.

I couldn’t be more disappointed in Sonos. The thing they had going is that you could build a system by adding (expensive) parts, like Legos. To make speakers obsolete just to sell more new products is a shame.

I was just about to add a Move to my setup. Now I’m going to take another look at Apple HomePod and other options. I need to think about this. Is it time to cut my losses? 
 

I think this announcement is a disgrace. I have like many others involved significant amount of money in sonos products around my home to keep one homogeneous system only to be told none of them can be updated whilst I have an old legacy product on my system.

What next, my whole cinema surround system incl sub, play 1 speakers and playbar are out of date and need replacing?

Really poor email received saying in future you cannot update your system but there’s a 30% discount on replacing the legacy equipment.

I for one will be looking in future for a non sonos solution starting with my “legacy” Play:5 device!

Instagram, Facebook, anywhere people will see it. Very simple statement  “As a Sonos speaker owner I can no longer, in good conscience,  endorse the purchase of any Sonos products”. 

I was an early adopter...suffered through enumerable software / usability upgrades...was part of a beta testing team (for free / no compensation)...have sonos in every room of the house...added a 5 3 years ago...now I get to spend another $500 or have the whole system be rendered useless…

Never even bothered looking around previously...just added more products…

Interesting marketing plan...’hey lets get our loyal customers to shop around…’

bose next...amazon...google...thoughts?

sad day...

Sonos new policy is a commitment to updates for fives years after THEY stop selling a product themselves. You have to decide whether that five years is enough to keep you investing in new hardware you may have to replace again in five years, rinse and repeat for as long as you stay in the ecosystem.

I feel the same way! I had made, what I thought, was a one time investment into the product only to be told that this is not the case. Now it turns out that my system will no longer be supported primarily due to technology that I particularly do not want! (voice activated Alexa etc.) What I thought I was investing in was the speaker sound not a tech company that was telling me what technology iI need to listen to my speakers!  I guess I too will look to another company to fulfill my wireless needs!

Another article in the London Evening Standard

Outrage as Sonos prepares to end support for older products

https://www.standard.co.uk/tech/sonos-legacy-products-updates-support-a4340946.html#

Feel free to comment and spread the word

My first reaction was - “Guess I will have to pony up.”

After just some cursory investigation, there seem to be some viable alternatives to my Sonos system.  I’ll be studying them deeply in the coming days.

As others who have posted regarding this tech blackmail, I was an early adopter of Sonos and have expanded my capabilities with great pleasure - especially since Sonos got their act together on tech support and releasing relatively bug-free updates.

I, too, fear the inevitable message from my iMac indicating that my Sonos system is no longer compatible with my computer and/or network.

Plateauing sales growth is not a viable excuse for obsoleting hardware in hopes of increasing said revenue.  Remaining a leader and capturing new users is an enduring strategy.

Sadly, not so with my former friends at Sonos.

I feel the same way! I had made, what I thought, was a one time investment into the product only to be told that this is not the case. Now it turns out that my system will no longer be supported primarily due to technology that I particularly do not want! (voice activated Alexa etc.) What I thought I was investing in was the speaker sound not a tech company that was telling me what technology iI need to listen to my speakers!  I guess I too will look to another company to fulfill my wireless needs!

Sonos you are abandoning your early adopters, extremely bad customer centricity, absurd is a better word.

Forced by KKR?

I am sure there is over 70% margin between you and your distributors. If you are so proud of your brand, reputation and achievements, increase the trade in discount to at least 50% and i will consider to remain your customer. 

I just posted this to Amazon and Best Buy as a “buyer beware” notice

Even if you stop the updates to the system, you start losing functionality in settings.  I, too, tried to stop the updates for awhile but then had to update to access my music library when I changed my NAS or when I wanted to add a new speaker to the system.  Some settings are get grayed out as you fail to update the system.  Eventually, you have to update and then you’re screwed.  This is terrible customer service.  It is one thing for Sonos not to update our legacy products, it is a whole other thing to force us to ditch them if we want the system to keep working.  Wow…..so disappointed in a company that I have supported and raved about for nearly 10 years now.  I still remember setting up my first Sonos system with a couple of Connect: Amps.  Since then, I have added some 15 units and equipped both my home and cottage. What a slap in the face!

A few months ago, we lost the ability to play music from our iPhones in the Sonos app.  Sonos blamed Apple for this move.  To maintain this functionality, I was told to purchase two new Sonos speakers with AirPlay2 capability which would feed the entire system.  I thought it was a worthwhile investment to keep my two systems going and to preserve this functionality.  I did not mind the upgrade although it cost me some money and irritation (the old way was much simpler).   5 months later, and now I’m being told that a huge chunk of my system needs to be ditched and upgraded.  Hmmmmm…….I believed Sonos then when they blamed Apple for the loss of functionality in being unable to play my music directly from the Sonos app.  Now…...I’m not so sure.  Kind of feel like a sucker…..

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.  Seriously, Sonos, you think I’m going to invest a few thousand dollars to upgrade my system today just to be told that I have to keep upgrading year after year to keep the system going? Starting to sound like an ultra expensive subscription service.  Just keep paying for the upgrade cycle or everything you’ve invested in will be lost.

For those who compare this to Apple ceasing to support legacy iPhones, you are comparing apples to oranges.  Here is the true analogy.  You have a wifi system at home.  You and your kids all have iPhones and iPads.  Apple then releases a public notice that some legacy iPhones or iPads will no longer get updates.  Ok, you can live with that.  Now consider that Apple tells you that if any of these legacy iPhones or iPads are logged into your wifi network then EVERYTHING will stop getting updates until you ditch those legacy units, even though they are still working fine on your network.  Therein lies the rub.  Surely, Sonos can find a way to isolate those units without bricking the whole system.  In this manner, customers will, eventually, and at their own pace, begin to upgrade to newer units which offer better performance and more options.  What Sonos has done here is simply unacceptable and must be reversed before all goodwill is lost.

This is RIDICULOUS.  I’m so frustrated, I don’t know even where to start.  I want to scream from every chat room, “DON’T BUY SONOS!!!”.

This is a huge strike two.  First, the shift to subscription-only streaming, cutting down the freedom and choice of how I use my Sonos system.  And now this…  

30% is a slap in the face.  Try an 80% credit.  Paying even 20% for new hardware to replace components purchased 6-7 years ago; to do exactly the same thing as it’s doing today.  This is a CRIME!

Sonos, you should be ashamed of yourself.  Stand behind your product.  If you’re hardware cannot support your updated software, you should replace the hardware FOR FREE!

I’m not sure what my next step will be.  I just received “the e-mail” this morning.  But I tell you, I am not impressed.  SHAME ON YOU, Sonos.

I bought my system only 6 years ago, I chose Sonos based on it’s reputation for quality and service. This is the second occasion that I have cause to regret that choice; I can no longer use the app on my iPad mini and now I won’t get updates to the software.  A system for which I paid a lot of money is now obsolete after only a few years, this can only be a very cynical attempt to get me to buy new kit.  Why on earth would I buy from you again when I am looking at such a short period of use.  You could very easily continue to supply software updates, the only reason not to do so is cost i.e. a gross reduction in service, along with an attempt to push, formally, loyal customers into buying new equipment.  If you want to keep your customers then you need to rethink this approach urgently.

Martin    

Dear Sonos,

Why would I spend £1000 replacing half my system (that works perfectly well) with newer models, only to find that the other half of my system soon becomes obsolete and will then need to be ‘upgraded’ as well. I have enjoyed the Sonos experience, but when those of us that helped to establish Sonos’s market position by buying their early products are treated like cash-cows then enough is enough. Where is your loyalty to your long term customers? It may be too late to repair all the damage you have done to your brand, but you should still re-think this stupid policy.

Just want to express my displeasure with the rest of you!

I own 6 units that are soon obsolete. This is the wrong decision that contributes to climate change.

I don't want to have to throw away fully functioning things.

I thought Sonos was built to last.

Shame on you!

It seems it was built to last too well, hence the update policy change. 

Like many, I’m not happy about this either.

Being told “you need to upgrade one bit of your system, and we’re going to hold the rest of your system hostage until you do” isn’t really a very “customer friendly” message to deliver.

I have an Amp that’s going EOL (which runs some ceiling speakers in the kitchen). I’m left wondering if I should:

1. dump Sonos entirely there and use something else
   This feels like the right thing to do, if I’m honest. I don’t want to reward this contemptible behaviour with more sales. However, it’ll break the multi-room aspect, and it’ll mean using one app for the kitchen and another for everything else (or else change absolutely everything, which seems like a bit of overkill, although I’d get to sell off the old Sonos while it still has some resale value).
2. Downgrade on the Sonos and upgrade elsewhere
   Here I’m thinking buy a Port instead of an Amp. The Port is about £200 cheaper (list), and comes in £140 cheaper than an Amp on trade-in. This leaves a bit of budget to buy a nice amp that the Port can plug into. I’ll end up spending more in total this way, but it means Sonos doesn’t get as much of my money, the sound in the kitchen will probably improve and I keep all the compatibility
3. Just suck at the corporate teat and upgrade
   This option costs £420 (after trade-in), on top of the £400 the original device cost 5 years ago. The new device is better than the old - it’s really what the old one always should have been, although it’s now 50% more expensive at list price. This is honestly the least attractive option - it’s a lot of money, and puts me further at risk of more Sonos messing about in the future.

So my opinions aside, what would you have me do here, Sonos? I mean really, what would you do?