Retired Sonos Staff

‘On this Device’ for Android controller no longer supported

Related content:Software

297 replies
16333 views

Starting May 23rd, 2023, the Sonos S1 and S2 controller for Android will no longer support the ‘On this Device’ feature for streaming locally saved audio files directly to Sonos devices.

As newer versions of mobile operating systems are released, it can sometimes change the way information is shared between devices, and this feature will no longer be compatible with newer versions of the Android operating system.

While this feature will no longer be available in the app, we know local audio files are important to our listeners and we’ll continue to offer other options to enjoy downloaded tracks on Sonos, including:

Streaming the catalog from a music service. There are more than 100 music services available on Sonos, many with several millions of songs.

See our article on 'Adding music services' to get started.

Some music services allow you to upload your own music files to a cloud storage service like YouTube Music for example, which allows for an upload of up to 100,000 files with a free account. Services that allow you to upload files to a cloud storage:

Streaming through music services or cloud storage allows you to access your music without your phone.

You can play music files from your Android device to a supported Sonos product using Bluetooth.

See more about 'Using Bluetooth on Sonos' here.

Setting up a Music Library share on a Network Attached Storage (NAS) drive. You’d need to have the drive available in your network when you want to play music, but your library would be easy to transfer to these devices, if it isn’t already on them.

See our article on 'Using a NAS drive with Sonos' to get started.

If you have a Sonos Play:5, Connect, Connect:Amp, Amp, Era 100 or Era 300 (with the Line-In dongle), you have a Sonos player with a Line-In connection. Using that Line-In, you can play music directly from any device connected to it, to any player around the house.

See more about 'Using the Line-In on Sonos' here.

We'll continue to support everyone through this change, and will help you through the necessary steps to keep listening to your favorite tracks on Sonos.

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.

Show previous replies

106rallye

According to Sonos (and I have no reason not to believe them) this is caused by Google not allowing outside acces to the relevant part of your phone anymore. This is not going to change.

So at the risk of being perceived as hostile: you need to find a new way to play your files. There are some mentioned above.

N

nik9669a

Senior Virtuoso

According to Sonos (and I have no reason not to believe them) this is caused by Google not allowing outside acces to the relevant part of your phone anymore. This is not going to change.

So at the risk of being perceived as hostile or a democrat, or both: you need to find a new way to play your files. There are some mentioned above.

Stop being an offensive chatbot.

Sonos is wrong. Android can be used fine as a media source. Other apps do it.

Which ones, please?

jgatie

Stop being an offensive chatbot.

Sonos is wrong. Android can be used fine as a media source. Other apps do it. Sonos has chosen not to invest (which may include choosing not to pull their weight in the Android developer ecosystem).

This is pure Sonos.

Stop being a name calling apologist.

I'm sorry, but you have a fundamental misunderstanding of just how Sonos works. For one, the Sonos app is not a music player. It is a controller only, all the music capabilities are in the Sonos devices themselves. Therefore, your comparison to other music apps is moot. As such, when Sonos accesses the music on your device, it does so as an outside entity, not an app local to the device, and thus is subject to any outside access rules Google has in place.

So ends your lesson in Sonos' architecture. You can apologize for your insulting behavior now.

S

SamJones6

Avid Contributor I

Im not happy with this news. Many of the music i have on my phone can't be found on music services or are scattered around. Just having it on your phone and being able to play it is very convenient, without having to pay fir some kind of service or (expensive) NAS.

And as i understand you cannot search on a NAS anymore with the new search??

Just give Sonos 1 star on google play store…

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sonos.acr2&hl=en

Enough of those… stuff will move….

jgatie

Just give Sonos 1 star on google play store…

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sonos.acr2&hl=en

Enough of those… stuff will move….

Yeah, becaase that really stopped the dropping of this function from iOS a few years back. Not. Turns out, the vast majority of Sonos users don't even use this feature and thus the very few who do don't even leave a dent with their one star reviews. Nice try, though.

E

ellymoo

Contributor I

This is pretty gutting, as that’s the only reason I went for Sonos. I don’t use any streaming services and certainly am not about to pay for one when I have 32GB of music sitting on my device(s)!

I have installed an earlier version of the app, but assume it will be obsolete at some point, so I’ve also uploaded my music to iBroadcast. Stupid question but do I need to have a computer (or whatever) on to use it? I tried using it when I dabbled with Alexa but it was very glitchy (Alexa’s fault rather than theirs).

How does Hi-Fi Cast work please? I don’t quite understand (I’m a tech dunce).

I have 2 x bookshelf Symfonisks and a table lamp as well as a Roam. I understand that I can stream via bluetooth to the Roam and connect it to all the other speakers (I have all my speakers in a group) but it doesn’t seem to work - what am I missing please? Thank you. :)

S

SamJones6

Avid Contributor I

How does Hi-Fi Cast work please? I don’t quite understand (I’m a tech dunce).

The Hi Fi Cast app works… it just replaces the Sonos app… and does what the Sonos app _can do_ but chooses not to do.

I am running it now. Installs like cake and just works.

E

ellymoo

Contributor I

How does Hi-Fi Cast work please? I don’t quite understand (I’m a tech dunce).

The Hi Fi Cast app works… it just replaces the Sonos app… and does what the Sonos app _can do_ but chooses not to do.

I am running it now. Installs like cake and just works.

How do you get it to play on your system, as in several speakers at the same time, please?

S

SamJones6

Avid Contributor I

» How do you get it to play on your system, as in several speakers at the same time, please?

I only have two speakers, and only use one at a time, so I can’t speak to that.

It may well not support “zones” like the Sonos app.

I am just happy to have something working!

E

ellymoo

Contributor I

Ah, that wouldn't work for me as I always use my speakers throughout the house. I've tried iBroadcast but it keeps saying there's a connection error. :(

Show more replies

Sign up

Login to the community