I want to make two irrefutable statements of fact:
1) Sonos is the best wireless speaker system in the world with a very intuitive app that makes wireless audio amazingly simple.
2) Sonos management cares little about customer feedback and is leaving millions on the table.
While that might sound kind of harsh, consider that the Sonos Community has viewed a thread over 46,000 times and I've seen online blogs begging for an outdoor speaker FOR YEARS! How many millions of dollars could Sonos have made by simply delivering on this request? I've personally looked for weatherproof enclosures for both the Connect Amp and Play speakers and nobody has an elegant solution.
It's completely aggravating when I come to the Sonos website after over a year of owning my system and still there is no answer to the community by management letting us know: A) when a weatherproof speaker is coming, or 😎 why it will never come. And I'm late to the party, which means others were ignored for over five years before me!
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Pretty sure that Sonos outdoor weatherproof speakers are imminent. How do i know this? I dropped a $1000 on 2 connect amps to hook up 4 Polk weatherproof speakers in my yard arpund my pool. A royal pain in the you know where to run a few hundread feet of 12 gauge wire but its done and i do love it. :D:P;)
Ah, the old "I just washed my car so it will rain" argument. Pretty solid evidence 🙂
How did you make out with Beyond the Wake as a company and how are the speaker covers working out?
I ordered a pair of covers for my Play1's and after waiting a week and a half I emailed to get an ETA and did not get a response for 2 days so I emailed again saying "Please, could you let me know you got my email and look into my order".
His response was "I have no time for pushy, rude people, this is our busy season and you will get them when you get them. I will cancel your order if you don't want to wait".
I asked to have my order canceled, not because I didn't want the covers, but because the guy seemed like a total tool who did not know what customer service is. I simply asked that he acknowledge my email (since he didn't for over 2 work days) and let me know an ETA, which he did not just said I was pushy & rude.
Anyway- Looking for feedback on those covers if you can. Are they really waterproof? When I asked the company if they were waterproof they just quoted what was on the website, something like "Water beads up and rolls off" I asked if he could verify that they would be safe outdoors in raid. He just quoted the same thing. idk.
I'm actually working on a cover for my Play1 speakers. If I'm successful maybe you will see it on the market.
I've had a pair of 3's on my patio for 5 years now, they are mounted just under the rain gutter, if the weather is very heavy, they get wet and snow... but they just keep on going, I have had zero problems with them what so ever.
The last couple of years I've had them wrapped in plastic artificial ivy vines, so that they are practically invisible and I tell myself that it must keep some of the worst rain away.
It should be noted that I live in Denmark, the weather here is shit 80% of the time.
The last couple of years I've had them wrapped in plastic artificial ivy vines, so that they are practically invisible and I tell myself that it must keep some of the worst rain away.
It should be noted that I live in Denmark, the weather here is shit 80% of the time.
Think it's a bit harsh to claim Sonos "Management" is ignoring this request. I'm sure it's a collective decision by their product development and engineering team that this is not a priority. Frankly I can agree. I would rather they focus their efforts on next gen Sonos speakers integration with voice assistants and being in the mix with smart homes than divert resources to solves the issue of certifiably weatherproofing a self powered sonos speaker from rain, sun, heat, ice, etc. The elements are brutal. Weatherproof speakers is one thing, weatherproof powered electronics, whole other. Also, agree with other perspectives... an outdoor speaker is a funny thing. There's many different preferences there. Lately it seems people want hidden/camouflaged speakers outside. Additionally, you have to consider a vast array of conditions that could hinder the Sonos practicality. Having access to electrical outside isn't a assumed thing. Many people would have to install new outlets to locate speakers where they want them. There's a reason the outdoor nest cam has a 25ft power cable for instance. Finally, WiFi coverage, while getting easier to solve with mesh networking etc, is also potentially problematic outside for average homeowners. All that said, perhaps you and others are prescient and we'll see Google or Amazon beat them to market with a smart outdoor speaker.
All good points; particularly since after the one time effort of running speaker wires to passive external speakers of choice, there IS a Sonos solution anchored via either a Connect Amp or Connect placed safely indoors.
On the other hand, in an era of music access via streaming services no longer needing access to a local NAS, there also now are true/fully wireless solutions provided by the many excellent portable and weatherproof bluetooth speakers now out there.
Between the two, the market for a wireless Sonos external speaker would seem to be very niche for the development resource diversion to the effort; that boat has sailed some years ago.
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