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Roam setup nightmares.

  • 25 April 2021
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39 replies

Ken_Griffiths

I’m also surprised by people defending Sonos here. Unless there’s a security concern with allowing people to connect to bluetooth without pairing via the app first, I don’t understand the logic.

“Connect to bluetooth without pairing via the App first”? - Note you only need register the speaker one-time only to an online Sonos account, then anyone in proximity with access to the speaker can connect to it over Bluetooth - exactly the same as you would pair every other Bluetooth speaker - you just have to disconnect it from one Bluetooth device and pair it with another. The paired mobile device (as an example) doesn’t even need the Sonos App installed to Bluetooth-pair to a registered Roam.

Being able to pair without the app/network while traveling is key. Case in point: I knew of this issue and prepared for the situation by setting up Bluetooth on mine & my partner’s phone, but we’re now visiting family and are the only ones who can connect to the device. (Note that this behavior dose not mirror networked functionality in any way, since anyone connected to my home WiFi can stream to Sonos via AirPlay 2 regardless of whether they have the Sonos app.)

You must be doing something wrong here - any member of your family can connect to your Roam over Bluetooth. Disconnect the speaker in your mobile device Bluetooth settings and switch it to pairing mode to allow a relative to pair with the speaker using their transmitter device. (Mobile/Tablet/PC/TV etc.)

Unless it’s impossible to address this issue due to technical limitations and/or security concerns, I see no reason not to. I doubt making bluetooth connection easier would undermine Sonos’s main business as a network speaker company. If anything, it could help draw in new customers by introducing them to the ecosystem.

A registered Sonos Roam can behave almost like every other Bluetooth speaker - I think you have perhaps misunderstood how to operate the speaker in this instance - there is quite a lot of information of how to use this speaker in Bluetooth/WiFi mode etc on this forum, YouTube videos and through various online searches. 

Ken_Griffiths

@Cranial 

Maybe see the  Sonos Support document linked below. It details how to Bluetooth pair your Roam to ‘different’ devices. Hope that assists…

https://support.sonos.com/s/article/4989

D
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Nightmares all around is so right :-( Already boxed it back up this morning and returning this POS tomorrow.

Got it for my wife for X-mas and wasted most of a day trying everything I could find on these forums where nothing worked. Factory resets, etc. etc. Never ever had so many issues during basic setup, staying on the network, keeping any reasonable battery life, on & on. Yes, I know about the power saving feature in the app.  All it did was cause it to completely drop off the app needing a factory reset to have it return. 

I am very technically savvy and have eight other different Sonos speakers, being a loyal customer dating back as long as they have been around. Never ever had so many issues during basic setup, staying on the network, keeping any livable battery power on & on. Can’t get over how they released such an awful product not ready for market. 

My only question now is how to clean up the Roam entry in my system listing. Just states ‘offline’ now.  Read someplace a factory reset would work but guess not.  When I want it gone, of course it’s there.  LOL

Ken_Griffiths

My only question now is how to clean up the Roam entry in my system listing. Just states ‘offline’ now.  Read someplace a factory reset would work but guess not.  When I want it gone, of course it’s there.  LOL

The now offline Roam device will disappear after 72 hours if it’s not connected again. You can force it to disappear sooner by rebooting all your other devices and the router, as well as force closing the Sonos App. HTH

J

I too was just bitten by this problem.  I have been a Sonos user for 18 years!  Just grabbed a Roam and sent it to my son in college - he and we were excited but then I got texts about what a royal PIA the thing is to connect to BT.  I guess I made the assumption that a BT speaker with the form factor of the Roam - could connect to BT right out of the box.  Even having read reviews before purchasing, none said,  be sure you have a private wifi to set up etc before you try to use BT on this small BT speaker. 

VERY BAD Sonos!  

 

Question - can a person use the Wifi hotspot on their iPhone to setup it up the first time?  Same iPhone would be running the just downloaded Sonos app.  ??  

J

Seems a little strange to me that you would assume that a speaker that is so much more than a dumb Bluetooth speaker would behave exactly like a dumb Bluetooth speaker, but whatever...…

There is certainly a reasonable chance of setting it up using a mobile hotspot, but another device would need to be used as the controller. A mobile device cannot join its own WiFi LAN.

J

Actually, turns out it is a very dumb bluetooth speaker - as it does not work out of the box w BT.  

106rallye
Userlevel 7
Badge +17

Dumb is the word that springs to mind…….

Ken_Griffiths

Problem Solving?

A lad in college and his mates can’t figure out how to setup the Roam by themselves... that’s the bit I find difficult to understand?

What are they teaching kids these days?

J

Trust me, support responded saying, wont work...out of luck.  Will return and go elsewhere.  Read the other scenarios in this string - not ideal.  Sonos support stated, “the wifi requirement frustrates a lot of our Roam customers”.  Hmmm…. 

Ken_Griffiths

Trust me, support responded saying, wont work...out of luck.  Will return and go elsewhere.  Read the other scenarios in this string - not ideal.  Sonos support stated, “the wifi requirement frustrates a lot of our Roam customers”.  Hmmm…. 

I’m sure my young grandson would want me to pass on these steps to your Son & his college mates…

  1. Enable WiFi Hotspot on Mobile ‘A’ (use a mates mobile hotspot, if necessary)
  2. Connect Mobile ‘B’ to Hotspot and install S2 Sonos App
  3. Power on Roam - open App and setup FR Roam on either new, or existing, Sonos Account.
  4. Roam will BT pair once setup/registration is complete.
F

++ bump.

Love Sonos sound.  Bought the Roam because… well the name seems to suggest that it does act more like the other Bluetooth speakers on the market with the Wi-Fi speaker awesomeness.  I was totally expecting that I need to connect with the app for full feature use, but the fact I can’t use a public access point to set it up? That is just bad product design/product management.  Working in tech industry for years and I can tell you, this is a VERY easy to solve for even in a firmware update.  Some exec heard the product marketing team say this was a feature that would be value-able and it was nixed for some silly reason - probably wanting to collect user data or the “app team” objected because… god forbid you don’t utilize their software. 

 

I’m also traveling on business and wont be back on a home network for several weeks. I’ve tried public Wi-Fi that has no password, and this also doesn’t work.  Maybe I should ask my friend to use his Wi-Fi to set up my Bluetooth speaker? Haha come on - complete silliness.  If you can enable NFT product recognition you sure as heck synchronize a BT connection to stream some music.  

 

If anyone has a work-around, would be great to hear it.  

Ken_Griffiths

@Falorian,

Just setup the Roam using a mobile Hotspot. Connect your mobile controller to the same Hotspot and set it up with the Sonos App inside of a couple of minutes and then simply switch to using Bluetooth.

F

Thanks @Ken_Griffiths.  I tried using my cell as a mobile hotspot as I have 2, but it got stuck.   

 

Update: left it in my room with my other cell phone and it must have found a way through the issues and it setup.  Bluetooth is working fine.  Have no idea how that worked, but I guess I’m happy now. Haha

 

Thanks for the suggestion =)

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