Reply With QuoteThat’s rather annoying
on legacy products
https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/21/2...t-zone-players
That’s rather annoying
I received the email, will affect all of my set up . Really annoyed .
I got the email too, great customer service NOT !!!
Well that will be me done with Sonos.
maseman
Extremely frustrating.
I was running my sonos app via an integrated iPad (in wall) but the software is no longer supported so had to revert to SONOPAD as an alternative app.
Looks like some of my hardware will now also be redundant which will probably force me to consider other alternatives.
Just a con to sell more products 😬
Planned obsolescence is a big ol' part of the industry.Originally Posted by Rod
Worth checking if any of the Sonos kit can run on open source services.
Mine are affected to. Short term nothing to worry about but I’ll be moving from Sonos the moment things cease to work as I want them too.
I was thing of getting a couple of Ones for my “man cave” but will look at a conventional solution instead
And this is why I tend not to buy items whose functionality is reliant on the manufacturer. Happens all too often with video games where the multiplayer is dependent on servers hosted by the devs, and they just turn them off one day. It's a crappy business practice.
I've only just hopped onto the Sonos train, and didn't really give this eventuality much thought--but I suppose it's inevitable if one stops to ponder.
One thing that had given me pause about Sonos (I now have two One SLs) is no aux input, meaning it's reliant on streaming of some sort. However, given that I could AirPlay from an iOS device to the Sonos provides some degree of obsolescence protection, so long as I keep an old iPhone around that's compatible.
But I do feel for those that have large, integrated setups that may not now work in the near- to mid-future. Disappointing.
In Sonos defence a lot of the products on there are from 2006 according to the article. Which means they have provided support for 14years. That’s more than most manufacturers!
Which sonos products are you all using that you a losing support for?
The majority of our Sonos setup is in the legacy list - couple of Connect amps; zone player etc. Even the Play 1s that we have will suffer as they are linked to what will become legacy products.
Really annoyed about this to be honest as it’s not like these things were cheap when I bought them. Compare that to a receiver I have which is over 30 years old and still works as it should.
A measly 30% off if you trade in for newer stuff is a kick in the teeth for customers that supported them early on.
Given they are mini computers you’d expect that this would happen at some point. But they need to put a stick in the ground from this point and everything works until a certain date. I’d imagine a Uniti Atom to have the same issues at some point down the line. This is the price you pay for the online functionality.
When I looked at the legacy list on Sonos website I didn’t notice Play 1s or 3s on there only a play 5 from 2008ish.
I have some play ones that are fairly old and on my account it lists them as modern. With improvements in WiFi range and boosters are you sure you still need the connect products in your house?
Apple made this practice “acceptable” your I device needs the new version of the app to work and you i device is too old to take the latest app, Sky go is a good example of this.
Backward compatibility should be a legal requirement
Last edited by adrianw; 21st January 2020 at 22:00.
I received the e-mail today and find it highly irritating. My affected items are a Connect and a Play 5 and, inevitably, it will mean that at some point Sonos will cease support for the 2 x Play 1 that I have.
I will look at what's on the market and would appreciate comments/recommendations from those far more into audio stuff than I am.
Unfortunately we’ve got 6 (or maybe 7) Sonos products dotted round the house and at least 4 of those are classed as legacy so the whole system is clearly on borrowed time.
Given to replace 2 amps, a Connect and a Play:5 is going to cost the thick end of 2k (before any sweeteners) I think I’ll probably be looking elsewhere first.
I do understand that anything reliant on networks and hardware has an inevitable obsolescence I guess it’s just that I’ve always expected audio equipment to work until it actually dies rather than being killed off.
Most annoying all the same.
For me its a play 5, x2 bridge and connect. I was toying with getting some gen 1 one's as I don't want any of the alexa stuff on my system but thats gone to the dogs now. I'll keep what I have until the performance / features start to suffer then probably switch to something else like the Denon Heos maybe. Obviously looking into obsolescence of their products
My device on the list is a Gen1 Play 5 a not cheap piece of kit. Will just mean I won’t update the system or software for as long as I can.
Winder when the Playbar and Play 1s will be “on ze list”.......
It’s not actually being killed off, just there won’t be any updates for legacy products. I guess it depends how you stream your music, I would guess streaming apps will go before music stored locally/within network.
It's not simply networks, it's Partners - as their requirements change, stuff will at some point be unable to keep up...
And I believe the trouble is that with Sonos all equipment has to be on the same version; if one part can’t be updated then none can.
That's right. So while the Play 1s I have are on the 'modern' list, the fact that I also also a bunch of 'legacy' products means the whole system is constrained by the lowest level.
I don't understand why the play 5 is on the legacy list but not the play 3 and original 1?
Two connects and two play5s here.
Some folk seem to be forgetting that they have bought mini computers with dedicated audio functionality.
These computers are likely playing content from multiple vendors (Spotify, Deezer, tunein, etc) as these vendors make code changes Sonos will need to implement there own changes to ensure continued operation.
At some point a 14 year old computer not being able to run the latest software is inevitable, how many of us have a 14 year old pc or Mac running the latest os?
Given the understandable reaction from some it’s clearly not in sonos’s best interest to take this step but most likely it’s a real technical limitation.
After all once the streaming services stop working you’ll still be able to play all the music you have already digitised.
Time to check you backed all that up...
I read on sonos website that they would develop a solution between now and May to segregate your legacy equipment from modern so that the new stuff keeps getting updates and the old stuff continues to work for a period. No details on this yet though!
Must be because of the storm that kicked off following their announcement! Think it really impacted their brand.
I get that... it was more to make the distinction between audio equipment which is reliant on IoT and suchlike and the audio gear I’ve had since goodness knows when which will hopefully continue to work for years to come. I guess most electronics will now have the same IT support model - anything that requires firmware updates will ultimately be unsupported and lose functionality at some point.
We now use SONOS purely for streaming Spotify whereas once we used it to play our owned music via NAS so any significant changes from Spotify will render the system obsolete. It does look like you can run the old gear on a different system to the new but that’s not much good if everything is streamed.
Slightly off topic... I did consider Sonos at one point, but then ended up with a more costly solution - I have Linn Majik DS, from 2008 (I bought it used around 2013 or so). This is a streamer from 2008 and it is still fully updated from Linn, and it's gotten fantastic things like Room Optimization and Spotify Connect (it also support all other streaming services) though software updates. This is the kind of support I expect from a high end manufacturer, Sonos actions show poor form.
My Sonos One's are very early models and not affected strangely. My Connect is so if that packs in I'll get the Yamaha Wxad 10 to stream my NAS, Spotify, & Tidal through my main system.
So my Sonos Play:3 is fine? This is my oldest bit of kit, luckily sold my gen 1 Play:5 a couple of years ago!
Love the Sonos setup, I have 12 speakers in total from Play:5's down to the Sub, but it is worrying that in less than a decade I will have literally thousands of pounds worth of potentially useless kit. Times we live in I suppose! My Dad has the right idea, B&O!
I have 8 Sonos speakers in total and this news will stop me expanding this set up and make me think twice when buying sound equipment in future. Sounds like they see their speakers as iPhones and they expectation is they won't work forever.
This is on top of seeing the disgusting recycle program from Sonos which completely bricks the old speaker forever (not ever reversible) when you trade in for a newer model and sends the old one to landfill. Terrible decision.
How many computing devices do you have that are a 15 years old hardware platform and still being supported?
Not the point. Yes it's tech and relies on WiFi but they're static speakers which should be able to play music in 20 years. They're not obligated to give the latest updates all the time but they should at least keep them running.
Also the recycle thing is disgusting behaviour or any company.
I agree with those annoyed by this. I’ve got 4 play #1’s and an amp one that connects to my zeppelin. Oh and a bridge as wanted to keep it away from my main Wi-Fi.
Give the price of them, I’d have assumed they would just continue to play music as & when required.
They’re hardly running anything overly complex & couldn’t be allowed to be bricked, surely. I have a laptop that is actually 15yrs old, it’s slow as anything, but does what it needs to whenever I boot it up...its not been bricked as it’s old, it’s just not supported.
It’s a clear money grab. Surely the solution of finding a workaround for the older speakers is in the best interest of sonos. Should they not find a way to do this, I will certainly be reverting to another brand when the time comes.
They have had form before from memory removing the remotes & the ability to use iPod touch as a remote. Again with the discount against a new purchase.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Its not that they rely on wifi either (actually they don't rely on wifi, you can you can use ethernet instead), its that they are a computer with attached audio capabilities, as such they have a fixed specification and over time the CPU and memory become constraints.
They are keeping them running, they are just not going to update the firmware any more.
Sonos have not said that they will no longer work from May, what they have said is that from May they will no longer include them in system updates, this means that should spotify or deezer or tunein make code changes this could mean that the unsupported sonos devices stop being able to use that service.
You'll still be able to play music but from increasing less sources over time. If you have your cd's digitised and available on your network then you'll get many more years out of them. If you want the convenience of streaming platforms then its time to look at other options.
So I'll ask again how many 15 year old computers do you have that are still being actively supported by their manufacturer, I'll guess zero...
As for the recycle aspect I concur, the tec industry as a whole has a very poor record on this.
They are not being bricked, who said that?
They are removing them from the update schedule.
I feel for the people who I've installed Sonos for as a multi room set up a few years back. Some have 5 amplifiers installed in cupboards running multiple speaker systems.
Strange to me that an Arcam A/V amp and DVD, CD players still work after all these years after updates and manufacturers moving the goalposts for the software to play on them.
Different points.
If you recycle your units via Sonos via their upgrade program you give the serial number then after 30 days Sonos helpfully irreversibly brick the speaker then send it to landfill when you post it in.
That response was to Mj2k, confirming that he did not think they would be bricked automatically come May.
I’m aware of the upgrade program, the sending to landfill is poor but if they don’t brick the old device what is to stop the units being sold on the second hand market, meaning a discount and potentially lost sales due to a glut on the second hand market?
Surely just sell them on a refurb store for less but with a markup. Sonos approved etc with a 12 month warranty? Missed opportunity imo
Except they can’t be updated/maintained any longer ... I can’t see how SONOS would be able to sell them in any sort of official way.
Errr because they are eol and no longer actively supported, how would it look if the were selling refurbished devices and then stopped support?
I think it’s fair to assume when they started the upgrade offer they had plans to stop support for some devices.
Personally I think the comms has been quite poor from Sonos and I’d have hoped for more notice.
Sonos need to look at their kit and make sure that it can take upgrades for future changes. It's great equipment but after this publicity future users might think twice about supporting them. I know I'll not buy into them again and it'll be their loss.
The BBC are already reporting people's anger.
How long do you think a computer should be supported Rod?
The issue is not the support life of each individual component in isolation; the issue is that the support life of each individual unit affects the supportability of the entire network of which it is a part.
To draw an analogy: The fact that my ancient XP laptop is no longer supported does not (and should not) affect the support of my modern Windows 10 desktop.
They could offer a motherboard upgrade option
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Not a great analogy, any network manager worth his job is not going to want to support xp machines on the same network as W10. It’s an obvious security risk and I’d expect them to do similar to what Sonos have suggested and isolate them from the other devices.
Sonos have (now) said that legacy systems can be segregated from current devices, allowing current devices to maintain updates.
I think that I’ve already said Sonos comms have been poor on this, certainly its impacted their reputation.
That said it’s still unusual for a tech company to support hardware platforms for this length of time imho.
Well not perfect perhaps but still relevant in my opinion - as even in your version of the scenario it’s the user making that decision it isn’t Microsoft imposing it on them.
And yes they have said there will be a solution but provided no details, including what limitations it will impose.
I would certainly agree that their comms has been pretty awful, especially since their CEO said the following to Congress (just last week I believe):
“Our business model is simple — we sell products which people pay for once, and we make them better over time with software updates. We’ve achieved success without trying to monetize the data of our customers. We live by the mantra that if we keep making great products, customers will recognize that, and come back and buy more over time. Nearly 40% of our typical customers buy a Sonos product and enjoy it so much they buy another one. We have been shipping products for 16 years, and an astounding 93% of our products are still in use. Keep in mind these are computers — how many of you are still able to use a computer or mobile phone you had 16 years ago? We’re proud of this, as we’ve always tried to build products that last for a long time. This stands in stark contrast to “disposable” tech, where people are encouraged to buy a new product every few years. We are focused on doing one thing really well — providing great sound experiences for customers."
Does the general sonos customer understand they are buying a “computer” or simply a fancy speaker system that uses magic to beam stuff around?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Posting Permissions
