Summary
- Sonos promised a faster, easier, better app, but the new S2 version is a mess with design and functionality flaws.
- Many users are unhappy with missing features like “Shuffle All” and alarms, disrupting their Sonos experience.
- Despite backlash, Sonos defends the redesign as necessary and said it was a courageous move.
In early April, we reported that the Sonos app for Android and iOS would get a major makeover and bring some new features to users. Sonos delivered on its promise and dropped its latest app on May 7. Before the official rollout, the firm advertised its new app as “faster, easier, better.” However, the redesigned version is such a mess that many users wish they had never updated their app. As it turns out, the S2 Sonos app has many design and functionality flaws that have disrupted the customer’s experience with Sonos products.
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Unhappy customers are now raising their voices on Reddit and other social media platforms, with many calling the update a huge step backward. There’s also a Megathread on Reddit where impacted customers are sharing their experience with the new Sonos app. Most complaints revolve around missing features that prevent users from editing their playlists or music queues.
Sonos says it’s working to address the issues
For example, a user wrote that the “Shuffle All” feature is removed from the combined library, and the “play next” and “play last” options are also missing. These features are essential for many Sonos users, and their absence has significantly affected their music-listening experience.
Additionally, Sonos has ditched the alarms and timers from its new app. This change has disrupted the daily routines of some users who rely on these features. Another user wrote that after updating to the S2 Sonos app, they can no longer use the eight speakers in their home, making their Sonos sound system practically unusable.
Users repeatedly request that Sonos should also bring back the numbers on the volume slider, which helps them set the volume at a specific rate. Most issues raised by unhappy customers could be fixed before the app’s official rollout only if Sonos released a beta version first and collected the user’s feedback for the stable version.
Although the new app has caused an uproar among Sonos customers, the company still defends its decision and says the new design was necessary. In a statement provided to The Verge, Sonos chief product officer Maxime Bouvat-Merlin says, “Redesigning the Sonos app is an ambitious undertaking that represents just how seriously we are committed to invention and re-invention.” Bouvat-Merlin added that the app redesign took “courage,” and the company might need to take a few steps back for future advancements.
Sonos has acknowledged the issues and confirmed it’s listening to customers’ feedback to address them. If you’re a Sonos customer, watch out for the app’s upcoming updates as the company may bring back missing features soon.
