Malcolm Owen
Sonos has issued a rare apology for its May iOS app update, promising that changes are on the way to improve a badly-received overhaul of the software.
Sonos updated its app in May, making significant updates to its iOS and Android offerings to make the app easier to navigate and to get people streaming music quicker. It turns out the app's release was so bad that it deserved an apology.
In a July 25 blog post, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence acknowledges users had "experienced significant problems" with the updated app. "I want to begin by personally apologizing for disappointing you," he starts.
"There isn't an employee at Sonos who isn't pained by having let you down, and I assure you that fixing the app for all of our customers and partners has been and continues to be our number one priority," he continued.
The app update was intended to create "a better experience," he insists, with a view to "drive more innovation in the future."
The path to recovery by adding missing features and functionality was slowed down, however, after the company uncovered "a number of issues." Fixing those problems, Spence explains, delayed the plan to roll out said feature updates.
Steady fixes
Following the May 7 update, Sonos has released new versions every two weeks, with the aim of including "significant and meaningful improvements, adding features and fixing bugs."
Sonos has also created an outline of future improvements it has prioritized in future updates. These start with improved stability when adding products and implementing a Music Library configuration in July and August.
Between August and September, it plans to improve volume responsiveness, system stability, and to incorporate UI elements based on user feedback. In September, alarm consistency and reliability is on the docket.
For September and October, the proposed changes include restoring the edit mode for playlists and the Queue, as well as other settings.
"We deeply appreciate your patience as we address these issues," concludes Spence. "We know we have to work to do to earn back your trust and are working hard to do just that."
A change of tune
The mean culpa follows after an intensely poor reaction to the update. Users were quick to complain about missing features that existed in the previous app, but didn't make it to the new version at launch.
At the time, Sonos issued a press release that was somewhat tone-deaf, brushing aside the issues and insisting they would be fixed within months.
"It takes courage to rebuild a brand's core product from the ground up, and to do so knowing it may require taking a few steps back to ultimately leap into the future," Sonos said in a statement, before insisting users will eventually love the app's seamless personalization.
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8 Comments
I’d care more if Sonos provided me with a product that worked. I dipped my toe into Sonos speakers a couple of years ago and my experience is bad enough I won’t be trying anything else.
I started buying Sonos speakers about eight years ago — including two of what was then their largest sound bars (plus a pair of their smaller speakers to be rear surround-sound for each, providing 5.1 audio in rooms both upstairs and downstairs), a sub, and several of their other smaller speakers for bedrooms and a bathroom. I've got one Sonos Move 1 as well. All of my speakers, including the 8-year-old ones, were and are compatible with the system change that they did about four years ago.
Occasional glitches happen when streaming a radio station to Sonos speakers in multiple rooms — sometimes the audio just stops and I have to restart it. But any audio sourced from a television (more specifically, an Apple TV box connected to a TV) is always rock-solid. I can't remember any problems there. Audio quality is fantastic.
I remain a big Sonos fan and am sorry to hear about customers who have had bad experiences. It's good to see the CEO apologize for the problems with the recent app redesign. The app's issues haven't bothered me, but apparently I don't use the affected features.
I guess because I use either AirPlay or a wired connection from my TV to drive my Sonos speakers, I haven’t noticed all of the issues that people are complaining about. Can’t even remember the last time I even opened their app. Not defending them, just perplexed
I'm in the same boat. I used the app once or twice and that was about it with my Sonos Ace headphones. I primarily use them with my AppleTV so I don't really have a knock on the newer app.
I've been using Sonos for over 10 years and have 13 speakers and sound bars throughout my house. I turned off auto-updates for the past couple of months because I'd heard horror stories about the new app, but it finally forced me to update a few days ago. The result? Everything still works fine. The app does everything I was using it for before and I even find the new interface more intuitive. I don't mean to discount the people who have had problems -- that really sucks and I've been there with other technologies, but I want to provide a counterpoint as someone heavily invested in their products who hasn't had an issue.