My basic requirements are simple: great sound, suppor Spotify. That’s it. So hard Apple?
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Sonos Working on New 'Era' High-End Speakers
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What issue? I’ve been running Sonos on a mesh network for 7 yrs now without an issue. Sonos can also run on their own wifi channel.
Side note to others, say what you will about the Sonos App, it works with hundreds of services. The Apple Music app has been trash ever since they started pushing their music service. The Sonos app doesn’t annoy me to listen to Drake or whoever else they’re pushing for the week. It does what it’s supposed to do - play local music or stream a service.
My parents are still using two of the original Connect:Amps. They have to be 15 years old by now. Still supported.
What’s wrong with it? Supports so many audio sources seamlessly.
High end are the likes of Wilson and Magico, not Sonos.
Popular speaker company Sonos is developing new high-end smart speakers that will compete with Apple's HomePod and HomePod mini, according to reports from The Verge. The Era 300 and the Era 100 will launch in the coming months, and have been in development since mid-2022.
A 3D rendering of the Sonos speaker, created by The Verge
The multidirectional Era 300 will be the new Sonos flagship speaker, featuring support for Dolby Atmos and spatial audio tracks. The Verge says that the speaker will offer "the richest fidelity of any single speaker" in Sonos' history. Other features will include USB-C line-in, Wi-Fi 6 support, and possibly, Bluetooth playback.
Fewer details are known about the Era 100, but both of the new speakers will have a refreshed design, automatic tuning, and sound optimization. The Era 100 could be a replacement for the more affordable Sonos One.
There is no launch date for the new Era speakers, nor have price points leaked. The speakers will compete with the $299 HomePod 2, which came out last week. Sonos is also developing a second-generation "Move" speaker that will replace the current model, and it is planning to enter a new product category in 2023 that is as of yet unknown.
Article Link: Sonos Working on New 'Era' High-End Speakers
How so? By most accounts and reviews the sound is on par if not slightly improved compared to gen 1, with slightly better mids and highs on the gen 2.
Depends which specific speakers you are referring to, but again doesn’t solve the problem of horrible horrible software (Sonos App)
Totally agree. I just wish they sorted their app and worked something out with Apple to bring Siri commands to Sonos, because if you’re invested in HomeKit it isn’t wise to switch everything to Alexa.
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Well let’s take the home cinema solution shall we…
Say you get a Sonos Arc - you need the Sonos app to set that up , configure and operate - even if you enable airplay.
You then realise the Arc sounds way too bright and need the Sonos Sub or Sub Mini. You then realise you miss having surround sound so you need to get a pair of Ones or One SLs…
It’s just as closed an ecosystem as Apple, which is why it would have been a great acquisition for Apple, but that ship has long sailed.
And all this talk of Sonos speakers allowing Bluetooth and line in. Nonsense. Only Sonos’ portable speakers (Roam and Move) support Bluetooth, Everything else relies on the WiFi or SonosNet network; and only the Sonos Five (at £500 RRP) has aux-in.
Meanwhile if you want your Sonos to do any smart home stuff you’re going to have to switch from HomeKit to Alexa or Google Home, which is far from ideal.
Soundbar?
While the Arc beats the HomePod for sound , the Roam 2 and the Ray absolutely do not. Unless it’s the Homepod Mini you refer to.
That is of course unless you’re adding rears and a sub to the Roam / Ray..
T
Apple’s HomePod Can Hear You. You Might Not Want To Hear It
The revamped full-size Siri smart speaker has good mics, but it can’t compete on sound.www.wired.com
Also read the forum posts. Not many happy listeners.
Music services disappear on a weekly basis - I’ve had to log in to verify my Apple Music account way too often.
There’s a bug where searching for songs across services brings no results , so you have to restart the app to fix that.
It’s near impossible to find / navigate specific episodes of radio shows on Apple Music.
The UI is clumsy and confusing..
I could go on. Even the most die-hard Sonos fans complain about the app.
That’s not quite right, you can use SonoPad or SonoPhone as a control point.
How then do you set up and configure your sonos speakers without the Sonos app?That’s not quite right, you can use SonoPad or SonoPhone as a control point.
Also that SonosPad software looks just as awful. How does that get to and manage my Apple Music playlists for example?
Love my Sonos system though it is getting older. Still sounds great however and could really never justify the trade in for newer speakers including the OG Playbar and Sub. No doubt the newer speakers sound better but these are still good enough. HomePod is a non-starter for me as we are a mixed iOS/ Android household.
I, for one, am glad that Apple didn't buy them. Sonos is great on their own and we need to maintain competition.
Why wouldn't you connect everything with an Ethernet cable that can take an Ethernet cable?
Got a whole home Sonos system now spanning many, many zones and Sonos products. I’d never buy another thing from them.
They way they treated their early customers was abhorrent. When they finally relented and agreed to continue supporting their devices, it turns out that was a lie. The required clunky Sonos 1 app now crashes every relaunch. So not only did they freeze any substantive updates, they acctually made the system worse.
Besides that, I’ve had many of the devices fail over the years. Sometimes Sonos offers discounted replacements, sometimes it’s just tough luck. There are no repair options. Meanwhile, my Marantz from the 70s just keeps chugging along.
Be very careful investing into a Sonos system. They’ll pull the rug on you too sooner or later.
They way they treated their early customers was abhorrent. When they finally relented and agreed to continue supporting their devices, it turns out that was a lie. The required clunky Sonos 1 app now crashes every relaunch. So not only did they freeze any substantive updates, they acctually made the system worse.
Besides that, I’ve had many of the devices fail over the years. Sometimes Sonos offers discounted replacements, sometimes it’s just tough luck. There are no repair options. Meanwhile, my Marantz from the 70s just keeps chugging along.
Be very careful investing into a Sonos system. They’ll pull the rug on you too sooner or later.
You dumped a Sonos ecosystem because of a music streaming service? Does Sonos not play Apple Music or something?