The Sonos app overhaul: A costly miscalculation

The new Sonos app (Photo: Sonos)

Sonos’s ambitious redesign of its app promised a more modern, customizable, and user-friendly experience. However, two months later, the overhaul has proven to be a colossal misstep. While the company has been frantically backtracking with frequent updates to restore missing features, widespread customer frustration persists.

In a damage control effort, CEO Patrick Spence issued a public apology, acknowledging the significant disruption caused by the new app. The mea culpa comes after initial responses were perceived as tone-deaf, given the app’s numerous bugs and shortcomings.

Sonos has outlined a roadmap for app improvements through October, with bi-weekly updates aimed at stabilizing the platform. The recent update addressed issues with local library playback. However, highly anticipated features like queue editing within the app won't be available until fall.

Hindsight reveals a clear misstep. Sonos could have just released the new app exclusively for the Sonos Ace headphones because it's incompatible with the current app. And then they could've maintained the old app for other devices as they worked to bring the two to parity. By forcing users into the buggy new version, Sonos has alienated its customer base. While the company is now racing to rectify the situation, the damage may already be done.

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