Out with the old: Sonos unveils cool, new app – for new speakers only

Sonos' new app will be available on Google Play and the App Store under the current name 'Sonos'. — dpa

The ageist sound designers at Sonos are continuing to split their wireless loudspeaker range into two categories: old and new.

All devices launched after May will now run on a new app that adds more personalisation, more supported audio formats and better sound quality, Sonos says. The new mobile interface should also be compatible with almost all loudspeakers sold in recent years.

Sonos' new app will be available on Google Play and the App Store under the current name "Sonos".

If you have an older device, however, you'll still be forced to use the old "Sonos S1 Controller" app.

Sonos customers who have only S2-compatible devices will be able to switch to the new app in June.

Good news if you have new Sonos speakers, right? Not so if you have an old one, and the new situation is expected to make things more complicated in households with a mix of old and new speakers.

You can, however, still separate your Sonos system into two independent systems, each running the different versions of the Sonos app.

The multi-room sound specialists are meanwhile continuing to entice you to upgrade your old speaker with a 30% discount on upgrading to a new device.

This isn't the only Sonos announcement in recent weeks to have rubbed users the wrong way. Sonos earlier announced that some older devices would be excluded from May software updates, as they were no longer technically up to scratch, before rolling back these plans to phase out support. The only loudspeaker now impacted by an end to updates is the Play:5 model of the first generation, sold from 2009 to 2015. – dpa