At this time, Sonos is formally introducing the redesigned cellular app that I showed you earlier this month. It’ll roll out for each Android and iOS on Might seventh, however the firm’s desktop apps aren’t coming alongside for the journey: Sonos will discontinue its controller apps for Home windows and macOS within the close to future. Taking their place is a brand new internet app that may assist you to management and entry your Sonos audio system from anyplace — not simply while you’re dwelling on Wi-Fi.
However for now, let’s get again to the smartphone app. It’s been rebuilt from the bottom as much as be extra dependable. Sonos’ basic objective was making every thing really feel quicker and getting you the place you need to be with out counting on a tabbed navigation bar. Now, every thing is on the homescreen, and you’ll customise the structure to place your favourite playlists up prime. Need your line-in audio supply positioned larger than every thing else? You are able to do that, too. You may pin particular carousels from music apps (like Spotify’s “new releases”) to the homescreen as properly. And there’s a persistent search bar on the backside, so discovering music is all the time only a single faucet away.
Accessing your audio system is so simple as swiping up from the mini participant on the backside of the app. From there, you’ll see a system overview the place you may regulate quantity, group merchandise, and so forth. If it is advisable to dig deeper, there’s a shortcut to the settings menu within the upper-right nook of the homescreen.
The search expertise is generally the identical, although now you can set a most popular music service that will likely be ranked on the prime of outcomes. Sadly for Apple Music customers, Sonos nonetheless isn’t labeling spatial audio tracks in search outcomes; you gained’t see that badge till you begin taking part in one thing.
Thus far, I’ve solely seen a short demo of the app in motion, so we’ll have to attend till Might seventh to be taught whether or not there are any lacking options or misplaced performance in comparison with the present model. Nothing frustrates Sonos followers greater than that type of factor, so hopefully there gained’t be many holes to plug. I’m trying ahead to testing out the online app and seeing how properly Sonos gadgets may be managed from afar; that comfort was beforehand unique to the company’s Sonos Pro subscription service. The desktop apps had been already receiving little consideration as is, so that is most likely for the perfect.
As you may think, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence appears very excited concerning the new cellular app. “We felt now was the time to reimagine our app expertise,” he mentioned in a press launch. “After thorough growth and testing, we’re assured this redesigned app is less complicated, quicker and higher. It as soon as once more raises the bar for the house music listening expertise, and units up our capability to broaden into new classes and experiences.”
The brand new Sonos app will roll out as an replace to that S2 software program and assist all the identical merchandise.