Lil Katz / Android Authority
In brief
- It’s been a difficult year for Sonos, largely due to the poor reception of the mobile app redesign launched in May.
- The redesigned app is riddled with bugs and missing features and has left users frustrated, so Sonos is considering re-releasing the previous version as a temporary solution.
- The previous version of the app may allow Sonos to buy time while the company continues to work on the new app.
Sonos has had quite a rough year. In May, the company released a redesigned mobile app that underperformed, to say the least. What should have otherwise been a cause for celebration at Sonos headquarters thanks to the launch of the company’s first headphones, the Sonos Ace, turned into a period of intense crisis management and even layoffs (more on that later).
The redesigned mobile app received mostly negative feedback from users. The app lacked basic features and contained numerous bugs, so it’s no surprise that customers were frustrated with the redesign. The edge has now reported that Sonos is considering re-releasing the previous version of its mobile app as a temporary solution. The reporting outlet notes: “There have been high-level discussions at Sonos about bringing back the previous version of the app, known as S2.”
Since the app’s launch, Sonos has been working continuously to fix issues in the new app. However, bugs still exist and user frustration continues. With that in mind, the older version of the app could help Sonos buy time while the company continues to work on the new app and restore its users’ trust in its offerings.
During a recent quarterly earnings call, CEO Patrick Spence said:
While redesigning the app was and is the right decision, our execution – my execution – has not met expectations. The app situation has become a hindrance to selling existing products, and we believe we need to focus on the app before anything else. This means we need to delay the two major new product releases we had planned for Q4 until our app experience reaches the level of quality we, our customers, and our partners expect from Sonos.
Currently, Sonos rolls out app improvements every two weeks, and Spence said that will continue through the fall. Re-releasing the old app probably won’t change that, as Sonos needs to have a nearly perfect app ready before it releases it a second time. However, restoring the old app comes with its own challenges, as the company’s new software includes many cloud-based features that may not be compatible with the previous version of the app. Still, it will likely provide users with a more stable and familiar interface.
In related news, Sonos has laid off around 100 employees. The layoffs occurred across all areas, including product and engineering, marketing, software quality, and platform and infrastructure. The company had already laid off 7% of its employees in June 2023.
