CEO Tom Conrad on cleaning up Sonos’ app redesign mess and turning a speaker company into a software platform.
That’s a stat shared by Sonos CEO Tom Conrad at the company’s Open House event. Always interesting to hear the numbers. You can read about the new gear (and a big update to its app) in our post, but stay tuned for more coverage.
Your Sonos speakers can now control your Lutron Caséta lights, plugs, and shades alongside your music with Sonos Voice Control. This is the second lighting integration for the speaker’s built-in assistant, which added the ability to control your Hue lights last year.
In a post on Reddit, Sonos CEO Tom Conrad says the company is rolling out a beta this week that will introduce tabbed navigation, a volume interface “that is easier to grab and fine tune,” and more control over player organization. It’s part of Conrad’s efforts to clean up the app more than two years after a messy redesign.
[Reddit r/Sonos]
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The Play takes the best parts of the Roam and Move speakers to make a great Wi-Fi and Bluetooth speaker.
As reported by former Verge staffer Chris Welch for Bloomberg, Sonos is planning to “simplify” its mobile app, but unlike with the last Sonos app debacle, the changes will be opt-in until they’re ready for a wide release.
The Continuous Audio Connection setting in the tvOS 26.4 beta uses Dolby MAT to reportedly address audio dropout and sync issues when switching formats. Sonos users on Reddit say it also fixes level problems with 5.1 PCM content.
Yesterday the company announced its first new hardware since 2024. The Sonos Amp Multi is targeted at high-end sound systems and professional audio installers, but this video explaining all of the amplifier’s features will make anyone with a handful of old speakers lying around want to add one to their setup.
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Following a focus on improving its software and mobile app, the Amp Multi is Sonos’ first new hardware debut since the launch of its Arc Ultra soundbar in 2024, as reported by Bloomberg. The Amp Multi lets users connect traditional speakers to their wireless audio systems using eight amplified outputs, but is designed for professional installations.
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As reported by Chris Welch at Bloomberg, a few Reddit users have shared photos of their damaged speakers.
A Sonos spokesperson tells Welch that the company has tracked a “a limited number” of reports. “While the overall incidence rate is very low, and environmental conditions appear to play a role, we’ve taken several proactive steps to even further reduce the likelihood of this issue, including software updates and hardware improvements.”
I recently came home from a week-long vacation to discover that a colony of ants had taken up residence inside my Sonos Play:1. It was shocking and gross, but I also got weirdly fascinated by the whole situation.
My curiosity led me to some hilarious Sonos user forums, a pile of theories involving speaker grills and magnetic fields, and a conversation with an entomologist. You can listen to the whole creepy crawly story on this week’s Vergecast. Please enjoy, and/or I’m sorry.
