Sonos Promises to Recommit to Software Quality and Customer Experience After App Disaster
Sonos today announced a series of new commitments that are meant to demonstrate the company's "renewed focus" on software quality and customer experience. The announcement and an accompanying video from Sonos CEO Patrick Spence come as Sonos tries to ameliorate the negative experience customers have had with the May Sonos app update.
Going forward, Sonos says that it isn't just going to fix its app mistake, but also build a better Sonos experience. To that end, Sonos made seven pledges:
- Unwavering focus on customer experience with ambitious quality benchmarks, and a promise to not launch products that don't meet the standards customers expect.
- More stringent pre-launch testing with a broader range of customers to resolve issues before new software comes out.
- No more all-at-once app releases. Any new major changes to the Sonos app will be released gradually, and customers will be able to opt-in to test new features before they become default.
- There will be a new Quality Ombudsperson role that will give employees a clear path to raise concerns regarding quality and customer experience.
- Home speaker products currently under warranty will have their warranty extended for an additional year.
- App updates will come every two to four weeks to "optimize and enhance" the app experience. This includes after the current issues are fixed.
- Sonos is establishing a Customer Advisory Board to provide feedback and insights from a customer perspective to shape and improve products before they launch.
Sonos says that its Executive Leadership Team will not accept any bonus payout for the October 2024 to September 2025 fiscal year unless Sonos is able to improve the quality of the app and rebuild customer trust.
According to Sonos, more than 80 percent of the missing features from the app have now been reintroduced, and the company expects to be at close to 100 percent in the coming weeks.
Recent reports have suggested that Sonos employees raised an alarm prior to when the redesigned Sonos app launched in May. The app was an immediate disappointment to customers because it was riddled with bugs and missing many key Sonos features, and there was significant outcry over the downgrade. Sonos was not able to roll back the changes, and has spent 2024 trying to fix the app.
Sonos has delayed new product launches to focus on software, and as a result, will miss its annual revenue target by $200 million.
Popular Stories
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone.
In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker.
According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found.
Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future.
"I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
You'd expect things to be starting to wind down for the holidays by now, but that doesn't seem to be the case yet in the world of Apple news, with Apple just about ready to release iOS 26.2 and other operating system updates to the public.
There was also a flurry of news this week about Apple executive departures, some expected and some not so expected, while we also learned that Apple and...
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta.
Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre.
Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
