Despite designing some of the best soundbars on the market, Sonos has recently suffered a controversial debacle with the announcement of a new app redesign

The fiasco has proved to be quite a challenge and has caused Sonos to delay some of its upcoming launches in order to work on fixing the platform Amid these constraints, many thought that they might re-launch older apps in hopes of fixing these problems, but these plans seem to have been marred by a series of setbacks of their own

Sonos CEO Patrick Spence addressed these woes in a recent Reddit AMA, emphasizing the nature of S2 apps, which run software alongside the device in the cloud This means that it is much more difficult for Sonos to use long-standing apps, and stability issues will only pile up

Spence said that fixing the app “remains my top priority,” but also mentioned the “possibility” of two-factor authentication in the future Although the new app was launched about three months ago, Sonos has yet to fix the problems it faces, and it could be some time before it can get back on track

Sonos launched the new Sonos app on May 7, but performance issues ranging from slow navigation to constant crashes and even hardware limitations have led to user backlash, and senior streaming writer Malcolm McMillan cites the need to “unplug Beam once a week”

Even the best Sonos speakers have been found to have load-bearing problems after the launch of the new app, as Sonos uses the app as software tied to the cloud to make its devices work optimally In July, Spence defended the development of new apps as a way “to create a better experience” and “with the ability to drive further innovation in the future,” but also pointed out problems and said Sonos aims to fix them before new features and functions are added

Reports such as this article from The Verge suggested that Sonos may have moved away from its original plans to adopt this new app, preferring to leverage its predecessor on the S2 platform However, in the wake of a recent Reddit AMA with Spence, that plan appears to have been scuttled

Sonos executives pointed out the complexity of the old and new app designs, emphasizing that the apps work with the cloud to better control the audio devices that make up the home entertainment setup Spence writes: “The apps are not only a great way to get the most out of your home, they are also a great way to get the most out of your home

“Of course, the missive is that Sonos is software that works not only with mobile apps, but also with speakers and the cloud In the months since the new mobile app was released we have been updating the software to work on speakers and in the cloud After extensive testing, we have come to the unceremonious conclusion that re-releasing S2 will make the problem worse, not better I find this disappointing It was a disappointment to me as well

This unfortunately does not give Sonos users a clear and concise understanding of when they can expect to see improvements in the now-remodeled app He states that fixing the Sonos app “remains my top priority,” but given that the effort on this front has been three months in the making, it is hard to say when we can expect significant changes [The Bowers and Wilkins Panorama 3 and Yamaha Yas-209 are great alternatives to Sonos