What you need to know
- Sonos S2 — Sonos's major OS upgrade — is launching this June.
- The new software brings improved audio quality and other features.
- Older Sonos hardware will continue to work with the Sonos S1 app.
Sonos — the company behind some of the best connected speakers on the market — has an exciting update planned for its customers later this year. This June, the all-new Sonos S2 app and operating system will debut as the next big evolution for Sonos households.
As mentioned above, Sonos S2 is comprised of two things — a new mobile app and an OS update that'll be available for supported Sonos hardware. Specifics on Sonos S2 are fairly scarce at the moment, but Sonos is saying:
In addition to new features, usability updates, and more personalization moving forward, Sonos S2 will enable higher resolution audio technologies for music and home theater.
Sonos S2 will be available for most Sonos hardware, including:
- Play:1
- Play:3
- Play:5 (Gen 2)
- Playbase
- Playbar
- Connect (Gen 2)
- Connect:Amp (Gen 2)
- One (Gen 1)
- One (Gen 2)
- One SL
- Beam
- Amp
- Port
- Boost
- Symfonisk
- Move
- Sub (Gen 1)
- Sub (Gen 2)
If you have older Sonos hardware that isn't compatible with Sonos S2 (CR200, Bridge, Connect (Gen 1), Connect:Amp (Gen 1), Play:5 (Gen 1), Zone Players), things will continue to work just as they do today. The Sonos app on your phone will be renamed to "Sonos S1 Controller" and everything will work as expected. Security updates and bug fixes will continue to be pushed out, but new software features will be no more.
For people that have a mix of products that are and aren't compatible with Sonos S2, you can either control your entire system with the Sonos S1 app or create two separate systems — one for hardware that is compatible with S2 and another for your older devices.
Alternatively, you can take advantage of Sonos' Trade Up program and upgrade your old devices for a 30% discount on a new model that you purchase. Sonos recently got rid of its controvesial Recycle Mode that used to be required for this discount, making it a much more appealing option than it used to be.
Sonos S2 will be made available this June, and in the meantime, you can continue to use your current Sonos app and speakers like normal.
Great today, better tomorrow
Whether you're already invested in the Sonos ecosystem or are looking for a gateway drug into it, the Sonos One is an excellent buy. It's compact, looks great, and kicks out impressive sound. It's also pretty smart, offering support for Alexa, Google Assistant, and AirPlay 2.
