I think times are changing.

We have young engineers that never use the SONOS app, they simply use Spotify etc and connect direct to the speaker via AirPlay. Others however only use the app and don’t bother with AirPlay.

The B&O app looks very nice with the pictures of the devices but is 100% unusable for actually playing music to the devices, especially the headphones.

Tap to join function is already part of the SONOS range so I fail to see why B&O cannot keep this feature. It is a relatively new addition to SONOS, simply press and hold and it joins the rest.

AirPlay and cast will just make them a lot more attractive to people but unsure why the Beolink to the older products has been stopped.

I can only notice that the B&O differentiating features from the competitors are reducing over time.

Then we are getting to a point that a Beosound will be a more aesthetically pleasing Apple/Google speaker, at a much higher price.

Let’s see what happens next.

Olivier

PaulGiles wrote:

AirPlay and cast will just make them a lot more attractive to people but unsure why the Beolink to the older products has been stopped.

It doesn't seem like they will stop BeoLink for existing products (and why/how could they?), "only" for products here on out..

Response from B&O: "As for now, I have no information that BeoLink Multiroom with be discontinued entirely. So you will, of course, be able to use Multiroom with your existing units."

Yes exactly - and that was the point many have made here over the last couple of years as doubts have grown.

But as risk of reiterating your point, still having a big design advantage at times (not the Balance, which is nice but hardly a classic of elegance in design) may be largely all they have left. Yes the speakers sound very good, but so do others. And when it comes to the non-BeoLabs, like the M series, BS's 1and 2, and the Balance, 2 grand is a huge premium.  The Naim Muso is a good deal less and much more fully featured, and no-one would really say it sounded anything other than very good.  

OlivierC wrote:

I can only notice that the B&O differentiating features from the competitors are reducing over time.

 

 

Then we are getting to a point that a Beosound will be a more aesthetically pleasing Apple/Google speaker, at a much higher price.

 

 

Let’s see what happens next.

 

 

Olivier

 

PaulGiles wrote:

Tap to join function is already part of the SONOS range so I fail to see why B&O cannot keep this feature. It is a relatively new addition to SONOS, simply press and hold and it joins the rest.

How does sonos do this when using AP?

steve1977 wrote:

PaulGiles:

Tap to join function is already part of the SONOS range so I fail to see why B&O cannot keep this feature. It is a relatively new addition to SONOS, simply press and hold and it joins the rest.

How does sonos do this when using AP?

Good question, yet it does so seamlessly without the slightest delay. Even on the cheapest speaker from IKEA.

Stream to one Sonos speaker over Airplay 2. Hold play on any other Sonos speaker (also older, non-Airplay versions) and you have sound.

StKong wrote:

Stream to one Sonos speaker over Airplay 2. Hold play on any other Sonos speaker (also older, non-Airplay versions) and you have sound.

You’d wonder whether their have been any board level discussions between B&O and Sonos. Adopting the Sonos platform in order to cover the upper end of the speaker market could have made sense just as the IKEA cooperation for the lower end. In theory the BLI could have integrated the Sonos protocol too.

1990 wrote:

You’d wonder whether their have been any board level discussions between B&O and Sonos. Adopting the Sonos platform in order to cover the upper end of the speaker market could have made sense just as the IKEA cooperation for the lower end. In theory the BLI could have integrated the Sonos protocol too.

This would be a dream!!! How amazing would it be to have stereo pairs, groups, even surround, etc. The Sonos platform is outstanding. That’s what i’d hoped b&o may eventually grow into. How cool would it be to have a Stage as center speaker connected with two BS2 and two BS1 as surrounds.

Millemissen wrote:

I am afraid that will never happen due to ’technical problems’ that are out of the hands of B&O.

MM

There is a tv - and there is a BV.

Another forum member replied that this is what Sonos accomplished. So it doesn’t seem a technical, but a capability issue with b&o?

StKong wrote:

Good question, yet it does so seamlessly without the slightest delay. Even on the cheapest speaker from IKEA.

Stream to one Sonos speaker over Airplay 2. Hold play on any other Sonos speaker (also older, non-Airplay versions) and you have sound.

Wish b&o would have grown their audio platform into a sonos like system.

On a positive note, i’ve always been struggling that i feel limited to b&o to keep all devices NL (i have 8 NL devices by now). Now, there is no longer any reason not to buy sonos (instead of the stage) and mix&match with my b&o devices, which are now basically AP/CC devices that can blend into a sonos, homepod, or bose setup.

I doubt it.

As I've said numerous times, this decision (to switch to AP and CC as primary control) was made around 2 years ago from what I was told.

The lack of recent development of the B&O app would underline that this decision has started to take effect a while ago.

The app (for products going forward) will only be for setup / registration and a few settings.

For experience control, you'll have to use third party apps.

 

1990 wrote:

StKong wrote:

Stream to one Sonos speaker over Airplay 2. Hold play on any other Sonos speaker (also older, non-Airplay versions) and you have sound.

You’d wonder whether their have been any board level discussions between B&O and Sonos. Adopting the Sonos platform in order to cover the upper end of the speaker market could have made sense just as the IKEA cooperation for the lower end. In theory the BLI could have integrated the Sonos protocol too.