Sonos For Android Is Here, Devices Now Support Airplay

You’ve been waiting and now it’s here: Sonos has just announced the availability of the free Controller on the Android platform. It is compatible with almost all Android phones and tablets and supports the standard Sonos feature set (music assignment, browsing, search) as well as a few interesting additions.

The app takes advantage of Android’s native speech recognition to offer voice search (“Zamfir, Master of the Pan Flute”) and it also highjacks your Android device’s volume keys to control the volume of the Sonos device.

The Sonos system now also supports Airplay but in a very roundabout way. If you have an Airport Express with Airplay support (or Apple TV, for that matter), you can transmit audio from an iPad, iPod, or iPhone to that device using Airplay. You can then take the live stream from the Airplay device and send it to any Sonos device on your network. It’s obviously not ideal, but it works. You can still transmit audio from multiple devices (including iTunes libraries) around your network.

Sonos has been slowly but surely cementing their position as one of the premier whole-home audio solutions and these small but significant changes are a testament to their dedication to slow and steady improvement. The 3.4 update is available to Sonos users now and should download automatically when you launch the desktop application.

SONOS CONTROLLER FOR ANDROID NOW AVAILABLE ON ANDROID MARKET

Sonos Gives Android Fans Amazing Sound, Unlimited Music and
Incredible Wireless Control in Every Room of the Home

SANTA BARBARA, CA – April 19, 2011 – Sonos, the leading developer of wireless multi-room music systems for the home, today announced that the Sonos Controller for Android™ is now available for download as a free app on Android Market™. Sonos Controller for Android transforms most Android™ smartphones into a wireless music controller for the award-winning Sonos Multi-Room Music System. To see a video of how you can use an Android smartphone to control music all over the home with Sonos, please visit www.sonos.com/android.

“We’re pleased to deliver a great new way for music lovers to tap into all the music on earth,” said John MacFarlane, founder and CEO, Sonos, Inc. “Now Android owners can pull out their phones and bring music home with Sonos.”

With the award-winning Sonos S5 in any room and an Android smartphone in hand, music fans can now enjoy an unmatched wireless music experience in the home. Access and play all the music on earth—from the Internet and your personal music library—throughout the home, wirelessly. Play the same song in every room of the house – perfectly synchronized. Or mix it up and play different songs in different rooms. Use the free Sonos Controller for Android to control all your music and rooms, all from the palm of your hand.

Search for songs and stations by typing or speaking, thanks to the new Sonos music voice search feature. Also, turn the hard buttons on your Android smartphone into volume control. And because your Android phone is controlling the music–not the source of it–when a text comes in or you need to make a phone call, the music doesn’t stop.

The Sonos Controller for Android works on any Android smartphone running Android 2.1+ with a screen size of HVGA 320 x 480, WVGA 480 x 800 or WVGA 480 x 854. Sonos Controller for Android joins the family of Sonos Controllers which includes free apps for iPhone and iPad, a dedicated touchscreen controller, the Sonos Controller 200, and free software for your Mac or PC, which is included with every ZonePlayer. All controllers work together seamlessly.
In conjunction with today’s Sonos Controller for Android availability, Sonos has released Sonos System Software v3.4 which features support for Apple AirPlay music sources, iOS multi-tasking and more. For more details, see additional press release or visit http://sonos.com/support/software_update.aspx

NOW PLAYING ALL OVER THE HOME:
APPLE AIRPLAY MUSIC SOURCES ON SONOS
Sonos offers the only true, multi-room Apple AirPlay experience
with an Apple AirPort Express

SANTA BARBARA, CA – April 19, 2011 – Sonos, the leading developer of wireless multi-room music systems for the home, today introduced Sonos System Software 3.4, a free software update that adds more music and more features to the Sonos music experience. Sonos 3.4 makes it easy to play Apple AirPlay® music sources all over the home, and adds support for Apple iPad™ and Apple iPhone® multitasking and Sonos Controller for Android™.

“The cool AirPlay feature for music is sending a song from an iOS device to a speaker or receiver,” said John MacFarlane, founder and CEO, Sonos, Inc. “Today Sonos improves the AirPlay experience with party mode so a music lover can send a song from his iPhone or iPad to all the rooms in a home with perfect synchronization.”

Apple AirPlay Music Sources on Sonos
Now you can stream songs from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch® all over your home on Sonos. Connect an Apple Airport Express® via line-in to any Sonos ZonePlayer and enjoy the only true, multi-room Apple AirPlay experience.
• Party Mode: Only on Sonos can you send a song from your iOS device to multiple ZonePlayers throughout your home and enjoy that song in every room, simultaneously.
• Different songs in different rooms, Sonos-style: Only on Sonos can you play different music from your iTunes® library in different rooms of the home. And it’s been that way since 2005.
For more information about how to play Apple AirPlay music sources on Sonos, recommended setup and more, please visit www.sonos.com/AirPlay.

Other Sonos 3.4 features include:
Faster wireless control on your iPhone and iPad with iOS multitasking support. Find and play your music even faster with multitasking updates available on the free Sonos Controller for iPhone and Sonos Controller for iPad. Both are available for download from the iTunes App Store.

More control with support for Sonos Controller for Android. Transform your favorite Android smartphone into a full-fledged Sonos Controller with a free app you can download from Android Market™ today. Sonos Controller for Android features innovative music voice search so you can find any artist, album or track by simply speaking into your phone. For more details, see additional press release at http://pr.sonos.com or visit www.sonos.com/android.

Full details of the Sonos 3.4 software release can be found here: http://sonos.com/support/software_update.aspx

For press resources, photography or product videos, please visit http://pr.sonos.com.