Sonos hasn’t had the best track record when it comes to recycling or extending the life of its speakers. But it seems like maybe it’s taken customer criticism to heart. Today, the company announced it’s offering a battery replacement kit for its Sonos Move speakers.
As a refresher, the Sonos Move is the company’s first — and thus far, only — battery-powered connected speaker. Before the Move, Sonos speakers were limited to a power source and your wifi connection, making them somewhat tedious to use for outdoor parties.
But with battery-powered portability comes some tradeoffs. While the Move has a rechargeable battery and charging stand, over time you’ll get less mileage with each charge. Sonos says the Move battery should last roughly three years, or 900 charges, whichever comes first. The replacement kit will cost $US70 ($91) and comes with a new battery, tools, and replacement screws. (Also, hopefully the instructions.) It’ll also come in two colours: Lunar White or Shadow Black.
Since the Move first launched in late 2019, it’s unlikely that most Move owners have wrecked their batteries just yet. However, it’s nice to see the company be proactive about this particular issue. Back in late 2019, Sonos came under fire for its Trade Up program, which offered customers a discount on upgrading to newer speakers if they recycled their old ones. The problem was the process also bricked the speakers, which not only limited their resale value but forced some e-waste recycling centres to unnecessarily scrap perfectly good hardware. This was only compounded when a few weeks later, Sonos announced it was retiring many of its older products, angering customers who claimed their older hardware were still usable and in good condition. Shortly after, the company backpedaled, promising to keep all products updated — though the older legacy products would no longer be compatible with newer ones. A couple months after that, Sonos also then decided that it would no longer brick recycled speakers.
Given that history, it’s refreshing to see Sonos offer a DIY solution at a relatively affordable price before it becomes a widespread issue. Sometimes, letting companies know how you really feel actually does work.
Editor’s Note: Stay tuned for local Australian pricing and availability.