![]() Moreover, Sonos locks you into their mobile software application, which aggregates music sources to distribute audio on its platform. There is no easy way to integrate third-party standalone speakers into a Sonos home without using one of their expensive adapters. error-resistant wireless music distribution, andīut, this came with an inherent trade-off: Sonos hardware, as a multi room solution, is very expensive including both their standalone music speakers and, particularly, their $350 Sonos Connect adapters for third-party audio video receivers.simplicity of configuring speakers and audio zones,.Initially, Sonos had three things in its favor: Many colleagues of mine bought into Sonos technology (usually coupled with a complex, expensive remote control technology like Control4) as a solution for multi-room music distribution. Frankly, I never understood why Apple didn’t evolve its Airplay solution, given both the competitive product threats from Sonos and Google and the strategic value of reinforcing the iPhone as the ‘first screen’. ![]() you could only start muti-room playback from your Mac, not your iPhone.įor a while, you could buy Airplay-enabled standalone speakers, but these were limited to Wireless-G technology (making them even more susceptible to audio dropouts).Airplay doesn’t support the concept of zones or device groups, and.Airplay targets could randomly drop out,.audio synchronization didn’t persist across lengthier periods of time, leading to the ‘warehouse echo’ effect across rooms,.the last Airport Express units were based on obsolete Wireless-N technology,.However, Apple’s solution wasn’t perfect: The Airport Express can output both in analog and optical audio formats. For its time, this was a pretty elegant solution, supporting both lossless audio and synchronized multi-room audio. Appleįor many years, we used Apple’s Airport Express units to distribute music via Airplay throughout our home. That way, I could create custom playlists while preserving the original audio quality. I later imported them in Apple Lossless format into iTunes. I started collecting compact discs in the ’80s. Google says it’ll continue to support Chromecast Audio users for the time being, so if you have already invested in this ecosystem, you should be set for a few more years.Music and high quality audio playback has been a passion of mine for many years. Over the years, the Chromecast Audio received numerous updates that enabled features like multi-room support. The Chromecast Audio first launched back in 2015, in conjunction with the second-generation Chromecast. It’s also worth noting that all Google Home devices can connect to Bluetooth-enabled speakers, though plenty of people surely have a nice speaker setup at home that doesn’t have built-in Bluetooth support. “Bluetooth adapters suck,” Google told us at the time, though at this point, it seems a Bluetooth adapter may just be the way to go. Google is clearly more interested in getting people to buy its Google Home products and Assistant- or Cast-enabled speakers from its partners. While the Chromecast turned out to be a major hit for Google, the Chromecast Audio was always more of a niche product. We will continue to offer assistance for Chromecast Audio devices, so users can continue to enjoy their music, podcasts and more.” “We have therefore stopped manufacturing our Chromecast Audio products. “Our product portfolio continues to evolve, and now we have a variety of products for users to enjoy audio,” Google told us in a statement. If you still want one, you’ll have to hurry - and to entice you to buy a discontinued product, Google is now selling its remaining inventory for $15 instead of $35. Google has decided to stop manufacturing the audio dongle that allowed you to add any “dumb” speaker to your Google Cast setup.
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