At least they're being honest about their intentions
Sonos, like other hardware manufacturers, is having a bit of a problem with their customer base. If you build something too well then its likely that the customers won't feel the need to 'upgrade' -- in other words, buy new stuff -- and so their customer base will shrink. This is an innovative idea to get the customers to self-immolate, to destroy their perfectly functional product so they can get a nominal savings off the inflated price of a new item.
I've had several perfectly functional things become degraded and eventually unusable due to manufacturer upgrades. Anything that's got a processor and some level of connectivity, no matter how limited, is at risk. I know that I'm risking missing out on a 'enhanced user experience' but in reality this is mostly BS - I could happily process sound and video on devices a decade or two ago and all that's changed over the years is that functionality and usability have been degraded in the name of rights preservation. Now they're coming for my toaster...
(One example. I have a couple of Squeezebox table radios. These Logitect products are well made, sound good and are versatile, they can both stream locally and off the Internet. The modern equivalent is the same hardware with different software called "UE". The newer stuff won't function at all without being able to call home all the time -- essentially it becomes a peripheral to some central music server. So to maintain functionality I have to defend the equipment from manufactuer's updates. I just don't trust them -- I saw what happened to another brand of similar product.)
Biting the hand that feeds IT
