Sonos Drops Its Plans for an Expensive Apple TV-Like Streaming Box
Credit: Tim Foster
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In February, it was reported that Sonos was developing a high-end streaming set-top box that would launch in 2025. Now comes word from The Verge that the company has canceled work on the device.
The company notified its employees of the project’s cancellation in a meeting held earlier today. The employees involved have all been assigned to other projects.
Sonos had planned to price its new streaming device in the range of $200 to $400, making it decidedly more expensive than the Apple TV. The device was expected to debut in the second half of 2025, and it was almost ready for production — the company had been beta testing it for months. Despite spending considerable resources on its development, interim CEO Tom Conrad has decided to reprioritize Sonos’ roadmap, deciding against the company moving into the video category.
The now-canceled project was codenamed “Pinewood.” The device was described as a simple black box with a “beautiful” Android interface that offered content from Netflix, Max, and other popular streaming services.
In addition to being a streaming box, the device would have doubled as an HDMI switch, allowing users to plug in game consoles, soundbars and other devices, thanks to its passthrough feature. The device reportedly fixed a latency issue the company had long battled, preventing televisions from experiencing audio sync delays when used with Sonos-branded soundbars.
Sonos users who have Sonos speakers would have been able to configure a surround sound system with Sonos devices. It would also have boasted Wi-Fi 7 and gigabit Ethernet support.
The set-top streaming box project is not the only project Sonos has cancelled recently. In February, The Verge reported that Sonos once considered manufacturing a MagSafe-compatible speaker that would attach directly to an iPhone.
Sonos engineers had prototyped a tiny, iPhone-compatible speaker that could be directly attached to the handset via MagSafe to play audio via Bluetooth. The report said the speaker prototype was square, resembling Apple’s no-longer-on-sale MagSafe battery pack, although it was a bit thicker.
Some Sonos employees urged management to move forward with the project, believing the speaker would be popular with Gen Z and expecting it to deliver good sound despite its compact size. However, Sonos decision makers decided to scrap the project, due to “technical limitations, questionable appeal, and a limited target market.”
The past few years have not been the best for Sonos, as it has recently faced several issues with its devices and accompanying apps.
Sonos CEO Patrick Spence stepped down in January, following an eight-year stint that ended with widespread criticism over the company’s failed 2024 app redesign.
In May 2024, Sonos launched a redesigned app that was intended to modernize the app and add support for the company’s first headphones, the Sonos Ace.
Unfortunately, the app had several technical issues and dropped some popular features that users enjoyed in the previous app. Users also reported connectivity problems, interface confusion, and lag when using the app. Some users even claimed that their Sonos system was now unusable.
The company has since appointed board member and former Snap and Pandora executive Tom Conrad as interim CEO, while a search is conducted for a permanent replacement.
