April 4, 2012 01:23 pm EDT

Sonos listens to reason, drops dedicated controller in favor of smartphone apps

Sonos will halt the sale of its pricey CR200 remote control from June 1st, after acknowledging that it's been nudged into obsolescence by free software controllers for Macs, PCs, tablets and smartphones. It'll honor warranties and issue software updates for the "foreseeable future," but CEO John MacFarlane indicates the decision was inevitable, having been brewing ever since the "early days of the iPhone explosion." That never stopped his company from selling the CR200 for a hefty $349, but then again he probably deserves some respect for finally making the call. After all, rival Logitech charges a premium for its own touchscreen-equipped Duet and Touch controllers, even if you only use them once during installation and then never go near them again.

Sonos listens to reason, drops dedicated controller in favor of smartphone apps originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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