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Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

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Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#251

Post by Hackbraten »

userbinator wrote: post #106

If there's a demand, someone industrious will likely figure out a hack --- I hope. Server-side blacklisting (unlike whitelisting) doesn't stop someone from simply changing whatever unique ID they have to a different one. I can even see repair shops doing this service for those who accidentally bricked their devices. This reminds me of a related situation I've seen with electric toothbrushes --- they have instructions…

I disagree. Electric toothbrushes need to be 100 % waterproof to be usable safely. If I were a toothbrush manufacturer, I’d at least look into making the brush self-destruct when opened, for safety reasons (and safety reasons alone).

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#252

Post by ladon86 »

Godel_unicode wrote: post #236
robocat wrote: post #228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In other words "recycle" mode isn't recycling (you can just chuck them in the trash) and it isn't reusing. A complete deception to sound green, with zero cost to Sonos with zero attempt to be green, and just causing a waste stream. Nice one Sonos.

Sonos will pay for you to ship your recycled speaker back to them to be recycled. Not only do they pay for this shipping and recycle the speaker, but they give you a 30% credit. Hardly zero cost to Sonos, and considering the thriving market for refurbished speakers from Sonos it seems pretty clear the old speakers are being reused. Overall, sounds like they're doing exactly what they say they are.

They don’t accept the old speakers (let alone pay for shipping), they ask you to bring them to a non-affiliated recycling center. They are never reactivated.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#253

Post by duxup »

crazygringo wrote: post #203

It seems like a lot of commenters here (as well as the tweets) are totally missing the purpose of the recycle mode. If you want to sell, give away, or otherwise let someone else reuse your Sonos, then DON'T PUT IT IN RECYCLE MODE . Easy peasy. Recycle mode exists for when you intentionally want to get a Sonos trade-in credit for recycling your speakers for materials . But because you don't send the speakers directly…

Disabling perfectly functional equipment for some business reason still seems to contradict the concept of sustainably.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#254

Post by Hackbraten »

harshreality wrote: post #36
baybal2 wrote: post #14

Apple pays Chinese "recyclers" for not to refurbishing their I-stuff, and sending it to a crusher. That's not a big secret in the industry. A lot of luxury goods brands destroy their unsold merchandise, and some even go Apple style after their second hand market too.

This should be illegal. Increasing profits by artificially increasing scarcity — by polluting the environment with usable products and parts — is not an acceptable business strategy. I don't really understand why Enron traders got convicted for energy market manipulation, while tech company executives intentionally scrapping usable parts and products get to live in luxury in silicon valley.

The German government is trying to make this practice illegal for vendors. Sadly, not for manufacturers IIRC.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#255

Post by foogazi »

jacquesm wrote: post #33

Sonos had a fair shot at having me as a customer. I was ready to put down money on an installation for a house and then I found out it needed 'activation over the internet'. That being the sign of a company to avoid I walked out again, to the consternation of the sales person who had (his words, not mine): "Never had a customer decide against Sonos because of that". Looks like I made the right call.

What setup did you end up with?

>"Never had a customer decide against Sonos because of that"

as long as customers don’t care neither will Sonos

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#256

Post by ClumsyPilot »

bathtub365 wrote: post #188
jacquesm wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's the problem right there, for a hardware manufacturer post shipping there shouldn't be a server.

They run a routing/cross-auth system so you can stream from other IP-based audio services directly to your speakers. They aren’t entirely a hardware company and those integrations are a value-add for a lot of consumers. I think you should be able to run them in some kind of offline mode, though.

Or it could be smart enough to communicate with my computer directly, and have my credentials onboard, the way my NAS or router does.

Devices that used to be smart way before all this "dumb home" stuff appeared.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#257

Post by asveikau »

londons_explore wrote: post #75
rkochman wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I assume Apple and other companies sell the used products to liquidators who refurbish and resell them. Is that not true?

> I assume Apple and other companies sell the used products to liquidators who refurbish and resell them. Is that not true? For high brand value goods, generally no. Goods are crushed to become unserviceable. It's important to do that to maintain brand image, otherwise floods of not-very-old iPhones end up on ebay for $10, and the image of an iPhone as something that lasts and has resale value is shattered. High end…

> It isn't as bad for the environment as it sounds - the vast majority of the costs in a $1000 iPhone are engineering, IP, licensing, manufacturing, capital and marketing costs.

So it seems like you're defining "good for the environment" as "low dollar costs to Apple". This is very strange.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#258

Post by XMPPwocky »

Godel_unicode wrote: post #238
reeddavid wrote: post #23

What a total waste. Apparel companies are starting to participate in the secondary market for their used gear, why can't Sonos do something similar? Examples: - Patagonia Worn Wear ( https://wornwear.patagonia.com ) - REI Used Gear ( https://www.rei.com/used/shop/gear ) - Arc'teryx Rock Solid ( https://rocksolid.arcteryx.com ) As it stands, Sonos is effectively buying their old speakers and then throwing them away. C…

They are literally doing exactly that. You can take your old speaker into a Sonos store or ship it (on Sonos dime) back to them. They then refurbish and resell, and you get a discount. This story is at best lazy reporting with many facts left out or unresearched. https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/certified-refurbished https://www.sonos.com/en-us/tradeup

From the FAQ on https://www.sonos.com/en-us/tradeup -

> Do you resell recycled devices?

> No.These devices are permanently deactivated and cannot be resold.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#260

Post by ladon86 »

Godel_unicode wrote: post #238
reeddavid wrote: post #23

What a total waste. Apparel companies are starting to participate in the secondary market for their used gear, why can't Sonos do something similar? Examples: - Patagonia Worn Wear ( https://wornwear.patagonia.com ) - REI Used Gear ( https://www.rei.com/used/shop/gear ) - Arc'teryx Rock Solid ( https://rocksolid.arcteryx.com ) As it stands, Sonos is effectively buying their old speakers and then throwing them away. C…

They are literally doing exactly that. You can take your old speaker into a Sonos store or ship it (on Sonos dime) back to them. They then refurbish and resell, and you get a discount. This story is at best lazy reporting with many facts left out or unresearched. https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/certified-refurbished https://www.sonos.com/en-us/tradeup

I already replied to your other comment but in the interest of correcting this misinformation, you can neither ship your bricked device to Sonos nor bring it into a Sonos store.

https://twitter.com/sonossupport/status/1179459927624036357?...

https://twitter.com/sonossupport/status/1198204183335309313?...

https://twitter.com/sonossupport/status/1196142002406133761?...

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