Sonos S1 Controller vs Bose Connect
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Sonos S1 Controller
Manage your older Sonos systems with ease. This app allows you to control volume, group rooms, set alarms, and stream from your favorite services. Enjoy thousands of free stations with Sonos Radio.
- Control older Sonos products
- Adjust volume
- Group rooms
- Save favorites
- Set alarms
- Stream from services
- Listen to Sonos Radio
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This app controls systems that include the earliest Sonos products: Zone Players, Play:5 (Gen 1), Bridge, Connect (Gen 1) and Connect:Amp (Gen 1) Easily control your system. Adjust volume levels, group rooms, save favorites, set alarms, and more. Stream from popular services. Connect your streaming services and browse all your music, podcasts, radio, and audiobooks in a single app. Listen to Sonos Radio. Enjoy thousands of stations free on your system, including live radio from around the world, genre stations, artist-curated stations, and original programming from Sonos. If you are a California resident, for more information about our privacy practices, please see: California Privacy Notice: https://www.sonos.com/legal/privacy#legal-privacy-addendum-container
Bose Connect
Control and enhance your Bose Bluetooth audio devices. Manage settings, share music with friends, and customize noise cancellation. Stay updated with the latest software for an optimized listening experience.
- Manage product settings
- Control auto-off timer
- Adjust volume
- View battery readings
- Share music with two headphones
- Sync speakers for Party Mode
- Enable Stereo Mode for speakers
- Adjust noise cancellation
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Bose Connect unlocks the full potential of your Bose Bluetooth® Product. EASY ACCESS TO EVERYTHING Get quick access to the key features on your products, like the auto-off timer, volume control, and battery readings. And it’s the easiest way to manage multiple Bluetooth connections. But that’s just the beginning. SHARE THE MUSIC MUSIC SHARE lets you listen together. Now two pairs of Bose® wireless headphones can share the experience - listen together, at the same time, while one of you DJ’s. New PARTY MODE lets you sync two SoundLink® speakers for double the audio…ideal for listening in two different places, and new STEREO MODE immerses you in music by separating the sound into Left and Right channels across two paired speakers for that amazing stereo experience. GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR HEADPHONES CONTROLLABLE NOISE CANCELLATION on our QC®30 headphones lets you decide how much of the world to let in by adjusting the level of noise cancellation right in the app. And the built-in HEART RATE MONITOR for our SoundSport® Pulse headphones displays your heart rate clearly in the app. AND SO MUCH MORE From viewing product details to personalizing settings, get the most out of your Bose wireless products. It even downloads the latest software in the background and only installs it when you’re ready. See how our simple app can make all the difference. * NOTE * Bose Connect works with Bose Frames, QC®35, SoundSport® wireless, SoundSport® Pulse wireless, SoundSport® Free wireless, QuietControl™ 30, SoundLink® wireless II, ProFlight® headphones, and SoundWear Companion speaker, SoundLink® Color II, SoundLink® Revolve, SoundLink® Revolve+, SoundLink® Micro, and S1 Pro® speakers Some features may not be available for all products. The Bluetooth® word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such marks by Bose Corporation is under license. https://www.bose.com/en_us/legal/california_privacy_notice_of_collection.html https://worldwide.bose.com/privacypolicy Location Location access is optional and is used only for the Find My Buds feature. Find My Buds uses your device's location to help identify the last known location of your earbuds. If you do not use Find My Buds, you can decline location access and continue to use the rest of the app. Location information used by Find My Buds is stored locally on your device and is not transmitted to Bose.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Bose Connect at free against Sonos S1 Controller's free with in-app purchases. Bose Connect also leads on review sentiment (68% vs 52%) and chart position (#70 vs unranked). Sonos S1 Controller's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Sonos S1 Controller against 4.8 for Bose Connect. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 821K and 293K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 52% of Sonos S1 Controller's written reviews are positive against 68% of Bose Connect's.
Sonos S1 Controller ships an update every 2 months, Bose Connect every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Sonos S1 Controller | Bose Connect |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (821K ratings) | 4.8 (293K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 52.1% of reviews | 67.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 821K — better | 293K |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | — | #70 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 16 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 103 MB | 235 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Sonos, Inc. | Bose Corporation |
Customer experience
Sonos S1 Controller
Bose Connect
User reviews
Sonos S1 Controller
From 821K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great sound quality
- 🔍 Versatile and easy to use
- 💡 Whole-home audio experience
- 🎨 Sleek and modern design
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent connectivity issues
- 🔀 Confusing and unintuitive app updates
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate and control
- ⚠️ Planned obsolescence of older products
Bose Connect
From 293K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 🔒 Seamless connectivity
- 👍 Great sound quality
- 💡 Useful features like stereo pairing
Room to improve
- 🐛 Inconsistent connectivity and pairing issues
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable app
- 🔋 Battery life concerns
- 👎 Difficult to set up stereo mode
Bugs and requests
Sonos S1 Controller
Reported bugs
3 issues- App fails to recognize speakers
- Music playback randomly cuts out
- Inability to control volume from lock screen
Requested features
4 requests- Restore previous app interface
- Improve search and playlist management
- Add Bluetooth connectivity
- Better integration with personal music libraries
Bose Connect
Reported bugs
4 issues- App frequently loses connection with devices
- Firmware updates cause issues and break functionality
- Stereo mode often fails to work properly
- Random power-on and disconnection problems
Requested features
4 requests- Equalizer options
- Ability to set default noise cancellation level
- Improved Bluetooth management and device switching
- Better accessibility support
In-app purchases
Sonos S1 Controller
No in-app purchases
Bose Connect
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Sonos S1 Controller free?
Is Bose Connect free?
Which has better reviews, Sonos S1 Controller or Bose Connect?
Do Sonos S1 Controller or Bose Connect have ads?
Which is updated more often, Sonos S1 Controller or Bose Connect?
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