Bose has announced that it will gift its soon-to-be-discontinued SoundTouch speakers to the open-source community. This move enables third-party developers and enthusiasts to continue improving and maintaining the devices long after official support ends.
What’s Happening to SoundTouch Speakers?
Bose will cease updates to the SoundTouch speakers on May 6 this year, extending the original end-of-life date, which was set for February 18. The end of updates will coincide with an app update that supports non-cloud functionality.
Despite the end of updates, several features will remain functional. Music streaming from apps via Bluetooth, AirPlay, Spotify Connect, and AUX will continue, and remote control and speaker grouping will also work. This marks a shift from Bose’s earlier plans when the discontinuation was first announced.
However, not all features will survive the transition. Music playback via the SoundTouch app will no longer be supported, and preset buttons will cease to function. But the good news is that the company has released the API documentation for developers, opening up opportunities for the community.
Bose’s Commitment to the Open-Source Community
“We’re making our technical specifications available so that independent developers can create their own SoundTouch-compatible tools and features,” Bose said in a support page. This announcement is a significant bonus for users who invested in the speakers, some of which cost upwards of £500 when first introduced in 2013.
The reversal of Bose’s original decision to stop offering bug fixes has been met with a positive reception, with some owners showing renewed respect for the company. One user on Reddit commented, “Kudos to them on the open sourcing. That’s a real investment to prepare an SDK for public release. I’m excited to see what cool features the community cooks up, especially now that vibe-coding is actually viable.”
A New Chapter for SoundTouch Owners
Bose’s decision to open-source the SoundTouch speakers provides a glimmer of hope for owners who were initially frustrated by the planned discontinuation. The API release gives the community the chance to create new features and possibly extend the life of these speakers far beyond the official support period.
While some features will be lost, the ability for independent developers to innovate and improve the SoundTouch ecosystem is a promising outcome for long-term users.
