Yes, please!
You say ‘browse/search interface’, I say ‘…select music…’, same thing. I know what the app does, I’ve been using it for years. Yes, it can always be better, it could do the ironing for example, but for the vast majority I would wager it is perfectly fine.
The sorting and search functionality is very basic. Providing better options to deal with the thousands of albums and artists many Naim customers have would hardly be doing the ironing.
And as for the basic impression, in stead of wagering I would ask you again to refer to the reviews in the app store.
I did say the Naim app could be better and I am indeed on the iOS app Beta team. I have used the app for Tidal, Qobuz, Radio and my own collection. It would be nice to have more sophisticated ways of selecting music but for me it is not a priority, and I would expect that will come in time
Personally I couldn’t care less what others say in the app store, or anywhere else for that matter.
Maybe we are not so far away from each other. It could be better.
The main problem is that it is buggy for many. My first impression was that it was close to unusable, and a friend had major issues with a Muso (and even uses iOS). Naim cares about the reviews, thankfully. And if you make up numbers like 99,9%, it would provide a little reality check
I find the iOS app to be consistent, and have the best features (Rovi), but not the most stable.
On several other Android devices the glitchiness is variable. On one specific device the smoothness and reliability of operation far exceeds the Naim app on my iOS device.
I also recently switched to Audirvana, which is very highly rated, for the main system app. That’s no picnic I can assure you. Major glitches that make using the Naim app in the office or bedroom a sheer joy.
I would expect Naim to strive for continuous improvement, that is what all self-respecting manufacturers (and SW developers) should do.
I admitted to making up my statistics. Probably better that using phrases like ‘…it is buggy for many…’ and harping back to the past when things were in a worse place.
A need for a reality check maybe…?
Edit: I have only ever used the iOS app, so I guess there could be a difference between this and the Android app.
Rovi is sadly missing on Android. I switched to Roon and while not perfect it quite good for what I need
There are many people in the reviews, also current ones. The issue I reported to Naim was reported by lots of people in the reviews, and Naim support said they know and care very much, as it should be
What issue, and iOS or Android?
On Android 10 and a Samsung tablet (one of the few existing current Android tablets), when I started to use the app in summer, it was unresponsive for up to 30 seconds on every screen wake-up or when switching between apps. If you didn’t expect this or did not notice that it was still unresponsive and tried to repeatedly change the volume slider during this time, the slider movements got added up once the app returned to responsiveness, which could randomly lead to extremely loud volume.
Other forumers said that they have this unresponsiveness and therefore volume issue as well and have stopped using the app for volume changes and use the remote, in particular when it has to happen fast (e.g. phone call)
The unresponsiveness got better with the updates in September but it still usually takes a few seconds to respond in these scenarios. (wake-up and app switch)
Besides, just earlier today I spent considerable time to reproduce and document two issues in the beta thread. Small niggles, but they could ruin someone’s experience just as well during setup: The app does not seem to save the DNS IP adress when you choose static addresses instead of DHCP (reproduced on two different Android 10 devices), and a switch between DHCP and static seems to confuse Qobuz.
While investigating this, I seem to have also found out that the unresponsiveness only occurs when I am logged into Qobuz (and I suppose Tidal as I had that before). As soon as I log out of Qobuz the problem seems gone
I guess I have been talking about the iOS app and you have been commenting on the Android version of the app.
I would agree the issues that some (many?) have been experiencing with the Android app needs sorting.
Oh, I see, sorry for the confusion then [but I did write “look in the Google store”]. I meant simply in general, the app should be a showcase for the greatness of Naim, on both platforms. Missing out on Rovi is sad too.
Although, when it was so bad in the beginning I was close to getting an iPad and borrowed my dealer’s iPad mini to try. While the app was much better (and with lots of things better solved than on Android, in the UI as well) I can’t say I was overly impressed either, bt it was certainly adequate
It’s not unique, but I sign of a quality manufacturer … you see this from several SME Hi-Fi consumer electronics manufacturers for all their product brands in the UK, and I am sure it’s not limited to the UK.
I have personally experienced good service / repair support from Naim Audio, Chord Electronics and Cyrus Audio.
Hello Simon. Sorry if I’m wrong: probably a misconception mine, because the info doesn’t flow so well in Portugal, but Naim ( in terms of fame/ reputation) it’s one of the few , in this.
However, if I read well your post, one thing is clear: only the small ( almost hand made manufacturers ) do this.
Well I think it’s a nature of the business, large consumer electronics manufacturers may find it harder to provide extended legacy product support, simply because of different manufacturing processes and shorter product life cycles, as well as mass modularisation and miniaturisation, where making such repairs might not be economic.
Having said I have had an ageing Panasonic plasma TV repaired, along with an Apple computer… but the last two were undertaken with service/repair agents rather than the manufacturer itself, but clearly the manufacturer provided the parts.
I think a significant thing with repair is that it can become difficult for brands/companies that rely on OEM which is common in mass consumer electronics … that is they buy in the manufactured components and repackage them… as opposed to manufacture them selves. That is why I distinguish between ‘brand’ and ‘manufacturer’
Well said. Agreed.
ATC offer factory-based service and repair, including, I believe recapping electronics though I have not used this personally.
Roger
I find the app (on IOS) to be completely stable but cannot get on with Rovi. Just as an experiment, this morning I selected 10 albums (all classical) and it only got the right disc for half of them even after scrolling some way down the list of alternatives. (Eg. Handel’s Water Music returned a recording of Messiah and the alternatives were different recordings of Messiah!). Even where it found the correct disc, the info didn’t extend much beyond a track list. But I’m reconciled to mediocre support for classical and I’ve simply stopped using this feature.
Otherwise, the app allows me to find the music I want to play efficiently and without fuss. I don’t really expect it to do more.
Roger
That seems like a good approach for simple selection, although I might struggle to decide which music belongs to a given genre. Some music seems to overlap genres and contains elements of more than one or two.
What do the abbreviated genres stand for? “Ambient / E…” and “ECM New S…”.