Apple Aims to Boost HomePod Sales With New Audio Software Lead

[Unregistered 4U]

WAIT, wait… does Apple REALLY hope to Boost sales by hiring an audio person… and, like, not a sales person? I’m guessing that’s just the MacRumors spin, right? Otherwise this would be “Apple Hired a Person” and I probably wouldn’t have posted on a story that read “Apple Hired a Person”. LOL

Good Show, MacRumors! 👍

 

[Unregistered 4U]

This this this, 1000x this. I go out of my way to use Google Assistant on my iPhone because Siri is so useless. It’s almost enough to make me switch back to Android.

But… if someone is looking at getting a FREE device or a device for $40 VS a $99 DEVICE WITH IMPROVED SIRI… do you really thing that “improved Siri” is enough for someone to turn away from a free/cheap device?

 

[npmacuser5]

Simple Apple, one speaker does not meet everyone's needs. Plus the Apple eco systems need better integration from third-party speakers. Your welcome!

 

[Naraxus]

I love my HomePod. It would have sold better if people cared about sound quality and not being data-raped by competing products.

No, it would have sold better had Apple been smarter about their pricing for it.

And please don't ever mention privacy and Apple in the same sentence ever again. Amazon & Google may be collecting data on you but at least they're not selling out their customers by installing security backdoors under the fallacy of "For The Children"

 

[Hildy]

When I bought a HomePod it had all kinds of trouble playing my personal iTunes library using Siri. I don’t recall precisely the problem.., but it seemed to be built for streaming from Apple Music’s subscription plans. I returned it.

Make it an Atmos family of satellites including a sound bar with the guts of an @TV, and proper HDMI inputs for other sources.

Better yet, bring back the extremely stable AirPort home networking in mesh format and make the sound bar a mesh network hub. HomeKit hub etc.

Don’t wallow in the filth trying to compete on the low end. Be Apple and go back to making products that just work and are reasonably flexible without ignoring everything that doesn’t upsell your subscription services…

 

[whitby]

When Apple dumped the HomePod I was extremely upset. I am an audiophile, but cannot afford to put my high end equipment in every room and the HomePod is very good from an audio point of view, so they became the default speakers in my rooms that did not have my high end audio equipment installed. So I have 7 HomePods, a media room and a listening room. I use Amazon's Echo devices when I need an intelligent speaker but they sound awful and I do not like to hear music played over them. However as a verbally interactive device they are much better than the HomePods (although they have become more useful over time).

I can fully understand that if you were looking for an equivalent to the Amazon Echo from Apple, the HomePod failed, but as a superb sounding speaker with some interactive capability they were extremely good. The only major issue I have with the HomePod is that the only way to communicate with them is via AirPlay. Physical connection and BT additions would have been useful but not essential in my case. My only problem is that Apple stops updating the software so that whatever devices I have in 10 years time will not play over my HomePods. After all I have had my Martin Logan speakers for 10 years now and they sound as good now as they did when I bought them. I even have a pair of Spendor BC1s from 1973 and they still sound amazing. I have a suspicion that my HomePods will be paperweights in that time frame and I blame Apple for that.

 

[BorderingOn]

I would 100% still be using my echo's around the house if the apple music integration on it was better. We switch from amazon music to apple beacuse amazon kept losing access to music that you would add to your account. The apple music integration apparently doesnt understand that when you say play my music, it means I want to hear more than roughly the same 40 songs over and over, even when stating to shuffle. Audio quality on the homepod mini's are so inferior to amazon echos.

I’ve never experienced any of these issues. I can ask Alexa to play anything I’ve added to my library, any playlist, artist, etc. However, it would be nice if I could cast from the music app while browsing.

 

[diego.caraballo]

i like that google performs actions like turning off lights in the same room without announcing the action

This. That's smart design. Homekit by comparison lacks in so many ways. You can't command a "complex" action to Siri. Like "Turn ON the dehumidifier until the humidity is 60%".

 

[ElvisThePelvis]

👏👏👏 Keep The Excellent Sound Quality Of The Original Homepod And Improve Siri 👏👏👏

 

[tubular]

I *hope* this mean that Apple is going to try again with the HomePod that isn't mini. I have three of the pineapple-sized ones, and I'm very happy with them.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

The original HomePod and the Mini would do much better if Siri was more useful. It’s embarrassing how bad Siri can be sometimes. But parsing aside, make her more useful and crucially, more open.

Seriously. The reason I only have 2 homepod mini's is because Siri sucks so badly, and they don't have any audio input aside from Airplay. This limits them to pretty much uselessness, except if I need to ask Siri to turn the lights off or find my phone. Which is why I have one on each floor of my house, and not a single extra.

We use Alexa and even an old Cortana speaker without the Cortana part anymore (RIP) because it's more functional than the Homepod Minis when it comes to audio playback. No amount of Audio Engineering will fix what is fundamentally a gimped and flawed product.

 

[I7guy]

Buying nothing is a possibility too, though that still doesn't help Apple's HomePod sales. As for myself, I get far more functionality out of my traditional HT setup than I would with a HomePod. My ATV, which is the heart of my setup's content delivery, means my setup still exists within the Apple ecosystem, but I have the ability to utilize my audio setup with all sources.

True. And it's obvious the people voted with their dollars with respect to the HomePod...which is exactly the way it should be to give a thumbs up or thumbs down on a product. (Maybe the speaker line really shouldn't have been an Apple thing to begin with)

 

[macfacts]

Let’s hope they start by giving the HomePod a 1/8” audio in jack!

To let it connect to what apple device?

 

[MidwestMacGuy]

Nothing Apple will ever put out will make me give up this speaker.

 

[BigSmurf]

They should have added an AUX or optical in to the Homepod to make it universal.
Then it could be used for tv sound, output from traditional sources etc.

 

[matrix07]

I love my HomePod. It would have sold better if people cared about sound quality and not being data-raped by competing products.

It would have sold better if Siri works with ALL languages working in iPhone and sells in ALL countries iPhone sold.

 

[BigSmurf]

Nothing Apple will ever put out will make me give up this speaker.

View attachment 1865389

i hope so because that costs an order of magnitude more.

 

[japanime]

Has the original HomePod officially been discontinued, or is it simply no longer being sold in certain countries (including the United States)?

The reason I ask is that the original HomePod is still available on the Apple Japan website.

 

[RangerOne]

Siri has it's challenges, but HomePod offered really very good sound quality at the price point -- but the masses couldn't bear it. Whenever it would drop to $199 it would sell out in hours, so I think $249 would have been a good price point outside of holiday sales and third-party discounters.

I had a $4k audio system that no one else appreciated and I stopped using because HomePod was way more convenient, was priced to be placed in several rooms, and sounded really great. And HomePods are much cheaper to upgrade.

The HomePod Mini is quite good as well, but obviously is a far cry from the HomePod. I use it in some smaller rooms and am quite pleased with it for $89. I have other third-party speakers at that price point but none compete with the Mini.

While I agree with other comments about HomePod/Mini being more restricted than third-party speakers, I'm fine with that. I've bought into the Apple ecosystem and have no problem staying there because of good customer service, good quality, good selection and the total ecosystem. I prefer to spend my life living instead of arguing over the minutia of countless and ever-changing product offerings. I have an Android friend who is constantly having problems with his smart speakers. HomePods are just great in comparison. No one ever heard me curse 'em.

I hope Apple comes out with a HomePod-like substitute at the $199-249 price point, and a smarter Siri. I'd like to buy several.

 

[GhostLodes]

I still think Apple may want to bring back a high quality HomePod at some point, and this news might confirm my suspicion. The fact that the mini is still the MINI and not the HomePod means that they still might have plans for the bigger speaker. Apple knows that they need a cheaper speaker to compete with the Echo Studio. I think it’s still possible, but Siri still needs a lot of work.

What Apple really needs is a combined Apple TV with Soundbar for around $250. That would be a huge hit for Apple, and would get more people using Apple TV.

I bet more $499 in the Sonos/ Bose price area.

 

[radgar]

… The iPod wifi box was supposedly an earth shaking device with amazing sound, but was also tied to an AC plug, as I remember. I was actually sad that I didn't get one before Apple yanked it. (Apple has a rich history of coming out with amazing audio equipment, and yanking it off the market. Wouldn't it be cheaper to not even try? But I'm glad they did with the HomePod *shrug*)

The Apple HiFi has great sound for its size. It can run on several D-sized cells. Can’t remember the exact number, it’s probably between 4 & 8 like an old ghetto-blaster.
I have one in my dining room. Aside from the dock port on the top it has a very useful 3.5mm stereo Jack socket on the back. This has an echo disc plugged into it. Works well.
It was my Apple HiFi experience that quelled my enthusiasm for the HomePod: short sales life. The apple HiFi was probably more expensive in real terms than the homepod. It’s shown itself fairly versatile, robust, and long-lasting. Plus it lacks the disappointment that is Siri.

 

[skitidetdu]

$350 for the original HomePod was ok priced for the sound quality and “Apple taxed”. What made it feel not worth it was the half baked voice assistance.

 

[Aston441]

Homepod sucks because Siri sucks, making the homepod overpriced garbage.

Apple selling $300 junk to compete with functionally far superior $25 Alexa that could be plugged into any high end audio system... their hubris it done runnith out.

 

[medialook]

I hated the mini I bought a pair and quickly sold them. I planned to use them as a MacBook Pro speakers and with the lags / disconnections they weren't suitable. Sound wasn't great either. Although I really like my paid of regular HomePods. They sound great. I wish apple would unlock native Spotify support. Siri sucks, we all know it so at the moment I don't even pay much attention to it - only time I use it is to play music in the car (on Spotify)

 

[robinp]

I have so many problems with my stereo pair of HomePod mini. There is no way I’d buy anymore until they were working reliably.