To be fair it barely does that anyway.
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Apple Discontinues Full-Sized HomePod to Focus on HomePod Mini
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The problem with these speakers, is that they're not smart enough (to say it politely). Do you think that apple made them to stand above the rest, because of "audio quality"? NO. The idea was this speakers would be the Siri product by definition. For that to become true, Siri should have been x100 smarter, which is not. The problem is not the hardware in this case, it's Siri, and Apple (of course), for not been able to develop it as it should.
To me, that doesn‘t come by surprise. Anyone who values good audio knows that the HomePod‘s oversaturated bass levels quite effectively battles away harder-to-hear frequencies and subtle instruments and audio details. I live together with musicians and they really hate that thing, and so do I.
Yes, the rest of the sound is rather well rendered but the bass destroys everything from scratch.
Yes, the rest of the sound is rather well rendered but the bass destroys everything from scratch.
In the hope that this rumour is misleading and that they're running down stock ready for the launch of a replacement high end HomePod - just noticed that the URL for the HomePod says HomePod-2018 as though they need to differentiate it from what will hopefully be the HomePod 2021
HomePod
HomePod mini takes up no space yet delivers room-filling sound. HomePod is a breakthrough high-fidelity speaker. Both help you multitask with Siri.
www.apple.com
I don’t even understand the connection he’s making.
Ehh what?
I mean yes Siri is important, but you think they developed that sophisticated microphone and speaker system in order to "not" compete in audio quality?
Don’t think that’s possible. It works on the HomePod because of the directional tweeters.
In the hope that this rumour is misleading and that they're running down stock ready for the launch of a replacement high end HomePod - just noticed that the URL for the HomePod says HomePod-2018 as though they need to differentiate it from what will hopefully be the HomePod 2021
HomePod
HomePod mini takes up no space yet delivers room-filling sound. HomePod is a breakthrough high-fidelity speaker. Both help you multitask with Siri.www.apple.com
When do Apple ever announce to the press that they are discontinuing a product before putting out an updated version?
I think, as others have noted, that Apple way over-engineered the HomePod. Although the round design for 360 sound dispersion sounds like a good idea, the reality is that most people don’t have rooms where they need a 360 degree speaker. In fact, I would bet that most of these speakers get placed on bookshelves, tables or counters where there is a wall directly behind them, and often other objects beside them. I’d go further and say that the HomePods are forced to be placed, for 99% of the time, next to a wall because they need to be plugged into an outlet and very few people have in-floor outlets that allow for a more centralized to the room speaker placement.
There is a reason why speakers have been made the way they are for a long time, with the speakers generally pointing forward, and Apple could have designed a speaker system that could be added to, with additional speaker units, subwoofer, satellites, etc. I‘m not sure why they’re not going after this market, because it is such a natural extension to the headphones category.
There is a reason why speakers have been made the way they are for a long time, with the speakers generally pointing forward, and Apple could have designed a speaker system that could be added to, with additional speaker units, subwoofer, satellites, etc. I‘m not sure why they’re not going after this market, because it is such a natural extension to the headphones category.
They should split the difference and combine the 2 into 1 product. And make it so it can run on a battery (Siri is off until you click it) and can be plugged in (with Siri running). Frankly, the Homepod Mini sounds good but just not loud enough, especially if you have some background noise.
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Opinions differ on that. It’s pretty unarguable that one of the more unusual qualities of the homepod is that it can reproduce really deep frequencies in spite of its diminutive dimensions.
Of course, if you do the old british monitor trick of simply axing low frequency content then sure, the remainder gains clarity from not being masked (and in the old monitors, from not being reproduced by a driver that struggles with low frequency content.).
On the other hand, resolution gained by those methods simply sound thin and anemic on a lot of music. Not all of us listen to lite music or string quarters.
Disappointing. The biggest complaint regarding the full size HomePod was the price, but in my opinion $299 for the HomePod (not to mention the frequent opportunities to purchase at $199) is considerably more reasonable than $549 for the AirPods Max!!
My expectation is that there will be a replacement product, a higher end speaker than the HomePod Mini. The Mini is simply not the premium quality sound device that Apple surely wants to continue to offer.
My expectation is that there will be a replacement product, a higher end speaker than the HomePod Mini. The Mini is simply not the premium quality sound device that Apple surely wants to continue to offer.
That’s too bad. I’ve been hoping to replace my echos, which seem to get worse every single day. It’d be so convenient to go with apple, but it seems they be moving away from that.
But I guess my preference is that they dump a bunch of money into making Siri great then open it up for Sonos to use.
But I guess my preference is that they dump a bunch of money into making Siri great then open it up for Sonos to use.
HomePod was too expensive for what it was. Someone with a good home theater setup wasn’t going to use one. And someone who wanted a decent ‘smart’ speaker in their kitchen or wherever bought something cheaper because for them sound quality wasn’t the most important thing. I have a feeling the AirPods Max will suffer the same fate. Audiophiles will want something better and everyone else will buy something cheaper.
I wish Apple would have made a nice sound bar that integrated Siri/HomeKit. Maybe they will one day.
I wish Apple would have made a nice sound bar that integrated Siri/HomeKit. Maybe they will one day.
He has another thread where he claims the future is going to be mixed reality headsets. I’m not convinced most people are going to want to sit in front of their TV wearing goggles or headsets. But I do think he’s right that what people want with premium sound in the home are sound bars/home theater systems. I wish Apple would have gone the sound bar route.
Sadly I agree with Ben here. I can’t remember the last time I used my Apple TV box. I have a Roku TV and watch everything through that. What’s the point of the Apple TV box now that smart TVs are so cheap and most of them now include the TV app?
Except Apple does not sell HomePod Mini globally, same thing with the original HomePod. I believe that if Apple was truly committed to this category they would A) sell HomePods in all regions and B) would have significantly improved Siri already by now.
