Apple Hosting Live HomePod Question-and-Answer Event on July 25

[palmerc]

It’s already a well established market. There shouldn’t be a need when they are the late comers. The fact is that they need to hand wave and set up the smoke and mirrors to bring some parity to device that is woefully dumb in comparison to far cheaper alternatives. The utility is in smart capabilities. If I wanted a great sounding speaker, Apple is the last place I’d consider.

At Apple's price point you'd be hard pressed to find something better.

The audio system market is very much like the camera market pre-iPhone 5. The market is full of aficionados touting their high end gear and most dismissing cellphone cameras as inferior toys. The HomePod is entering a market in which most people aren't even sure they need a 'smart speaker'. AI on all of the platforms is a mixed bag. What can be said is that the audio from a pair of HomePods works flawlessly and fuss-free via AirPlay. Siri is really quite good at playing music and we use it this way every day. My 6 and 3-year-old use Siri. This cannot be said about any audio system on the market and before HomePod the sound system was something only I could or would operate. Apple's first attempt in this new segment has made a product that is so good at its $350 price point that it should serve as notice to anyone in the audio business.

 

[droog]

At Apple's price point you'd be hard pressed to find something better.

The audio system market is very much like the camera market pre-iPhone 5. The market is full of aficionados touting their high end gear and most dismissing cellphone cameras as inferior toys. The HomePod is entering a market in which most people aren't even sure they need a 'smart speaker'. AI on all of the platforms is a mixed bag. What can be said is that the audio from a pair of HomePods works flawlessly and fuss-free via AirPlay. Siri is really quite good at playing music and we use it this way every day.

I was trying to talk about the article and the business strategy behind a 350 dollar speaker. I could care less about you or your life really.

 

[palmerc]

I was trying to talk about the article and the business strategy behind a 350 dollar speaker. I could care less about you or your life really.

You claim it is an established market. It isn't. The total market is worth in the neighbourhood of 5 billion USD. In comparison the whole market for home audio is estimated to be around 20 billion. So, while there is a lot of buzz around these type of products, essentially nobody owns one. Even the fundamental features or 'what the product should be' aren't ironed out yet.

 

[droog]

You claim it is an established market. It isn't. The total market is worth in the neighbourhood of 5 billion USD. In comparison the whole market for home audio is estimated to be around 20 billion. So, while there is a lot of buzz around these type of products, essentially nobody owns one. Even the fundamental features or 'what the product should be' aren't ironed out yet.

There are 45 million Alexa and google home users in the US. Alexa has been available since 2014 and HomeKit since 2016. Hardly new or undeveloped. There are about seven other major global competitors I didn’t bother researching but you can probably look that up yourself.