I turned the keynote off because it was getting long in the tooth and missed this. This is a strange device...
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Apple Unveils $349 HomePod Smart Speaker to be Available in December
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Since I have just recently got into Apple Music and loving it's integration with my Apple TV and devices, I have been waiting for a way of getting audio all around my house without having to go the third party route. I didn't want to try Bluetooth as the audio quality and pairing stuff is a pain, and being in the Apple ecosystem for many years now, this speaker makes perfect sense. I will get one of these for my kitchen for nothing more than playing music in various rooms, and to set timers.
The one thing I want to know though...will the functionality of this speaker come to the Apple TV? I just spent quite a bit on a good sound system for my lounge, and I LOVE listening to my music on it, and obviously this speaker won't touch the quality of the system I have, and it makes no sense to get yet another speaker. For me, it would be amazing if the Apple TV could serve the voice function instead to respond to requests in my lounge. Apple did make a note of saying they will be talking about the Apple TV later on in the year, so here's hoping.
I also love the fact that multi room airplay is FINALLY a thing. Hopefully this will work on all current generation Apple TV's, as it would mean I could play music in my lounge and in the bedroom using Apple TV, and this speaker in the kitchen.
The one thing I want to know though...will the functionality of this speaker come to the Apple TV? I just spent quite a bit on a good sound system for my lounge, and I LOVE listening to my music on it, and obviously this speaker won't touch the quality of the system I have, and it makes no sense to get yet another speaker. For me, it would be amazing if the Apple TV could serve the voice function instead to respond to requests in my lounge. Apple did make a note of saying they will be talking about the Apple TV later on in the year, so here's hoping.
I also love the fact that multi room airplay is FINALLY a thing. Hopefully this will work on all current generation Apple TV's, as it would mean I could play music in my lounge and in the bedroom using Apple TV, and this speaker in the kitchen.
Am I missing something? It's called HOME Pod, right? Well, I have something in my home called Apple TV! And there's no mention of Apple TV integration, so I guess I can't ROCK THE HOUSE when I'm watching movies?
More like:
Amazon Echo Dot $49.99
Sonos Play:1 $199
$199 + $49.99 = $248.99
Given the size of the speaker, it will most likely sound similar to the Play:1. It might compete with the Play:3 on sound quality, but it is just too small to match the Play:5.
Time to sell the AppleTV. This company has lost it's soul. I'm essentially down to a 2009 Mac Pro and 2 AppleTV devices. No more, it ain't worth it.
Only to uninformed consumers. Anyone who knows anything about audio would never buy Bose's overpriced, subpar garbage.
but Sonos doesn't offer functions that Apple's speaker does. Apple offer good speakers with smart features, this is the angle they are playing... not to disrespect Sonos, they are very good speakers too.
People before you put in your 2 cents and compare it with the dot. Go check out the details on the HomePod at www.apple.com. $349 isn't bad when you include seven-tweeters and a woofer in this thing. I'm sure it's not for everyone but there's a huge SONOS and Bose speaker market it's aiming for. I'll take two please.
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Depending on which analyst you read, Google makes from $6 to $16 a year from each user via ads.
So no, the difference in business models is not an excuse for Apple charging hundreds extra. Well, except that Apple's business model is to charge at the upper limit of whatever it thinks it can get by with.
It's not a bad looking design. But I'm immediately turned off by the all-fabric enclosure. Regardless of whether you get black or white, this thing is going to be very hard to clean, and will definitely show dust, even with regular maintenance. I wonder if the enclosure can be completely removed to wash -- that would improve things considerably? I'd prefer something more like the Harman Kardon Aura, which Apple used to carry in their stores. Its amazing actually how similar those products are, from a straight-up sound perspective. The HK reminds me of an early 2000s-looking Apple design.
I agree... alot of people love Sonos but wished it supports Airplay (and other features). For me, if Apple is comparable, it's a no brainer.
Well, the fact that they highlighted using two of them in the same room... They diluted their own message quite a bit with that.
My own take is that if it could truly provide a high-fidelity experience in a single room at $350, I could maybe get behind it. But at $700? That's double my entire 4.1 audio system for the TV.
But they are going after the Sonos market. And Echo and Sonos are testing deep interrogation right now.
Exactly! I am not going to replace my SONOS speakers (which I love) with this for the current capabilities Siri does (not) have.
I think multiple-zones (rooms) .. it's basically something that Sonos (and Google Chromecast, i think) had for years and a feature that people really like.
Anyone comparing HomePod to Google Home and Echo is missing the point entirely. Those speakers will never sound good. Ever. Don't even get me started about their "intelligence." By starting with a high performance speaker, HomePod will always sound great and the assistant feature is a side benefit that will improve over time.
For anyone who cares about sound quality, HomePod is the better value. For anyone looking for an "assistant" to set alarms, reminders, timers, get sports scores, directions to places, home automation, etc., Apple Watch is more convenient than a standalone device, based on my experience with Echo.
For anyone who cares about sound quality, HomePod is the better value. For anyone looking for an "assistant" to set alarms, reminders, timers, get sports scores, directions to places, home automation, etc., Apple Watch is more convenient than a standalone device, based on my experience with Echo.
Bose makes "brand speakers" like Beats does/did and the small BT box does have an impressive sound for its size but all of Bose is "party sound" and not what professionals would call good sound. They have fun sound apt for pop/electro stuff and I enjoyed the small Bose BT box a friend of mine recently had with him when we were out on a drinking spree, it's good for on-the-go and is good in its product genre, but in general Bose has no good or neutral sound and exaggerates part of the spectrum, especially lows, to appeal to mainstream customers but delivers no clear or outstanding sound in any range.
Bose is known for appearing like a big quality HiFi brand to audio outsiders (which they are not) while being hated by audio snobs just for knowing they are being hated and for being no HiFI quality brand. They are consumer-grade products and offer quality to people who like the sound and don't care for how it should or could sound. Maybe like Apple wants to place the iPad Pro in the computer range, where it doesn't belong, but it does its task.