I feel the same. At times I feel it would be nice to have the automation. However most of the time I feel like it would be something that would decrease my physical activity level. At my age I need to be up and moving all the time.
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Apple's Early Version of HomePod Stood Three Feet Tall and Packed Dozens of Speakers
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I feel the same. At times I feel it would be nice to have the automation. However most of the time I feel like it would be something that would decrease my physical activity level. At my age I need to be up and moving all the time.
why would i buy this when i can by a Sonos One for 1/2 the price? Apple screwed the pooch on this one and took too long to get to market. Siri is woefully behind other assistants at this point.
It certainly would. But is that what most consumers want? Look at how well Bluetooth speakers have sold. Look at all the Jamboxes and other simple speakers. People could have gotten an AirPlay-compatible stereo amplifier and speakers instead for far better music experience. But most aren't going to go through those lengths. They want a single product, single package that gives them the best results.
This product no doubt will sound good and is solely aimed at the people who live and breath the Apple eco system and in particular, in this case Apple Music. Once upon a time I was in that catagory.
If only they built in Bluetooth as a minimum, could have appealed to a larger cohort.
If only they built in Bluetooth as a minimum, could have appealed to a larger cohort.
It's bizarre to me that coverage of these products rarely if ever mentions the massive distinctions between Google and Amazon, on the one hand, and Apple, on the other, with regard to the privacy of user information. For myself, it will be a cold day in hell before I put a Google or Amazon product in my home that is designed to record what's going on there and send the information to those companies to mine and monetize. Apple, by contrast, has a vastly superior record and approach; they're far more trustworthy with that kind of access. So Alexa and Google Home products are an utter non-starter for me, and I'm frankly gobsmacked that any meaningful number of people find them tolerable.
I currently have a fairly extensive Sonos network in several rooms of my house, but certainly nothing Alexa-related or containing a microphone. If it becomes possible to integrate a HomePod with that network (and it appears that that may be possible in 2018, depending upon how and when Sonos implements AirPlay 2), I'll certainly check the Apple speaker out. I would be even more interested in the product if I didn't already have plenty of money invested in (and rooms already served by) Sonos-connected speakers. But consenting to have my house bugged for the benefit of Amazon or Google? What kind of idi... er, consumer would do that?
I currently have a fairly extensive Sonos network in several rooms of my house, but certainly nothing Alexa-related or containing a microphone. If it becomes possible to integrate a HomePod with that network (and it appears that that may be possible in 2018, depending upon how and when Sonos implements AirPlay 2), I'll certainly check the Apple speaker out. I would be even more interested in the product if I didn't already have plenty of money invested in (and rooms already served by) Sonos-connected speakers. But consenting to have my house bugged for the benefit of Amazon or Google? What kind of idi... er, consumer would do that?
If you already have the ability then there's no need for such a product. If you already have a product that meets your needs, you don't need another one. This holds true for every product, not just the HomePod.
Than why not just spend $200 or even $300 on a pair of nice stereo speakers, (or even some 2.1 upper enf PC style speakers which can sounds pretty dam good, connect it to your Alexa and have the best of both worlds?
If you have a receiver and good speakers, you may not be the target market for this.
no thanks. just ordered the new sonos one
connectivity to everything, not just apple music...an assistant that actually works and much cheaper
connectivity to everything, not just apple music...an assistant that actually works and much cheaper
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Quality and internet streaming, not a good definition of quality sound. At some point the old saying “garbage in garbage out” applies, no matter how much one spends on the output.
When has Apple ever been on the market first before anything? They usually are much later when releasing products. But that's never stopped their products from being successful or Selling any less because of a delay.
Take the AirPods for example, they were not the first Bluetooth earbuds on the market and they were delayed until December of last year, and they were wildly popular and out of stock for almost 9 months.
Agreed people are wanting sleek simple solutions and not lots of wires like separate systems. Rap quality music systems are now a niche product.
I do believe majority of the modern generation probably never heard a half decent setup so don’t have anything to compare.
Might be a fit. It'll have less seamless Apple Music integration for sure. I have yet to be impressed by Sonos sound quality (step-father has more than a dozen of their speakers around both of their homes so I have experienced them plenty). This Sonos unit has 2 amps, where the HomePod has one for each speaker. I'm willing to bet the sound quality from the HomePod will be superior to this Sonos unit.
One thing that sticks out about the Sonos One is that it has just 802.11b/g. That's early '00s technology right there and it means it can't connect to your current 802.11n/a network without causing it to drop the speeds for all connected devices down to the super slow b/g speeds. It can't believe it only has that old wireless tech. Haven't seen a device released in the past 5 years that has that old wireless on it.
Ooh, lemme guess: Jeep Wrangler 4x4 on the track, Honda Civic offroad, Porsche 911 for fuel economy.
Ford wasn't the first car.
Google wasn't the first search engine.
iPod wasn't the first MP3 player.
iPhone wasn't the first smartphone.
iPad wasn't the first tablet.
It's not about being first. It's about creating the best interpretation and iteration.
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My old 911 got decent fuel economy. Not awesome but not horrid.
I'd buy a pair of these today if they integrated with a sub-woofer in some manner. You just can't get the sound quality they are saying these things are meant for without a larger driver. Unless of course your in a very small dorm room. I am excited to hear what they do with beam-forming.
Sonos is the most overrated speaker on the market in my opinion. Even worse than Bose.
Totally agree. Mid-tier speakers with a premium price tag attached.
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Sorry, was agreeing with your statement and backing it up with examples. It's not at all about being first to market. It's about doing it best.
Sonos does blow my mind with their ancient technology (soundbars still do not support HDMI passthrough). Alexa and google home are open for anyone to use though, so a we are starting to see more speakers include the technology. The only thing they currently do not support is apple music, but apple and amazon are finally starting to play nicely so this could change.