"Hey Siri, put on the lights in the bathroom." ---> "Hey Siri is already active."
Maybe they should check their priorities...
Maybe they should check their priorities...
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Apple's HomePod Plans: What's in the Works for 2023 and Beyond
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I’d pay a premium for a pair of Homepods that are even better than the OGs.
Currently have 4 OG Homepods and 4 minis that I would love to add to.
Currently have 4 OG Homepods and 4 minis that I would love to add to.
In terms of the hardware, the HP Mini is adequate to my needs, but what Apple needs to do is provide controls over Siri requests that are heard by both a specific device and the Pod. It does me no good to be in one part of the house talking to my iPhone and have the Pod on the far side of the house, too far away to hear, try to answer. Also, I have personal requests disabled on the Pod, and it’s beyond irritating to be standing there talking to my iPhone or my Watch, and have them hand it off to the Pod which then just says that such requests are disabled.
Now that we have real AI in ChatGPT, Siri is so far behind that it just needs to be scrapped.
Fix the software FIRST. If you have several at home you know the experiences you get when asking it to play everywhere, change volume level, stop.... suddenly one of two won't play everywhere.... or just stops...
I never complained about the sound. Sound was more than adequate. It just didn't last outside and died in a few short months. I didn't blast it 100% volume either.
sound bar! Sound bar!
Also, the anachronism of a “set top box” is hilarious. TVs don’t have tops anymore; where am I supposed to put it?? 🤣 🤣 that’s the problem with including a webcam on these; most people probably prefer to hide the Apple TV in a cabinet or behind the tv (unless they did a sound bar). They should instead just provide the software support/FaceTime tv app and let me use continuity camera with my appletv, and tv manufacturers need to start including cameras.
Also, the anachronism of a “set top box” is hilarious. TVs don’t have tops anymore; where am I supposed to put it?? 🤣 🤣 that’s the problem with including a webcam on these; most people probably prefer to hide the Apple TV in a cabinet or behind the tv (unless they did a sound bar). They should instead just provide the software support/FaceTime tv app and let me use continuity camera with my appletv, and tv manufacturers need to start including cameras.
Walk down the high-street and ask anyone if they know about "Matter". Nobody will know, and the vast majority won't care.
Do the same thing with a HomePod Mini and an Echo Dot. Ask any person down the high street if they can tell the difference between the two. None if any will be able to notice.
Ask them if they'd prefer to spend 99eur or 30eur on a dot. All will go for the dot.
Now, you mention Apple "tax". Most will accept that "tax" for their phones. Why? Because people can relate to a phone. It's a fashion accessory. It's an indicator of wealth in some countries. Most won't know how to use more than a couple of features on the phone, but it has desirability.
HomePods do not. Smart homes do not. Most people I know that have an Echo device have barely got it configured! It's just about connected to WiFi but most people simply don't know how to configure it or what else it can do. (Which is why Matter, Thread, or any of these technologies mean total jack to the majority of the population).
People like you and I are not mainstream. We are a niche, and the HomePod is very much a niche product at its price.
Until then, people will use Sonos or similar. Why, because they are cool. Sonos market themselves purely for audio so capture that market. They have products of all ranges, and they are desirable because they enhance TV's which are found in most homes. HomePods can enhance audio, but then you need to get the Apple TV, then you need to configure it, and then make a stereo pair, (see where I'm going on this?) It's just a total faff.
HomePods are simply not priced or are desirable enough for the masses, so until they can get their price point right, it'll never succeed like Amazon or Sonos has.
I was about to say. Mission does one:
Mission Battery Base for HomePod Mini (Black) (Make HomePod Portable)
Make your HomePod Mini portable and enjoy your music away from the power outlet. The Battery Base attaches effortlessly to the HomePod Mini without tools and the integrated rechargeable battery lasts for up to 9 hours. HomePod Mini not included.
www.amazon.com
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
The price Apple charged for a stereo pair of these was more than it would cost to buy a pair of powered speakers that wiped the floor with them. That's [one reason] why it died, imo.
Units sold prove $300 was too much. But also value perception. You could pick up an Amazon Echo for $50 on sale. The figures show that is what people did, well along with Google and Sonos. There is no need to argue over sound quality between the original HP and an Echo but for the vast majority of people, the sound from the echo is perfectly good for their needs and Alexa is far superior to Siri if it's important.
Don't want Echo? Go for Sonos, I would argue sound quality is slightly better than the HP and still cheaper. There were more reasons to opt for something other than a HomePod depending on your needs.
Have her turned off, and will as long as I possibly can.
I have 2 Expresses connected to 2 pairs of speakers. Still works absolutely fine.
But I am considering buying 1 (to start with) or 2 HomePod Mini's to extend my home audio, quite soon.
[SARCASM]Well if the two directors of Cow Patty Distributers, Inc. say it is so, then it must be so. Who else knows more about a stinking pile of cow patties than those two?[/SARCASM]
Name it the FailPod, because if they cannot get the FW correct, and they won't, it will be another failure along with HomeFail...
Name it the FailPod, because if they cannot get the FW correct, and they won't, it will be another failure along with HomeFail...
Once Apple priced the full size HomePod the way it did, I went Sonos and have never looked back. Whenever I am at a house with a HomePod system, no one mentions a word about it. When you go to a house with a Sonos system, everyone asks about it and comments on how great it sounds.
I bought a mini a year ago and found it unimpressive, people said that you should buy two but I don't buy it. I'd add a larger one if Apple sold one.
I hope Apple come out with a new HomePod for 2023, so that I can finally buy one.
I hate my Sonos system. I have a beam and 2 play:1's as surrounds, but the surrounds drop off from time to time and I have to spend several hours resetting the entire system to get them all back. Sadly I can't find anything to replace them with that is completely wireless and has airplay support.
Sonos support is typical of support these days, which is not very good.
I also have a surround sound Sonos system for the TV room: Arc+sub+a couple 1s. With Atmos, it's like being in a movie theater. There is one thing that really helps with disconnects: have a wifi point in the room where the speakers are. If all the speakers connect to one wifi point, everything is rock solid.
I have found their support to be really good. If you send them a diagnostic from the app when the issue occurs, they will let you know the problem and the fix.
I want a bigger homepod! Something along the lines of a Sonos 5. I personally care more about the sound than the smart features. I know most people care more about those smart features but that is more of a siri problem than a homepod one.
I'm with you on this. I don't ask Siri for much beside the weather and some simple home automation, and I certainly didn't plop down the cash for 3 OG HomePods just for the conversation.
What I've got is losslessly ripped CDs being sent losslessly to high quality speakers. And to me that's worth the price of admission.