Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Who wants a screen on a speaker? Apple's iPads have small speakers, but can connect to larger speakers. It seems a baffling product. Apple should have spent time on the catastrophic software/firmware of the original HomePods, rather than just release a "HomePod 2" that was just a cost cutting exercise.

Edit: And yes, like everyone says, producing a not-awful Siri, the decade out of date voice assistant.
I think Samsung announced screen speakers for its Frame series. These screens are totally dumb (just displaying art pictures along with the main TV), but it's definitely better than half-wit imho.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ralph_sws and ric22
Said it before and I'll say it again.
It's a stupid location to place a screen.

It's a speaker, you place anywhere in a room and it beams out sound. Having to stand right next to it, and look down onto the top, to actually see the screen is dumb.

Yes, it looks fine in Photo's and will look fine, in a demo of the product, but it's not suitable to have a screen facing the ceiling in real life usage.
Couldn't agree with this more, Apple have some really stupid ideas at times.:mad:
 
I have 14 homepod minis in my home. Here's what I want:

1) Fix "There is a problem with Apple Music"
2) Improve voice commands
3) Let me use them in surround sound mode
4) Turn them into mesh network nodes
5) I have plenty of screens in my home, I have no need for a screen on my homepods; these are used with voice commands.
Strange, the only time I have ”there is a problem with Apple Music” is when my internet is out. Apple Music, in my experience, works great with Siri on the HomePod. The issue I have with Siri is when you ask it a general question that should be easy to answer and it asks you to go to your phone.
 
I just wish Apple would bring back the AirPort Express. I don’t need ANY smart speaker; I just need to stream music from my iPhone to something that doesn’t try to think for me.
I would really like to see an update to AirPlay 2. It compresses their lossless audio files to AAC and even Airplay 1 (better for audio quality than Airplay 2) won’t play their hi res files in native format. They need some way to do this like some of their competition.

I use a Wiim devices in place of AirPort Express for music these days.
 
It’s not just Siri… HomePodOs had been a crap shoot for years. Never know what you’re gonna from update to update.

BuT iT’s My NeTwOrK
 
But what’s the point? The whole point of a smart speaker is the hands free experience, its runs purely on voice commands.
 
Instead of adding a screen to HomePod, I wish Apple would create a HomePod without a speaker, the Apple version of the Sonos Amp. I've been hoping (for a very long time) that Apple would get serious about home audio one day, but they seem content to just fiddle at the margins instead of going all in.
 
I don’t need or want a screen on my HomePods. This horizontal screen implementation seems superfluous, but at least I can ignore it because it won’t be seen or take up any more room. This wouldn’t be the case for a vertical screen. A vertical screen could be useful for some though, so if it ever exists I hope either the screen is modular or it’s a separate additional HomePod product in the lineup.
 
I really want them to move away from using the watch SoC for HomePods, especially since HomePods are meant to double as Home hubs. Does anyone else find it interesting that the iPad, which has a much more capable SoC than HomePods, are no longer permitted to be used as Hubs? I like the HomePods we have, but they are buggy, laggy, and don’t function reliably enough as home hubs. And all of that is before we even get started on the current issues with Siri. Please Apple, use a better chip.
 
I don’t get how they keep dropping the ball with HomePod every single generation.

Nobody wants a screen on the top like that, make an up firing speaker to provide a more true hifi experience and atmos / Spatial Audio support.

Allow more than just stereo pairing to have a 4 speaker home theater with Apple TV atmos support. Heck, maybe even come out with a dedicated sub to rival Sonos.

I don’t need a screen, I have an iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and a Mac.

Heaven forbid they put a battery in it to allow portability around the house, such as bringing 1-4 speakers outside to a patio or deck for entertaining.

This is why the Sonos move is so popular, but that also doesn’t support atmos nor does it have the potential for home integration and smart functionality that the HomePod can continue to build on to actually offer a competitive advantage…
 
I am 99% Sure AI Siri is coming in July WDC.
Yes, but I am more interested to know if their “AI” solution will run on the much more limited SoC of a HomePod, and if so, I’d love to know how. Don’t hold your breathe for “AppleGPT” to be available on HomePods anytime soon. HomePods still can’t process Siri requests on device, let alone run a limited LLM!
 
One of my two OG HomePods died about a week ago. So I welcome more capable HomePod.

However, I would probably much prefer HomePod in a soundbar form factor with integrated Apple TV and camera.
 
I just want a stereo soundbarPod that I can connect with the TV.
Yes! An AppleTV and HomePod combination. The screen is your TV screen. Sound data can go in and out of the device. But thinking about it, that is a special use device With a limited but possibly big market. Hmmm
 
Said it before and I'll say it again.
It's a stupid location to place a screen.

It's a speaker, you place anywhere in a room and it beams out sound. Having to stand right next to it, and look down onto the top, to actually see the screen is dumb.

Yes, it looks fine in Photo's and will look fine, in a demo of the product, but it's not suitable to have a screen facing the ceiling in real life usage.

Exactly.

What would be the point?
 
  • Like
Reactions: psxp
I love my Google Nest Hub. Basically what you are trying to show here.
My use case for a HomePod with a screen would be to announce HomeKit-related security events like a garage door opening/closing, somebody ringing the doorbell, etc. and visually showing that event on the screen from the corresponding camera.

I don’t think HomeKit can as of yet announce (using words and sentences) when security events happen, like “Garage Door 1 has opened” or “Somebody who may be John Doe rang the doorbell.”
 
The oppertunity to use their touch interface on a product like those from Google or Amazon, and have a nice screen interface with a smart speaker is amazing.
You would think they would jump all over being able to offer such a product.

And they could combine a fridge with a washing machine and toaster…

The thing is, those home devices with screens don’t actually sell very well. People aren’t very enthusiastic about the whole concept of adding another device to their homes which sits around doing nothing 99% of the time, whether it has a screen or not.
 
  • Like
Reactions: steve09090
My use case for a HomePod with a screen would be to announce HomeKit-related security events like a garage door opening/closing, somebody ringing the doorbell, etc. and visually showing that event on the screen from the corresponding camera.

I don’t think HomeKit can as of yet announce (using words and sentences) when security events happen, like “Garage Door 1 has opened” or “Somebody who may be John Doe rang the doorbell.”
I’m pretty sure Shortcuts can do this.
 
I think probably the best future for the HomePod is to turn it in to a wireless charging dock for iPads.
The iPad sells pretty reasonably (it outsells all Macs combined, apparently), but a lot of them never leave the house. It needs a wireless charging dock. At the same time, the HomePod is looking for an extra selling point so more people see the value having one in their homes.

I mean, it would certainly be a lot more useful than a touchscreen…
 
I don't understand why anybody would want a homepod in the first place, let alone one with a screen on it.

Things with always-on microphones are NOT allowed in my house.

HomePods as speakers are great but I agree with the screen.

You either have to bring something new to the table here or just leave it. To be honest I don’t think we’ll see a screen in the top of a HomePod. If we get a screen it will be a different form factor.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.