Let's be honest, there will be NO audio IN or Audio out, only support Apple Music, Spotify App or any other music apps won't run properly, it will have a proprietary power connector, only be able to sync to 1 account unless you get a PRO model, and have a battery soldered to the motherboard that is un-replaceable but required to operate even if the proprietary power cable is plugged in, and will not be backward compatible with older Mac devices. About right for Apple?
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Apple's Touchscreen HomePod Coming This Year: Everything We Know
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No. Most all Apple devices are backwards compatible. The old devices just don’t always have the same functions as the new ones…. Because they are old. But they mostly do.
Improve the connectivity too- it's so temperamental with some routers and mesh networks... a usb port and the ability to tether it to Ethernet via that would be a boon.
The stupid power connector... 🤦♂️ at least make it removable and replaceable for people that cross national borders...
I had to replace my BT Complete WIFI mesh network with Eero Pro 6 mesh network to get the HomePods working reliably. Working well now, but what a faf…
Mine didn't play nicely with BT or Sky's equipment... especially a pair of HomePods on BT's equipment. My newest ASUS router is the only router (out of 6) they've been happy with.
Fix Siri by removing it
I'd quite like it if Siri was more intelligent for the times Alexa is out of range, but Apple are too busy throwing billions at R&D for products the majority don't want instead of improving what they already have.
This product will crash and burn, it’s so pointless having a screen on top of a HomePod where you’ll never see it.
Here’s what I want to see from the HomePod lineup:
HomePod mini: focus should be on being a better home hub. Give it better WiFi, and add a secondary function to work as surround speakers with an Apple TV
HomePod: fine as is, but give it better sound quality (2nd gen is worse then the first) as well as true atmos upfiring speakers, and allow to use as dual channel for home theatre, with HomePod minis as surrounds
HomePod stand: basically a standard HomePod with MagSafe in the middle, allowing you to use an iPhone or (MagSafe capsble) iPad whilst cooking or washing up in the kitchen. It could have a interface similar to nightstand mode on the iPhone with more features such as app support (ie YouTube videos)
Apple TV with a camera and microphone: basically an Apple TV with built in HomePod functionality, supports FaceTime natively and works as a centre channel for home theatre. Could even be sold as a bundle with two standard HomePods and two minis as surrounds
Spacial support for all of these would be really cool too, as well as the obvious Siri overhaul
Here’s what I want to see from the HomePod lineup:
HomePod mini: focus should be on being a better home hub. Give it better WiFi, and add a secondary function to work as surround speakers with an Apple TV
HomePod: fine as is, but give it better sound quality (2nd gen is worse then the first) as well as true atmos upfiring speakers, and allow to use as dual channel for home theatre, with HomePod minis as surrounds
HomePod stand: basically a standard HomePod with MagSafe in the middle, allowing you to use an iPhone or (MagSafe capsble) iPad whilst cooking or washing up in the kitchen. It could have a interface similar to nightstand mode on the iPhone with more features such as app support (ie YouTube videos)
Apple TV with a camera and microphone: basically an Apple TV with built in HomePod functionality, supports FaceTime natively and works as a centre channel for home theatre. Could even be sold as a bundle with two standard HomePods and two minis as surrounds
Spacial support for all of these would be really cool too, as well as the obvious Siri overhaul
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Can't wait. "Are you sure you want to listen to that Hank Williams, Jr., song again, Dave? I may have to report you as a Trump supporter." "Why do you keep checking on aircraft arrival schedules?"
If I can't see the screen without being on top of the device, it's a no from me, dawg. Give us something like an Echo 10 that doesn't suck.
When they first were bought THEY DID work for me. But between subpar "It just works" software updates from Apple, they have gotten worse over time hence where the issues lie. I mean hell they nuked a whole bunch of HP's and then were just like "whoops."
And again, wanting new features (in a new supposedly upcoming product) is what people SHOULD want, but I guess you're cool with the status quo so that things never advance and improve...
You already have your iPhone or iPad screen to control the HomePod from the comfort of your chair. What is the benefit of having a screen built into the top of the HomePod? Just a way to charge more money because whatever the screen costs, Apple will add 500% of that to the cost of the HomePod.
After having an Amazon Alexa in our Kitchen for a decade, and various Echo devices around our house for years, we made the switch to Home Pod last year. We bought the Home Pod for the kitchen and a couple of the satellites for my office and a bedroom with Amex points that had to be spent.
It was pretty easy to set everything up and get our automated house up and running with Home Pod. Access to Apple Music was a high point, as even though we had Amazon's Prime Music ninety percent of the time we required some other kind of Amazon premium service to listen to what we requested. And the ads - we were inundated with ads everywhere. Discuss a new vacuum cleaner one night and the next morning every ad on my MacBook Pro was for a vacuum as my wife sat next to me on her iPad with similar ads. We ended up disabling the listening ability on every Amazon device other than the main one in the kitchen but still the invasive Big Brother feeling was always present.
All that stopped with Home Pod. I'm not naive and of course Apple is collecting every little bit of information they can but at least I don't know about it via directed emails and ads.
I missed bluetooth at first, but then grew to love the ease of just clicking on the speaker button and transferring anything from any of our Apple devices to any Home Pod device. Bought my first Apple IIe back in 1983 and we've been an Apple device family since then. With everything Apple, it just made sense to go with Home Pod.
I never look at the top of the Home Pod. Maybe once in a blue moon to change the volume manually. I haven't really noticed how bad Siri is as our family tends to use it as an automated home controller, playing music, asking about the weather - super basic stuff. The sound coming from Home Pod compared to a decade with Alexa was staggeringly different. This thing is a SPEAKER. Loud, boomy bass and just a 180 from Alexa's tinny sound.
No desire for a new touchscreen that you have to look at from above. Our Home Pod sits on a kitchen counter and I don't even think my wife is tall enough to look down on it - at least not comfortably.
I'll tell you what I don't like - and I know I can control this - but I get up pretty early in the morning and grab my phone and MBP from my office. They sit right next to a satellite Home Pod. Occasionally my phone will bump the Home Pod. This causes it to say "Playing something you may like". Last week, at 5:55am it decided that what I liked was "Slick Black Cadillac" by Quiet Riot at an extremely high volume. This forced me to yell "Hey Siri, STOP".
I hadn't heard that song in years and the whole thing made me laugh.
I'm ok with Home Pod. Glad I made the switch.
It was pretty easy to set everything up and get our automated house up and running with Home Pod. Access to Apple Music was a high point, as even though we had Amazon's Prime Music ninety percent of the time we required some other kind of Amazon premium service to listen to what we requested. And the ads - we were inundated with ads everywhere. Discuss a new vacuum cleaner one night and the next morning every ad on my MacBook Pro was for a vacuum as my wife sat next to me on her iPad with similar ads. We ended up disabling the listening ability on every Amazon device other than the main one in the kitchen but still the invasive Big Brother feeling was always present.
All that stopped with Home Pod. I'm not naive and of course Apple is collecting every little bit of information they can but at least I don't know about it via directed emails and ads.
I missed bluetooth at first, but then grew to love the ease of just clicking on the speaker button and transferring anything from any of our Apple devices to any Home Pod device. Bought my first Apple IIe back in 1983 and we've been an Apple device family since then. With everything Apple, it just made sense to go with Home Pod.
I never look at the top of the Home Pod. Maybe once in a blue moon to change the volume manually. I haven't really noticed how bad Siri is as our family tends to use it as an automated home controller, playing music, asking about the weather - super basic stuff. The sound coming from Home Pod compared to a decade with Alexa was staggeringly different. This thing is a SPEAKER. Loud, boomy bass and just a 180 from Alexa's tinny sound.
No desire for a new touchscreen that you have to look at from above. Our Home Pod sits on a kitchen counter and I don't even think my wife is tall enough to look down on it - at least not comfortably.
I'll tell you what I don't like - and I know I can control this - but I get up pretty early in the morning and grab my phone and MBP from my office. They sit right next to a satellite Home Pod. Occasionally my phone will bump the Home Pod. This causes it to say "Playing something you may like". Last week, at 5:55am it decided that what I liked was "Slick Black Cadillac" by Quiet Riot at an extremely high volume. This forced me to yell "Hey Siri, STOP".
I hadn't heard that song in years and the whole thing made me laugh.
I'm ok with Home Pod. Glad I made the switch.
I’m in as long as the price isn’t too wild and one of the new ones will stereo pair with a Gen 2 (since I’ve bought several G2s already).
It also feels like horizontal nightstand mode on the iPhone has been a field trial for the simplified UI.
It also feels like horizontal nightstand mode on the iPhone has been a field trial for the simplified UI.
Guess I’ll wait until the HomePod gets full Apple TV functionality, will then buy a second, light, one without the AppleTV stuff for the other side of my TV set. I don’t care about surround sound, 2.0 is ok. Now using an Apple TV 4K, a Marantz set and some high quality speakers. All hooked up to a smart tv made dumb by pulling the ethernet cable from the TV.
Siri is outdated by 10 years and the display on top isn't worth the extra cost, and you have something else that can break (with a repair bill nearly the cost of a new unit). This is not going to be the thing that sells homepods. Fine tune the fidelity and work on Siri. Hopefully their 1 billion AI venture is all about rebuilding Siri from the ground up.
You know what would be amazing? A MagSafe top with a round puck that you could remove and place in the room when you're using it.
LOVE that idea. I'd buy.
Functionally like this B&O offering, but completely wireless and charged while docked in the HomePod? Brilliant!
Beoremote Halo - Remote control for speakers | B&O
Beoremote Halo - Accessories Accessories. Remote control for accessing music and smart home features without having to use your mobile device. Integrated with touch screen display. Simple and intuitive.
www.bang-olufsen.com
Portability-1.m4v
(and that thing above is just a remote, nothing more, for $900)
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