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HomePod Hands-On: Unboxing and Overview
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HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
You may have already covered this but could you take a iTunes store (purchased) song where you definitely notice it and do a head-to-head of Airplaying that song vs AM playing that same song?
If you have anyone with you, could you try a few blind tests where the listener doesn't know if it's AM or Airplay version. That could address those pitching placebo.
Can you notice the difference with more than one song just to be sure it's not maybe isolated to a single song (maybe playing one version you've downloaded but a different version via AM)- some songs are on multiple albums/greatest hits/etc and actually sound a little different.
Consider this kind of thing too...
Maybe a settings difference?
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For me, this was AirPods.
I’ve tried it myself and every song played via AirPlay outside of Apple Music sounds completely flat as if they have no equalizer settings.
Audio from Apple TV playing videos is the same, and also very obviously mono.
Why not have the power lead permanently connected. The least amount of connections you have the better the speaker will sound and this includes the less speakers you have in the room.
Is that a one-time function or can you put the cable back in? I am just trying to clarify why other reviewers said that the cable is not removable...
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Even songs purchased from iTunes store? In other words, this is not a comparison of a song via AM vs the same song from Spotify, right? What I'm asking is trying to make it the VERY SAME song from iTunes so that conceptually it should sound exactly the same... even trying to be sure it's not an iTunes (same) song from one album vs. the same song from another album (like a song from an album vs. the song from a "greatest hits" album that might mixed a little differently.
The Pod will only work on air play. This is easy to find on Apples web site.
Has anyone successfully used HomePod on a mesh Wifi network? I have a mesh network with Luma routers, and HomePod won't even let me set up the device, claiming the network is incompatible. There's no reason for that, and I have several iOS devices, several Macs, and two Apple TVs happily using that network. Apple engineers are trying to investigate, and have reported received other complaints from mesh network users, so I'm trying to figure out if this is some kind of general problem with HomePod and mesh networks or if it works on some and not others.
Or maybe he’s not purposely asking things that it’s not designed to do. There are quite a few useful features Siri has to control your device that the others have no access to.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
I can easily imagine a song from another source having all kinds of fine differences. This could even be a 128kbps vs. 256kbps situation.
The real test would be the identical song from the same album from iTunes. This tests whether native (AM) vs. Airplay plays back with any difference (such as native getting some pre-processing vs. Airplay not).
And by the way, thank you for the trouble here. It's helpful when people go to the trouble of testing things and sharing their impressions.
The quality of the HomePod audio is very well done. The research involved by Apple clearly shows excellent attention to detail. The ability of the microphones to pick up Siri commands from a distance with loud music playing is an amazing feat. It’s a little pricey… But it really is an excellent purchase and the team at Apple who designed this product should be very proud of what they’ve done. You will not be disappointed.
I think the Verge sums it up pretty nicely:
The HomePod is the point of no return for Apple fans
This speaker is openly hostile to any hardware or service not made by Apple
Yet again, another great, but deeply flawed product. This hostility is what is really turning me off. Apple, I'm not a sheep. I am a consumer, and I like choices. If you can't offer products that work with something else than your own products, then I'm not your customer.
The HomePod is the point of no return for Apple fans
This speaker is openly hostile to any hardware or service not made by Apple
Yet again, another great, but deeply flawed product. This hostility is what is really turning me off. Apple, I'm not a sheep. I am a consumer, and I like choices. If you can't offer products that work with something else than your own products, then I'm not your customer.
The only way to test would be to AirPlay to the HomePod as an output from macOS. AirPlaying via iTunes and every way I can think of in iOS will play the song directly on the HomePod.
I promise it just doesn’t have an EQ preset on other sources vs Apple Music. It’s very easy to tell.
Wow. Thanks. It sounds like with some serious adjustments to the software (and a second HomePod) this could be a great solution for my living room with the ATV (no box cable here). Going to hold off and go a different route, but overall it sounds like it produces some great sound for music playback. I look forward to hearing one in a home.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
OK, again thanks for the contributions on this topic. Very interesting info.
For now.*
It's pretty clear that they kicked this thing out of the door without solving for even some of their first party needs. There are a lot of updates to be pushed and strategic directions to be explored. We're effectively in beta (and maybe actually in beta, if you look at the fact that the iOS build deployed on day 1 HomePods is a beta).
It’s concerning that Apple announced that two paired HomePods can’t have one specified as left and one as right, and they’ve started using the phrase “stereo-like”. I’m not sure if it’s going to be good even with two.
EDIT: it appears that you CAN specify left and right!! Someone found that in the latest iOS Beta you can form a stereo pair and the second step is to specify left or right! I’m not sure where MacRumors got their info but it looks like they were wrong.
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Today's the official launch day of the HomePod, Apple's new Siri-powered smart speaker. As of now, the HomePod is available in all three launch countries -- the United States, UK, and Australia.
The first orders have gone out to customers who purchased a HomePod starting on January 26, and Apple retail stores also have plenty of supply for walk-in purchases.
We picked up a couple of HomePods this morning, and MacRumors videographer Dan has spent the last few hours testing out the sound quality, the Siri integration, the HomeKit controls, the touch gesture integration, and more.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Design wise, the HomePod is deceptively small, but it's also heavy and has a solid build. It's covered in a soft, pliable mesh material meant to enhance sound, and there's a fabric-covered cable at the back.
After a bit of a snafu with the setup process, which appears to be related to HomeKit and iCloud keychain and is something we'll need to investigate further, we had the HomePod up and running with an alternate Apple ID.
Sound, as previous reviews and impressions have suggested, is incredible. Music is crisp and clear, with the HomePod highlighting and separating every element of a song. Even if you're not an audiophile, you're going to notice the high-quality sound of the HomePod right away.
We tested HomePod with Apple Music, which is how HomePod is meant to be used, but you can also play music from other third-party music services like Spotify using AirPlay.
HomePod's voice detection works impressively well, with Siri able to pick up a "Hey Siri" command from across the room even with music playing loudly. Siri is useful for playing content from Apple Music and controlling your HomeKit devices, but if you're used to something like Amazon Alexa, you're going to notice a few shortcomings.
Siri on HomePod is basically like Siri on the iPhone, and the personal assistant has almost the same feature set on both devices. Apple didn't make major improvements to Siri for the HomePod, and that's definitely one of the most disappointing aspects of the device.
For HomePod owners out there, how are you liking the HomePod so far? Let us know in the comments. Make sure to check out our HomePod roundup if you're new to HomePod or planning to purchase one -- it's got everything you need to know about HomePod along with a running list of our HomePod how tos.
Article Link: HomePod Hands-On: Unboxing and Overview
