I never said that's what's happening, that's entirely your own construct.
Having two tracks come out of five speakers sounds better than two tracks coming out of two speakers. Sorry.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
HomePod May Support Multiple User Accounts and HomeKit Scenes That Mute Siri
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I never said that's what's happening, that's entirely your own construct.
Having two tracks come out of five speakers sounds better than two tracks coming out of two speakers. Sorry.
First, no one (who hasn't signed an NDA) knows for certain how it will sound because the HomePod isn't released but there is more to good sound, especially in a casual home environment, than stereo vs mono. Much more. In fact, for most people mono vs stereo is largely moot because for stereo separation to work you have to have your speakers placed properly and be sitting in the correct listening spot—and that's not even getting into room acoustics like treating primary and secondary reflection points. The key to the 7-tweeter array isn't the number of tweeters per se (you're right, on their own a million wouldn't matter) but the processing behind them. Apple promises to use beam forming to to alter the speaker output to counter the size/shape of the room and where the speaker is placed to better fill the space with even, quality sound. In theory there will be a wide or infinite "listening spot" for HomePod. You may not get stereo separation (although this was one of the original use-case scenarios for beam forming among researchers, stereo with one speaker array, so it may happen) but you also won't (theoretically) get dead spots or have to tailor your room for your speakers.
I think the problem is that most people haven't gone through the trouble of optimizing a listening space so having a speaker do it for you doesn't seem all that magical. Most people probably won't even have the chance to compare it head-to-head with a comparable, traditional speaker. In the end it will just be described as a "really good sounding speaker". So despite being one of Apple's most truly innovative products in a while, success is far from guaranteed.
EDIT: Grammar
[doublepost=1516620549][/doublepost]
You're right (there will never be any MORE information; everything other than what was put down by the engineer is interpolated) and wrong (it will sound better because with a properly set up surround system should open up the proper listening space i.e. there is a bigger area in your room where you can get all that stereo information in the way it was intended, not to mention you will get more primary sound as opposed to secondary sound aka reflections).
[doublepost=1516620699][/doublepost]
That would be a nice option but it wouldn't (right now) play to Apple's strength. HomePod is my top pick for smart speaker right now but I honestly wouldn't buy a speakerless Siri assistant. Siri is at the bottom of assistants in my experience—not bad but lacking in many areas. Is it just voice access to Apple Music that you want?That's an answer to a question he didn't ask.
He's already got a decent hi-fi system and wants to add the Siri functionality from the HomePod to it, Echo Dot style. Your Apple Watch isn't much good (even if it was somehow connected to your hi-fi) if other family members want to use it while you are away from home.
Last edited:
In the hypothetical scenario where Apple could either release the HomePod in February or could have diverted some resources to also shipping a HomePad 'Dot' alongside it which would have shifted the timeline back several months, I'm sure almost everybody would agree that the former option is the better. Ideally, Apple would also ship a HomePod 'Dot' later this year.
Though there might a bit of a clash with the market positioning. The HomePod costs significantly more than the, eg, the Amazon Echo. Apple largely justifies this with the better audio quality. Releasing a HomePod 'Dot', which by definition would have worse audio puts Apple a bit in a quandary. If it charges similar prices as for the Echo Dot, the price difference between the HomePod and the HomePod 'Dot' would be very large, only 'justified' by the audio quality. Many people might look at the big savings and get the HomePod 'Dot' instead of the full-size HomePod. If, on the other hand, Apple charges let's say half the price of the HomePod for the HomePod 'Dot', it would sell a product much more expensive than the Echo Dot without any clear justification for the price difference. This is a mild version of what has been sometimes called a strategy tax.
I have just this use case. I've been able to overcome it with Apple TV (Siri via the remote) as my HiFi also doubles as my Home Cinema.
What HomePod will do for me is replace the awful sound from the Samsung TV in the bedroom, where I can't have a set of decent speakers but use a second Apple TV as an exclusive source.
I don't want a HomePod or a HomePod Dot. I'm quite happy with my existing hi-fi using AirPlay through an old Apple TV and never use Siri as it frustrates me too much. I was referring to the original and valid question from @beanbaguk which the other member had offered an unsatisfactory solution to.
I'm sure lot's of people already have great hi-fi systems that sound a lot better than a small single speaker like the HomePod ever could but would still be interested in adding it's functionality to their existing set up.
It's not meant to compete with such a set-up. Most consumers are fine (or constrained financially to ) cheaper options.
The problem with that is when I'm holding my phone in my right hand talking to Siri, the watch on my left hand attempts to respond. Reading "Here's what I found on the web regarding..." is much easier to do on the iPhone's larger screen. When I do get an actual response, the phone is much, much faster than the watch. So if its handy, I usually prefer that.
OK, despite the fact that is was meant to come out of two speakers in the first place.
You are correct that it hasn't been released BUT people have heard the HomePod, back in June people at WWDC were given previews of the HomePod and it's sound, it was even compared against the Echo and Sonos.
"HomePod puts vocals in a direct center channel, and beams ambient sounds around for what Apple says is a more omnidirectional music experience. I walked around, and it sounded good from multiple parts of the room. Apple said HomePod can separate vocals and other parts of the music via Apple Music, but that more recent recordings will perform the separation better […]
HomePod came off as bolder and more vivid than Sonos Play:3 in the experience I tried, and a lot better than Amazon Echo. I’d also say the music sounded consistently vivid and crisp in a quiet space, more so than the Sonos and Amazon comparisons on-hand." - CNET
"The HomePod however, sounded crisp and bright no matter the musical genre fed through it — it rendered The Eagles as well it did Kendrick Lamar. As a reminder, there’s a huge woofer and seven tweeters inside, all meant to make audio sound as vivid as possible no matter where you are in a room. It works. The PLAY:3 was generally very good, but audio felt remarkably closed off when I wasn’t sitting right in front of it. If listening to the HomePod was like listening to a CD, then audio through the Echo sounded like AM radio." - Engadget
"As Sia’s The Greatest played out, the HomePod sounded impressive: strong bass rang out – which was perhaps the overriding audio takeaway for the speaker – but the vocals still seemed sharp and crisp.
In comparison, the Sonos Play:3 appeared uncharacteristically flat, while the Amazon Echo felt almost pedestrian.
We listened to Superstition by Stevie Wonder and DNA by Kendrick Lamar. Both sounded good on the Sonos but appeared punchier and louder on the HomePod. As we moved around the room, the HomePod managed to project in every direction, with no discernible sweet spot.
We also heard a pair of HomePods playing a live recording of Hotel California by The Eagles. The attention to detail was striking, with different instruments sounding discretely realised. Did we feel like we were at the concert? Maybe not, but it did sound powerful." - What HiFi?
https://9to5mac.com/2017/06/06/homepod-review-sound-quality-audio-quality-hifi/
The Verge even wrote an article about it:
https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/5/15743886/homepod-audio-quality-demo-echo-sonos-bass
Yes it's early days it hasn't even been released yet but you can bet that it's not going to sound bad and it certainly won't sound anything less than what these reviews have said. My guess with the whole delay is so that Apple can add new features such as the one's that have been talked about in this thread.
That's a well argued statement. I think you are 100% correct, Homepod will come down to a "really good sounding speaker" and that'll be enough for most people.
Yes! I'm waiting for Harmony and Plex to support Siri and HomeKit.
Wold it be possible to connect the HomePod with s smart TV (via Bluetooth)
Also, would it be possible to keep 2 of these wired or wireless connected (for stereo sound) without having to choose both outputs on the Ariplay 2.
Also, would it be possible to keep 2 of these wired or wireless connected (for stereo sound) without having to choose both outputs on the Ariplay 2.
I'm not sure if it even supports Bluetooth streaming. The HomePod page only mentions wi-fi.
I hate to disappoint you but without a drastically improved Siri, this device is just going to be an overpriced (yet well designed) standalone speaker.
I see the appeal of multiple users, but I am unsure if Apple will allow it.
I am still waiting for the tvOS to support multiple users, a device that is used by a family, but basically limited to one user for most thing.
I'm quite certain that the delay of the HomePod has something to do with the improvement of Siri.
In which case, what you need is an Airport Express to let your Macs and iDevices stream to your HiFi, not a Homepod. Plus, that avoids the creepy always-on mic thing - but if you really want that, any iDevice can potentially do the Siri thing.
I'm honestly hoping it fails horribly so that Apple is forced to work hard on improving Siri rather than just giving her a few more options each year.
Many Mac Pro and 15" Macbook Pro owners would disagree.
So true, and this is [in my opinion] a big gap in the Apple approach. PERSONAL devices - particularly the phone and watch - are fine when limited to a single user perspective. SHARABLE devices - e.g. the iPad - needs to support multiple users in a non-concurrent mode. COMMON devices - e.g. the TV and HomePod - must be able to support multiple concurrent users in whatever context is appropriate to either the individual or the group depending on app.
That's an answer to a question he didn't ask.
He's already got a decent hi-fi system and wants to add the Siri functionality from the HomePod to it, Echo Dot style.
Well, no, not Echo Dot style. That would be a much smaller, less expensive speaker. The HomePod is overkill if one's priority is on size and home control vs sound quality. Hopefully Apple will add a less expensive Dot style speaker -- not saying it needs to be $50 or under, but certainly no more than $99 and no bigger than the Dot.