And I see future Apple speaker/sound system products based on the adaptive beamforming technology Apple developed in HomePod.
There's loads of potential going forward.
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HomePod No Longer Available for Launch Day Delivery From Apple in U.S.
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And I see future Apple speaker/sound system products based on the adaptive beamforming technology Apple developed in HomePod.
There's loads of potential going forward.
Shoot. I guess I’ll need to pay $750 on eBay so I can get it on launch day.
I don't think there is a shortage in the US. There is is only 1 day till launch and Apple probably isn't paying for overnight shipping. The product will arrive in 2-3 days which is 12-13. It's funny how all of these reviewers are now audio/videophiles though. I love these self proclaimed experts. I'm sure there tv's are properly calibrated as well...
Some of these people need to visit AVS Forum. That's a great site for audio/video.
And the iPad as well, which when released was trashed here as just a large iPhone, something no-one asked for. Yet there were 44 million of them sold in 2017 and is a market leader.
Remember all the people claiming we need to see HomePod reviews by audio experts (and not normal tech reviewers)?
And all the people claiming audiophiles or those serious about audio would never buy a HomePod?
They can't have it both ways. If no "audiophile" will buy the HomePod then it doesn't need to be reviewed by "audiophiles". The "regular" people interested in this are going to visit the usual review sites and base their decision on what they say. So all they're going to come across are all those positive reviews.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Wow man. It doesn't need to be reviewed by audiophiles. It needs to be reviewed by OBJECTIVE sources. There is a HUGE difference between those 2 words. Nobody getting a pre-release version from Apple can be fully objective (else, no future pre-release goodies from Apple). After 2/9, independent sources will BUY one and not necessarily have any reason to bias their takes positive or negative. That's how to get objective reviews.
And the "regular" people are not even seeing only gushing praise in these pre-release "reviews" either. Instead, what I think I see is "sounds really great but not so smart" written in about 7 different ways. Regular people that are not drunk on the koolaid may see that general headline as one big pro and one con of some size. Dig in and read the whole pre-release "review" not solely focused on the positives and one can see both positives and negatives. And then the "regular" people can make a decision that seems best for them.
If they have some patience, the objectivity will be greater in the reviews that come out from the non-Apple-favored press AFTER 2/9. That should be best crack at real, OBJECTIVE reviews short of just buying one and doing their own "review" in their own homes.
It's terrific that you are so very sold on this product. Good for you. Go buy one or two. Not everyone sees this like you... or me. To each his own. Ridiculing strangers for not seeing it like you do doesn't accomplish anything.
And the "regular" people are not even seeing only gushing praise in these pre-release "reviews" either. Instead, what I think I see is "sounds really great but not so smart" written in about 7 different ways. Regular people that are not drunk on the koolaid may see that general headline as one big pro and one con of some size. Dig in and read the whole pre-release "review" not solely focused on the positives and one can see both positives and negatives. And then the "regular" people can make a decision that seems best for them.
If they have some patience, the objectivity will be greater in the reviews that come out from the non-Apple-favored press AFTER 2/9. That should be best crack at real, OBJECTIVE reviews short of just buying one and doing their own "review" in their own homes.
It's terrific that you are so very sold on this product. Good for you. Go buy one or two. Not everyone sees this like you... or me. To each his own. Ridiculing strangers for not seeing it like you do doesn't accomplish anything.
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Why do they need to? With Apple Music growing as it is they have no reason to do this.
These speakers won’t sell like the iPhone but they certainly won’t be collecting dust.
Just sitting here and LOL at the doubters here.
How many hits does Apple need before you'll admit they OWN markets they enter.
Watch and learn...or just keep denying it.
How many hits does Apple need before you'll admit they OWN markets they enter.
- iPhone - TOO EXPENSIVE - Best consumer product of all time.
- iPad - Who would pay for a big iPhone that doesn't make calls? Own the tablet Market.
- Watch - No WAY this useless toy will be successful. Sell most watches in World.
- AirPods - $159 for some earbuds? LOLOLOL! Who would buy them? Best wireless headphones
- HomePod - $349 for a dumb assistant? - ????
Watch and learn...or just keep denying it.
Where did I say anything about "objective" reviews or reviews by people who bought a HomePod (as opposed to someone who was given an early release review unit)? I'm speaking specifically to the numerous people who have stated tech reviewers aren't equipped to review audio. It's not their primary focus, they don't have the experience and they don't have the test equipment to do a proper review (like measuring the frequency response of the HomePod). They want to see reviews done by the audio-centric sites.
Interesting how the people getting those "early review" units have all criticized Siri. Some very harshly. So it doesn't appear any of them are toning down their reviews because they're afraid of getting future review units from Apple. Otherwise the ENTIRE review should be positive, not half the review (the sound half). That pretty much squashes the "Apple only gives units to those who will give glowing reviews" conspiracy people always float.
That's because they are paid to review, haven't seen 1 review that wasn't all OH APPLE I LOVE YOU.. Even guys that usually stay away from that type of nonsense are doing it on youtube with this.. and that's another indicator not to even bother with this product. I already have speakers, I already have assistants.. SIRI doesn't cut it. And I too love Apple products but this just isn't worth the price. Having had time with it at the keynote.. and then again recently it still isn't what it should be. Maybe if IOS 12 kicks serious butt and SIRI is actually upgraded to compete with other assistants then yes, I can see a reason to get this type of item. BUT, it don't think it's going to happen. Apple has put SIRI on the back burner, time and time again while focusing on hardware more often then not. When they take software and SIRI seriously.. then I'll start taking their hardware seriously. As I said last year, there comes a point when hardware hits its peak and the driving force needs to continue to push the envelope.. still haven't seen software go anywhere but down from Apple in the last 4-5 years.
The HomePod reminds me of a passage from "The Design of Everyday Things" by Don Norman:
"Most companies compare features with their competition to determine where they are weak, so they can strengthen those areas. Wrong... A better strategy is to concentrate on areas where they are stronger and to strengthen them even more. Then focus all marketing and advertisements to point out the strong points. This causes the product to stand out from the mindless herd. As for the weaknesses, ignore the irrelevant ones... The lesson is simple: don’t follow blindly; focus on strengths, not weaknesses. If the product has real strengths, it can afford to just be “good enough” in the other areas.
Good design requires stepping back from competitive pressures and ensuring that the entire product be consistent, coherent, and understandable. This stance requires the leadership of the company to withstand the marketing forces that keep begging to add this feature or that, each thought to be essential for some market segment. The best products come from ignoring these competing voices and instead focusing on the true needs of the people who use the product"
"Most companies compare features with their competition to determine where they are weak, so they can strengthen those areas. Wrong... A better strategy is to concentrate on areas where they are stronger and to strengthen them even more. Then focus all marketing and advertisements to point out the strong points. This causes the product to stand out from the mindless herd. As for the weaknesses, ignore the irrelevant ones... The lesson is simple: don’t follow blindly; focus on strengths, not weaknesses. If the product has real strengths, it can afford to just be “good enough” in the other areas.
Good design requires stepping back from competitive pressures and ensuring that the entire product be consistent, coherent, and understandable. This stance requires the leadership of the company to withstand the marketing forces that keep begging to add this feature or that, each thought to be essential for some market segment. The best products come from ignoring these competing voices and instead focusing on the true needs of the people who use the product"
Maybe I'm not sure what you are suggesting. I have a Yamaha A/V rec with Airplay. It works in both directions -- to or from another Airplay device. I can send music from my Mac or iDevice to the Yamaha but also I can send audio from the Yamaha to a Mac or iDevice via Airplay.
What he wants is a small black box with an AUX input that sends the audio out over AirPlay. Then anyone with audio over a 3.5mm or RCA jacks (for example) could have that audio go to an AirPlay device. For people who have TVs, receivers or other audio gear without AirPlay.
But one could make the argument Echo and Google Home could be plugged into that idea too. They are both "good enough," for their respective followers/users.
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Well, I'm not a fan, but I wouldn't characterize him that way, but regardless, your statement is a non-sequitur to my post. I'll leave it at that.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
You just posted a hard poke at those who "can't have it both ways" as if the negative slights rule out any use of HP because they are both claiming it's for and not for audiophiles.
What I've generally seen in all this debate is that some- including myself- are seeing through Apple-controlled demo news and pre-release "reviews" such that we want to wait for (especially) the audio review press to do OBJECTIVE reviews. They can't do that until they possess one and the vast majority of that space doesn't seem to be on Apple's pre-release comp list. An objective mind might wonder why not? It's primarily a speaker. Wouldn't the audio press be the best place to seek reviews of "best quality sound" instead of tech press (where one of the first spent her first couple of paragraphs thoroughly disclaiming her audio hardware knowledge) and entities like the WSJ, whose pages tend to be filled with stock market info instead of AV hardware reviews.
As to the apparent undermining of "pre-release" crits not aligning with the "Apple only gives units <to friends>" concepts, there's less there than the extremes you imply. The crits are generally soft, often remedied within the very same "review" by the "reviewer" (which is always suspect) with various "just one software update away" type references. Objective reviews will focus on what comes out of the box, not what the product might become sometime in the future if Apple updates the software to do more things.
You are obviously a massive fan. Take the Apple logo off of this product. Imagine it as a Samsung smart speaker instead. Now apply the very same soft crits to it: not as smart as competitors, not able to sync up for stereo out of the box, not whole home out of the box, etc. Are you in these threads throughly selling a Samsung HomePod like you are selling an Apple HomePod... or are you shredding it for the known shortcomings, generally soft as they are? (rhetorical, I can easily guess the answer to that question).
Pre-release demo news and pre-release reviews need some crits to sound credible. Else, they would appear to be an (even more obvious) extension of Apple marketing. The crits I've seen tend to be soft, easily remedied if Apple does stuff in the future to remedy them. What we'll see AFTER 2/9 are reviews based on the "as is," not on the "how great it may become*"
None of this is meant to put HP down. From what I've seen so far, I'm increasingly convinced it will likely sound best of the smart speaker segment myself. Nevertheless, I still see right through spinning it up based on demo news and pre-release "reviews." Those who have similar questions can just stand by for a few more days and then likely get to see real reviews... WHICH may be just as- if not more- flattering OR may fill in some blanks that are generally dodged or marginalized by friends and fans of Apple.
*if Apple follows through on various updates to make it do all of what we are imagining it could do.
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LOL, Apple will never own the smart speaker market. The Homepod may win top worst product award for 2018 though. Right now, it sits in first place. This is no iphone that redefined that market. It's no ipad which defined a new market. It's not airpods which sort of defined a market of wireless earpods. Or even apple watch which took over with obvious potential.
This is a speaker whose audio quality the mainstream won't give a crap about, has the worst AI in the market, is gimped not being BT or having audio inputs, relies on having a phone to set it up, and can't do stereo or multiroom. Airplay has too much lag to work with apple tv. Right now this is a steaming pile of overpriced junk compared to the competition. It won't be defining any kind of market.
Perhaps it could evolve later to be a typical apple product but Apple has a lot of work to do.
Right but that is exactly what my Yamaha, and presumably other A/V recvrs w/ AirPlay do. Granted they are not "small," but would accomplish that task. Audio from any component plugged into my receiver can be sent to a remote AirPlay device or speaker anywhere the house.
Yes, each company is broadly doing the right thing by focusing on their strengths. For Amazon, it's unlimited integrations. For Apple, it's sound quality.
Google is the only one that's a bit muddled. Their strength is answering any query and they should focus on that. Instead, they have this Home Max product for sound quality and they want to get all of the integrations that Amazon has.
Yep, just like artificial hype for the iPhone X, Apple Watch, and AirPods.
Sorry won’t work.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
That's great and seems to about perfectly fit this exact product launch. But Apple has the money and talent to do both- thoroughly build on their own strongest points AND address their relative weaknesses vs. key competition. They are not a weak competitor or a fledgling one or cash-strapped vs. richer players, etc. In short, Apple could run with that exact philosophy AND counter it by ALSO overcoming competitor advantages.
Should we expect anything less of Apple? If anyone can do both, isn't that Apple?
Are you really recommending buying a receiver just to use as an adaptor for your existing audio gear?
It's great if you've already got one but I think he was suggesting a small and inexpensive plug in adaptor.
Listening to the Verge podcast on this and Nilay was really talking up the sound quality. It’s a head scratcher to me that Apple didn’t make Siri improvements a priority for launch or at least a new Siri domain for music/podcasts. Even if Siri was still best with Apple Music at least there would be some native support for other services. If Apple had done that reviews would have been a lot better. Sad to see a product with really good sound be a no buy because Apple can’t get its act together with Siri.
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But Apple could create a Siri domain for music and podcasts and then you’re not locked into AM. At least support for other music services isn’t limited by hardware. And if you have an iOS device you can use other services via AirPlay.