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Pass, I've already filled the house with Echo speakers. Those along with my Spotify account will do me nicely.
 
Siri is inferior to practically everyone else in the game. The speaker alone is not worth $350.

Enjoy your iPod HiFi, though.

But this isn’t Just a voice assistant. This to marketed as a powerful booming sound speaker.

You said this will flop which it won’t. It’s expensive like all apple products. That doesn’t bother people who like the products Apple produce
 
siri is just clunky and awful... I cringe when I have to hear her voice let alone her rubbish answers.. and to buy an expensive speaker that locks into this.... yucky! no thanks!
 
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Or, you can get a Sonos One (which already integrates with Alexa by voice with Google soon) and also has Apple Music integrated into the Sonos app (along with dozens of other services) for literally less than half the price of the HomePod.

Walled garden with huge limitations, that costs more than double for slightly better sound? No thanks.

The design looks nice, the speaker technology is probably the best out on the market but what's stopping me is the price. What I mean, is that I can get a more capable voice assistant, in a decent speaker setup for 80 dollars from Amazon, or spend 350 dollars be locked into Apple Music and deal with Siri's short comings.
 
Too late.

I hear ya bro. Just like Apple blowing it with MP3 players and phones, being too late.

Certainly not late for me. I'm buying one as as they're available. And if I like how it sounds and operates, and how it integrates with other Apple services/products, I'll buy another. And then maybe a couple more.

Intrigued with its beamforming possibilities.
 
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In all seriousness, does anyone actually think the Echo or Google Home are amazing products and APPLE has no chance of disrupting this market?

The Echo Dot is literally a piece of trash. Have you seen it in person?
You’re joking right?

I have a dot in every room in my house. They are absolutely perfect. It’s not about the sound quality, it’s about being autonomous devices rather than being tied to an iPhone so that they just work in a home with a family. It’s also the fact that Alexa beats Siri in every aspect of functionality and user interface. I’m not pleased about not this (given I have iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac) but it’s true.
 
Which is why I remain excited to see - or rather hear - what this device can do.

Yes, Apple have a hill to climb, to gain anything like the momentum Amazon and Google have with their smart speaker devices, but history tells us that Apple have the ability to bring something (late) to the table that has a quality and experience that is very competitive, or even superior.

Interesting to watch this launch and see what happens...

This is exactly my point it’s like some people are writing Apple and the HomePod off already!!

The same was said about the Apple Watch that it wouldn’t catch on and that Apple was behind because other companies had already released a smart watch, Apple then came along and released a great smart watch that’s very popular.

I’m looking forward to seeing this launch and what happens. It will be interesting to see what reviews say.
 
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Question, not that anyone would actually know..but can I use this as a wifi/airplay speaker thru Apple TV to use as surround sound for a movie/show playing off the Apple TV (4) ?
 
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Or, you can get a Sonos One (which already integrates with Alexa by voice with Google soon) and also has Apple Music integrated into the Sonos app (along with dozens of other services) for literally less than half the price of the HomePod.

Walled garden with huge limitations, that costs more than double for slightly better sound? No thanks.

With respect to huge limitations, will the Sonos One wirelessly play audio from the YouTube (or other video) I'm watching on my MBP?
 
Sorry apple. Don't need a speaker. And Siri is too flawed to really enhance this or create any desire for it. That said, I'm sure it'll do well enough with the apple fanatics.
 
Same thing was said about the iPhone, iPad and iPods. History will tell.

Was it? I don't recall anyone saying the iPhone, iPad and iPod were "too late" before being launched!

I think the only reason HomePod sales will struggle is the awful Siri.
 
Question, not that anyone would actually know..but can I use this as a wifi/airplay speaker thru Apple TV to use as surround sound for a movie/show playing off the Apple TV (4) ?

That’s the one thing I’d really love to know too. It’ll be pretty pointless if not. I wonder whether that was the delay, actually, as it’s odd it wasn’t mentioned at all when they announced it.
 
You’re joking right?

I have a dot in every room in my house. They are absolutely perfect. It’s not about the sound quality, it’s about being autonomous devices rather than being tied to an iPhone so that they just work in a home with a family. It’s also the fact that Alexa beats Siri in every aspect of functionality and user interface. I’m not pleased about not this (given I have iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac) but it’s true.
So you at least admit it's not about sound quality, making the HomePod much different than the Echo.

We also don't know what the integration for Siri will be with HomePod or how "stupid" it is without testing. I don't agree that Alexa is always better. I think Siri can do many things Alexa can do and still believe there will be software updates with HomePod that make Siri very smart, particularly with music commands.
 
It's not that Echo or Google Home are amazing. It's that they are priced so that they are affordable to set up in the entire home. You can put a top-of-the-line Echo in the living room, a less expensive Tap in the kitchen, and Dots throughout the house where only voice control is needed, or in the kids rooms, for the same price as ONE HomePod.

The HomePod may sound better than the Echo or Google Home, but the point of these devices is to incorporate voice control in the home. You can't do that with just one speaker in one room unless you live in a studio apt. And if you want great sound there is already a zillion small speaker systems. Apple wouldn't be the first company to make a great sounding wireless small speaker.

The other problem with HomePod is Apple is clearly trying to make it an AppleMusic accessory. Last I heard many of the voice commands only work with AM, not your owned music in the iTunes app. So given all this, what really is the incentive for the masses to ditch their Echo or Google Home or even for Homekit users to buy-in? I'll keep using my iDevices as voice control speakers until Apple can come up with a better, more affordable system, rather than just a lone speaker.
The Echo is priced affordably because it's a piece of junk, despite the ability of Alexa to answer a few questions.

We'll reserve judgement on HomePod until it's actually released.
 
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In all seriousness, does anyone actually think the Echo or Google Home are amazing products and APPLE has no chance of disrupting this market?

The Echo Dot is literally a piece of trash. Have you seen it in person?
The Echo Dot caters to a certain market price point. It's intended for those who occasionally listen to music and need access to Amazon's AI assistant and it does it for cheap. Why are you comparing the HomePod specifically to the Echo Dot?
 
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So you at least admit it's not about sound quality, making the HomePod much different than the Echo.

We also don't know what the integration for Siri will be with HomePod or how "stupid" it is without testing. I don't agree that Alexa is always better. I think Siri can do many things Alexa can do and still believe there will be software updates with HomePod that make Siri very smart, particularly with music commands.
The OP wasn't saying that the Echo isn't about sound quality, he's saying the market for smart connected speakers (in his opinion) isn't about sound quality. And I would tend to agree. I think it's good to have a range of quality for those who want it (and I think the new Echo Plus is pretty good at half the cost of the HomePod), but primary utility (to me and the other poster) is being able to have them spread all around the house and the functionality of the assistant.
 
WE have been talking about mesh networks for over a decade (OLPC etc). If all it did was that it would be a valuable if expensive solution. There are other mesh solutions but none that are "set and forget". They all require substantial technical expertise to set up. A cost exceeding this Apple price.
 
I actually feel like I want this product but I don't think I need this product. Especially at the close to $500 CND price tag it will have.
 
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