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HomePod Struggling to Gain Market Share Alongside Cheaper Amazon Echo and Google Home Speakers
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Hypothesis 1: As the age of the potential HomePod customer increases, the chances that they have legacy audio equipment also increases.
Be it a turn-table for your album collection, a gaming console, or an extra TV you keep in the adult play room, the HomePod is not an option because it lacks a physical port and Bluetooth connectivity.
Hypothesis 2: As the income of the potential HomePod customer increases, the chances that they have multiple music services, such as Amazon Prime Music, YouTube Prime Music, and/or Spotify, also increases.
I don't come anywhere near the limit (50,000 songs), but all my ripped music from decades past is in Google Play music, including music still not available from streaming services. And I don't know anyone who doesn't have Amazon Prime, therefore Amazon Prime Music.
Hypothesis 3: As the size of the house hold increases, the need for individual accounts also increases.
I don't want my music algorithms affected by the other members of my family. My Netflix account is still jacked up, years after creating separate accounts for everyone. And this isn't even an option with the HomePod.
Hypothesis 4: The HomePod, as configured, is too restricted a device for most potential consumers. If the next model doesn't address these issues, 6% market share is going to be looked at as the good old days.
Be it a turn-table for your album collection, a gaming console, or an extra TV you keep in the adult play room, the HomePod is not an option because it lacks a physical port and Bluetooth connectivity.
Hypothesis 2: As the income of the potential HomePod customer increases, the chances that they have multiple music services, such as Amazon Prime Music, YouTube Prime Music, and/or Spotify, also increases.
I don't come anywhere near the limit (50,000 songs), but all my ripped music from decades past is in Google Play music, including music still not available from streaming services. And I don't know anyone who doesn't have Amazon Prime, therefore Amazon Prime Music.
Hypothesis 3: As the size of the house hold increases, the need for individual accounts also increases.
I don't want my music algorithms affected by the other members of my family. My Netflix account is still jacked up, years after creating separate accounts for everyone. And this isn't even an option with the HomePod.
Hypothesis 4: The HomePod, as configured, is too restricted a device for most potential consumers. If the next model doesn't address these issues, 6% market share is going to be looked at as the good old days.
It's one of the most expensive "smart" speakers, and it's the dumbest of all the smart speakers at the same time. It can't really do very much useful, and like most Apple products it doesn't play nice with other 3rd party apps and services. There's no real compelling reason to get the HomePod over a good quality set of speakers.
It does work with other apps as a speaker via airplay.
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I don’t personally like Spotify but I think it would be better than Apple Music for my husband as he has an android phone.
I’ve tried Spotify, google play music and amazon music as well as Apple Music. I prefer Apple Music. The UI is what I’m used to because I’ve used the music app on the iPhone for years. I also like the fact that my personal library and Apple Music content are all together rather than having it in two separate places which is the case with Spotify. After Apple Music I like google play music. The UI is clean and it’s strsight forward to use. Like Apple Music you can have your own library and your streaming library in the same app. If I had an android phone that’s what I’d use.
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Until recently, the HomePod was pretty much the only choice if you were subscribed to Apple Music and wanted the Siri integration.
Apple should drop Siri and open for users to choose from Google, Alexa, Cortana,.... I see no future for Siri
For me, going with Apple Music was a no-brainer given how entrenched in the Apple ecosystem I was. Being able to store Apple Music on my watch, and stream it from my Apple TV just sweetened the deal.
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It would be foolhardy to trust such a critical part of your ecosystem to a third party. However inferior Siri may be, it's still something Apple controls and is able to tweak in accordance with their product roadmap without having to go through other companies. Or has the whole Google Maps debacle taught people nothing?
It’s the only choice if you want full integration with Apple devices. Yes there is the echo and google home both of which I own to fill up all the rooms in my house. However they don’t integrate with my Apple devices in the same way. I can get the HomePod to read and reply to my messages. It can answer my phone calls, it can find my MacBook, iPads or AirPods if I loose them, it can make notes directly in the notes app. I can play podcasts from the podcasts app which directly sync up with my iPhone and iPad. I can control playback all from the control centre on any of my iOS devices.
Apple Music is the only streaming service that I’ve stuck with outside of the free trial. The rest I found I wasn’t even using them. Going into a separate app to stream music seems like too much work for me. Apple Music is more natural because it’s in the same place that I keep my own music library. It’s even helped with music discovery. I ask Siri to play some music on my HomePod and it plays a mix of my own songs and other songs in the same genre.
It’s also been able to correctly guess songs that I’d like to listen to more accurately than any of the other streaming services. Granted it has my locally stored music to work from. However I have my music library uploaded to google play music and if I ask the google home mini to play some music it plays a load of rubbish. It doesn’t seem to learn. Admittedly I’ve never done much in Spotify for it to learn my tastes but with Apple Music there is no effort required from me. Also like you said it works with my Apple Watch and other Apple devices like my Apple TV and iPads.
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The thing about Sonos is that it can be a surround sound system, and HomePod can’t. It can also play music from a turntable, which HomePod can’t. And Spotify-although why you would want to spend that much to hear MP3 quality music I don’t know - Sonos can and the HomePod can’t.
It wouldn’t be cheap to get that capability for a Sonos. You would need to buy enough speakers, an amp so you can integrate your current home stereo equipment and the Sub woofer. But if you are really an audiophile you don’t want someone else deciding what you can and can’t play.you can stream pretty much any music service including ones that stream at CD quality, which is about 4 times the data that either Spotify or Apple Music uses.
And to be blunt, this equipment doesn’t need Apple. It will work with a PC and with Linux or Windows or with no computer or phone/tablet at all.
That’s what most audiophiles want: Equipment that doesn’t limit them or their music. Or to be more honest equipment that limits them as little as possible.
There are other systems that will also accomplish this. But they make a $3000.00 to $4000.00 Sonos system look cheap.
This is the kind of thinking an Apple under Jobs' tenure would probably be good at. Not to dredge up the "good ol' days" argument, because Steve could be a prick and he wasn't always on the ball – but it seems like he had more of a feel for the common man and how people actually interact with technology than the Apple of today. The hypotheses you state appear quite logical (and obvious) to me. It's too bad they don't dole out common sense with those MBAs.
Yes by limiting people to only one model of iPhone. Not allowing smaller tablets or larger phones or a stylus. Wasn’t the hifi made in his day too.
To be fair to Steve, he started to hand over the reigns to Tim in 2009-ish due to medical problems. This is a period when Apple was still trying to figure out where they wanted to go with iOS and the iPhone.
To be fair to Tim, he's been overseeing the pivot Apple needed to make to mobile and the cloud. I think Apple has been served well by both of them.
Is it possible you speak like Trump that Alexa doesn't understand you? I have the echo and the google home and it is 99% spot on with my commands on both.
With SIRI it is always a joke, even to do simple tasks, simple texts. But does allow me to set an alarm or reminder just can't do anything else worthwhile.
Not only the price is the issue, even if it were only 50USD I would not get it because it is almost useless by all of us using Spotify and those who expect a mediocre assistant instead of the super ultra mentally challenged and cuadraplegic assists that Siri is now. Not to offend anyone, just to express how challenging it is for Siri to "just work" compared with other assistants.
I own two and will be getting a couple more next time they go on sale. Great sound, Siri works great and it is my HomeKit hub. Love them!
Most people have no music streaming service.
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Siri is the most popular personal assistant on the planet.
I would. If I was buying any sort of smart speaker it’s primary purpose would be to make my music sound great. I probably wouldn’t use the assistant part of it since I already have assistants on my watch and phone.
Well then you can use AirPlay with whatever system you want. It's been great in my house since ~2003. Most people don't have the home assistants set up as serious audio equipment anyway, though tbh I'm not really sure what they're for to begin with.
I only hope your alternative is an aux cord instead of forcing your guests to pair Bluetooth. That's a nightmare every time.