price for a device is not very apple-ish, i wonder what is the catch? stereo would be great if not the mini is design as bathroom speaker
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.
Leaker: HomePod 'Mini' Will Launch Next Month Costing $99
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Ah yes, MR where some people just love to complain. Are you really upset that $99 is too much for an Apple speaker?
I think it's more what kind of music you listen to. I never listen to R&B or anything like that. I listen mainly on female vocals e.g. Celine Dion. I just want to hear the beautiful voice, not get drowned in background base.
If true, I wonder what level of compromise will be necessary to hit that price point?
There's a significant amount of technology in the current HomePod in order to produce such excellent sound in a small package. Automatic adaptive acoustic room equalization, arrays of microphones and speakers for signal processing-driven beamforming for both isolating user verbal commands over large distances in the presence of its own output and other extraneous sounds, and driving room-equalized audio output, all working together to produce great sound.
It's quite a technological marvel and a bargain at its current price, and a steal when on sale.
There's a significant amount of technology in the current HomePod in order to produce such excellent sound in a small package. Automatic adaptive acoustic room equalization, arrays of microphones and speakers for signal processing-driven beamforming for both isolating user verbal commands over large distances in the presence of its own output and other extraneous sounds, and driving room-equalized audio output, all working together to produce great sound.
It's quite a technological marvel and a bargain at its current price, and a steal when on sale.
It doesn't need to be a Bluetooth speaker, I hate when I am at my brother's and they are listing to music through though BT Speaker. Native music playing is so much better sounding and you don't have to deal with why the music stop...so they left the room.
I’m excited by this announcement. I love our HomePod but the price tag is overkill to have one in each room of our place and quite frankly it’s a little big for some of the rooms I’d like to put one in. At $99 a pop for the mini I could justify having one in the kitchen without taking up too much space, one in the master bedroom and another one in the other side of the living room in stereo mode, if it’s supported, with the existing HomePod we already have by our TV and Apple TV.
People like me, who have nothing but Apple devices in the house and like the idea of having these kinds of speakers available but don't want to fiddle with any kind of setup we have to make ourselves, don't want a Google or Amazon speaker and don't really care that much about sound quality. The fact that it is smaller than the current HomePod is also a big plus for me.
I will be in for a few of these day one most likely (unless there is some huge glaring miss on the features) and then add more as they go on sale at Best Buy and places like that. Seeing these things hit $70 or $80 will likely become common as we get into the product's life cycle.
I would assume your home wifi network must have 2.4GHz enabled. A lot of "Smart Appliances" only use 2.4GHz.
You don't really understand speaker design, do you?
Here's a hint -- small speakers are used for the higher frequencies. Bigger speakers are for the lower end because physics say that in order to move enough air to create bass, you need bigger speakers.
It sort of goes without saying that a 3" device cannot have a speaker in it larger than 3", hence there won't be much bottom-end (bass).
I think the price dictates it won't be sonically awesome. $99 in Apple dollars is equal to $50 in other brands. It's cheap and the sound may be better than other $50 speakers but won't be anything like it's big brother.
The only thing Apple sells for under $50 is cables and adapters. There would never be a device that actually does something for 50 bucks.
And, $99 is 1/3 the price of the Homepod which is normally $299.
you're mad. Apple barely sells a cable for $35, never mind a smart speaker.
for what it's worth I don't believe that the HomePod mini will retail at $99 either. $149 feels more likely, especially if they double down on maintaining the $279 price point of the original. At $199 for a stereo set up of the mini, no-one is buying the full-size one any more. Unless they somehow don't allow them to be used in stereo, which would be disappointing if predictable.
if they want to stick to the $99 or even $149 price point then I think the mini ought to have at least 5 tweeters and maybe an A12 processor. To me the price point is not independent of the underlying hardware.
and I think that the iPad Air should have a proMotion display and quad speakers. that's not how apple works.
I wish they would go all in on audio and bring to market a TV sound bar/surround system and an outdoor portable (similar to the Beats Pill but a lot better)
Interestingly, I received a very long survey from Apple on audio and they asked a lot of questions regarding TV sound bars
Interestingly, I received a very long survey from Apple on audio and they asked a lot of questions regarding TV sound bars
$99 is a perfect price from a marketing standpoint.
But curious what will differentiate it from the Echos and Google Home speakers. No doubt, it’ll be touted as a more privacy enabled product.
But curious what will differentiate it from the Echos and Google Home speakers. No doubt, it’ll be touted as a more privacy enabled product.
I'm just waiting for the ability to set Spotify as the default music app. And yeah, bluetooth would be nice.
