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Considering reviews have even said how great the sound is having an apple logo is irrelevant

The Homepod syncs with apple devices while having amazing sound. Can a JBL control my lights, do times, podcasts as well?

no is the answer.

Homepod is the best sound smart speaker you can buy and it's why I bought it to go with my other needs.
I was responding to a specific element of the package being sound quality therefore to purchase a HomePod merely for the Sound quality I was pointing out there are countless other options available (including the JBL Flip 4) for a fraction of the price.
I choose to use an iMac because it suits my needs but I am not driven by the Apple Logo.
 



In a new test shared today by Loup Ventures, Apple's HomePod was put through its paces in categories including Siri, sound quality, and ease of use. For Siri, Loup Ventures' Gene Munster reported that while the AI assistant understood 99.4 percent of queries asked of it, it answered only 52.3 percent of them correctly. Loup Ventures tested three separate HomePods and asked 782 queries total.

Compared to previous tests of rival speakers, HomePod is "at the bottom of the totem pole" in the AI assistant performance category. Google Home answered 81 percent correctly, Amazon's Alexa answered 64 percent correctly, and Microsoft's Cortana answered 57 percent correctly.

mitchs-homepod-on-shelf.jpg

Munster broke this information down further, stating that Siri is good for "local" and "commerce" queries, like asking about nearby coffee shops or assisting in buying new shoes. In this area, Siri beats Alexa and Cortana but still falls behind Google Assistant on Google Home.

Despite the low percentage of correctly answering the 782 total queries asked of it, Munster said Siri's overall performance rose above expectations "given the limited scope of HomePod's music focus."

homepod-siri-loup-ventures.jpg

Chart via Loup Ventures


The researchers explained that over time HomePod and Siri should grow to match, or surpass, rival assistants by simply adding query domains like calendar, email, calling, and navigation.
As discovered in the research, where HomePod excelled was its "superior" listening skills. The HomePod allows users to speak at a normal volume, even when music from the speaker is particularly loud, and Siri will pick up on the voice and hear the user. "This was HomePod's most stellar feature," according to Munster.

Loup Ventures also favored HomePod's sound quality, saying that "it sounds incredible." Like other reviews and impressions of the device, Munster's enjoyment of the HomePod's audio quality was countered with the speaker's lackluster Siri performance, which he thinks will be changing fairly soon.
Visit Loup Ventures to read more of the information gathered from the HomePod "smart speaker gauntlet," including the publication's prediction for demand and market share of HomePod through the rest of 2018.

Article Link: Siri on HomePod Correctly Answered 52.3% of Queries in New AI Test
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In a new test shared today by Loup Ventures, Apple's HomePod was put through its paces in categories including Siri, sound quality, and ease of use. For Siri, Loup Ventures' Gene Munster reported that while the AI assistant understood 99.4 percent of queries asked of it, it answered only 52.3 percent of them correctly. Loup Ventures tested three separate HomePods and asked 782 queries total.

Compared to previous tests of rival speakers, HomePod is "at the bottom of the totem pole" in the AI assistant performance category. Google Home answered 81 percent correctly, Amazon's Alexa answered 64 percent correctly, and Microsoft's Cortana answered 57 percent correctly.

mitchs-homepod-on-shelf.jpg

Munster broke this information down further, stating that Siri is good for "local" and "commerce" queries, like asking about nearby coffee shops or assisting in buying new shoes. In this area, Siri beats Alexa and Cortana but still falls behind Google Assistant on Google Home.

Despite the low percentage of correctly answering the 782 total queries asked of it, Munster said Siri's overall performance rose above expectations "given the limited scope of HomePod's music focus."

homepod-siri-loup-ventures.jpg

Chart via Loup Ventures


The researchers explained that over time HomePod and Siri should grow to match, or surpass, rival assistants by simply adding query domains like calendar, email, calling, and navigation.
As discovered in the research, where HomePod excelled was its "superior" listening skills. The HomePod allows users to speak at a normal volume, even when music from the speaker is particularly loud, and Siri will pick up on the voice and hear the user. "This was HomePod's most stellar feature," according to Munster.

Loup Ventures also favored HomePod's sound quality, saying that "it sounds incredible." Like other reviews and impressions of the device, Munster's enjoyment of the HomePod's audio quality was countered with the speaker's lackluster Siri performance, which he thinks will be changing fairly soon.
Visit Loup Ventures to read more of the information gathered from the HomePod "smart speaker gauntlet," including the publication's prediction for demand and market share of HomePod through the rest of 2018.

Article Link: Siri on HomePod Correctly Answered 52.3% of Queries in New AI Test
 
I am reviewer for www.tnt-audio.com and I might some say take a look at the pod. It is certainly magical and it is gonna be great, many people are gonna love it. Apple hat done it again after the phone, the pad, the watch. But fact is I have a problem with Siri, which works poorly for me. And music is important, so I think a proper HiFi chain will do it. A microphone which is always on is something I do not need.
 
Beamforming is a well understood and well defined technical term that’s been around for some time. It’s not a buzz word.

Data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence are similar buzz words that have been around a while.

x.1 channel audio simply refers to having x discrete audio channels, plus a composite bass signal, since low frequencies are not easily localized by humans. Dolby® 7.1, for example is a special case of 7.1 channel audio, but not all 7.1 channel audio is Dolby® 7.1.
 
I seem to recall, years ago, a boss product that was essentially s tablemtop mesnt for music only that promised to fill the room. I don't remember what it was called, and I also couidntgfind a product currently in the market. That's what I was thinking of when mentioning Bose. Probably not helpful lol. Unfortunately I never had one, but I heard demos, and remember being impressed for the size. This was easily 10-15 years ago though and I couldn't possibly makes. Direct comparison. It's possible they're not even as similar as I'm making them in my head.

Edit: I think it was called the wave. I actually just came across an article that called the AirPod the modern day Bose wave. Haha. What timing!
https://www.google.com/amp/s/qz.com...views-its-the-modern-day-bose-wave-radio/amp/

I remember the Wave. Was advertised heavily in mail order magazines targeting the over 50s. Also always discounted in outlet centres.

Yes perhaps it was ahead of its time. I recall listening to it, but never even considered it replacing my “stereo” setup.
 
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I was responding to a specific element of the package being sound quality therefore to purchase a HomePod merely for the Sound quality I was pointing out there are countless other options available (including the JBL Flip 4) for a fraction of the price.
I choose to use an iMac because it suits my needs but I am not driven by the Apple Logo.

You seriously think the flip 4 is an alternative that sounds just as good? I mean ultimately it is very subjective and personal. I don’t think it comes even close to be comparable.
 
Ask Siri to play Summer Breeze by Seals & Crofts and tell me that doesn't sound nice on HomePod. Volume ~80.
 
It's about time. I am glad this report is finally in black and white - for all to see. A 50% score on a test anywhere in academia is an F. Siri is awful. Apple needs to fix it. It's pure laziness. Every time I try Siri again - even to dial at the phone to one of my contacts, it can't handle it. I end up yelling at it. Can't handle event he simplest of back and forth conversations, won't remember the correct pronunciation of a name. Why can't Apple lead here?
As I said, I'm glad this report is out. Maybe now they'll do something.
 
Have you listened to the JBL Flip 4 ?

By definition, Bluetooth transmission is lossy. There isn't enough bandwidth to do what Airplay does, which is to transmit and receive a CD-quality signal, 16 bits times 2 channels times 44.1Khz.
 
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No, it isn't.

With the HP, each of seven tweeters, plus the woofer, receives a distinct audio signal. That is, by definition, 7.1 channel stereo. It could only be reasonably considered one channel if the seven tweeters were outputting exactly the same signal, and the woofer outputs the same signal as the tweeters, except with higher frequencies cut off.
There is no suchthing as 7.1 stereo. Stereo is 2.0. I understand that most HP buyers are not audiophiles but that's too much.
 
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I think I’ll sacrifice audio quality for a “smarter” speaker. Hence why I went with the Google Home for a third of the price of the HomePod.

Granted I would certainly entertain the aspect of purchasing a HomePod down the line, should Apple fix Siri (wishful thinking).
 
So they took a day one product and put it up against established items that have likely had a half dozen if not more updates by this time and asked it questions that aren’t even part of it’s purview and failed it for getting it wrong.

Yeah I’m going to listen to them.

Now if you want to talk about how it can’t yet work alongside your tv sound instead of replacing it, can’t control your Apple TV and that sort of thing, that’s a valid comment.
 
Maybe because it is a demo unit and it does that so that staff can show this "feature"?

I wondered that myself. I have no problem if there is a way to stop it from doing it every time. Reminds me of the Bose noise cancelling headphones I bought my wife for traveling. She would use them without listening to music, just to block the engine noise so she could rest. But if you didn't pair them with something, they would say ready to pair every 30 seconds or so for several minutes and then would finally stop.
 
It'as very unfortunate how far behind Siri is. It's not that I want Siri to catch-up with its competitors, I need it to blow them out of the water. I love the idea of the HomePod, but at this point, it's just a speaker that can do everything my phone already can. I hope Apple blows us away at WWDC with new software and Siri.
 
Amazon Alexa is currently available in the United States, Germany, Austria, and the United Kingdom.
 
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