They announced $1B in revenue in 2016 or 2015 and admitted that the echo was eating into their growth and part of the reason to start working with Amazon.
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HomePod Announced (Siri Speaker) Sonos meets Amazon Echo, $349
- Thread starter Muzy72
- Start date
https://9to5mac.com/2017/06/06/homepod-review-sound-quality-audio-quality-hifi/
Early impressions of audio quality seem to conclude that this is indeed an outstanding omnidirectional speaker, on par with other speakers in this price range.
pretty much enough to sell me. Very high quality stand alone speaker with integrated ML Siri and HomeKit hub (this should be the BT4 LE device filed with the FCC earlier this year).
honestly the $350 price isn't that bad all of those things considered.. the worst that can be said is what some people are saying in here.. that they already have separate pieces combined together to do that (Echo and Sonos for example.. or Dot and Sonos, etc)
Early impressions of audio quality seem to conclude that this is indeed an outstanding omnidirectional speaker, on par with other speakers in this price range.
pretty much enough to sell me. Very high quality stand alone speaker with integrated ML Siri and HomeKit hub (this should be the BT4 LE device filed with the FCC earlier this year).
honestly the $350 price isn't that bad all of those things considered.. the worst that can be said is what some people are saying in here.. that they already have separate pieces combined together to do that (Echo and Sonos for example.. or Dot and Sonos, etc)
My iPhone SE will wipe the floor with it performance wise. It's not really arguable.
Why? Is Siri the selling point? Again if it's about audio quality, you can get a dot and a Sonos for cheaper than this.
Technosteve
Banned
Apple Music needs Flac, homepod should only play the finest of digital audio files.
I hope this speaker is bad so i dont get sucked in to the eco system. ;_; Sonos
Neither of which has Apple ecosystem integration. Sonos has a kludged together app that barely works.
What are you doing on a 4" phone screen?
Also I had a 7+ and now an LG G6 (also an sd821) and as a daily driver there isn't a noticeable performance difference (actually there is as the fp sensor is leagues faster than apples).
Airplay2, Shared Up Next, serves as a HomeKit hub, will assumedly work with Airplay2 and like Apple TV to have your ATV4 apps playing around the house (sports and such), etc
Also if you read the impressions, most feel this outperforms the comparable Sonos. They admit it is probably because of the slight bump in bass performance.. still, it puts it in the performance range of a dot and high end Sonos, not simply "what's the cheapest I can put one together for"
Those full invested in Apple ecosystem should be the least likely to buy this imo. As Phil said earlier this year (before Apple announced HomePod):
He's partly right?! I mean if you're fully invested in the Apple ecosystem then you probably have an iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, Apple TV, one or two Macs... Echo (etc) is the only way to get Alexa but you already have Siri everywhere. The HomePods' microphones are better but you're not going to put a HomePod in every room; you're not going to put a $350 HomePod in the bathroom especially if you're already wearing an Apple watch. Furthermore Alexa/Google Assistant is better than Siri so it might be worth investing in an Echo/Google Home but Siri on HomePods is no better than Siri on your iPhone. What's the point?
The speaker is the point? Even if the HomePods is better that other speakers in its price class this is still midrange at best. Moreover Sonos etc also offer integrated sound systems for your TV/HomeTheater/Gaming System. It's not like the HomePod can replace all the speakers in your house. The kicker is that Apple announced AirPlay2+HomeKit support so you can get almost all the features with your current devices and third party audio systems. Again what's the point?
The HomePods is the worst of both worlds. Imagine if Apple offered an integrated TV set (probably 45" 1080p LCD) instead of the AppleTV. It'll probably be a great TV set for its price and size. It might nice to have one in the children's room but would you really want a one sized TV set in ever room? A high quality TV set can last a decade but would you want to upgrade when Apple announces a new version in 3 years? That's basically what Apple is demanding by integrating a speaker with their Home Assistant. The HomePod has A8 chip (the iPhone in comparison has A10). I can bet within 4 years there will an updated HomePod. Meanwhile a high quality sound system will last dozens of years.
So don't get HomePod for Siri and don't get HomePod for the speakers? The saving grace for Apple is that Home Assistants are non exclusive. You can easily place an Echo, Google Home and HomePod next to each other on the counter and use any one as you fancy. So if you really love Apple, and have money to burn, then HomePod is a defensible purchase I guess. What would be inexplicable would be purchasing multiple HomePods; it makes much more sense to invest in an Airplay2 compatible sound system instead
infiniteloop
Member
Any mention of this working as a Sound Bar for Apple TV?
ha. so for me, my phone is almost always in my pocket.. so Hey Siri doesn't work from there. My Watch IS good at picking up Hey Siri, but I have to raise my wrist (to turn the face on) to use it. Am I lazy? No, I do it because it's easy. Is NOT raising your wrist to Hey Siri because an excellent sounding speaker will pick it up and handle it instead easier/better? Yup.
Honestly while watching TV I will use the Remote's Hey Siri more than my Watch.. the Watch is amazing. I use it literally every day for a multitude of tasks.. but easier is easier.
and my phone.. yeah that is always instantly disqualified except at night when it's on the bedside table.
that's a given being it supports Airplay. You can already use any Airplay receiver as a soundbar for Apple TV.
Honestly while watching TV I will use the Remote's Hey Siri more than my Watch.. the Watch is amazing. I use it literally every day for a multitude of tasks.. but easier is easier.
and my phone.. yeah that is always instantly disqualified except at night when it's on the bedside table.
that's a given being it supports Airplay. You can already use any Airplay receiver as a soundbar for Apple TV.
that definitely sounds impressive. But my question is why aren't they comparing it to Sonos Play 1's? The play 1s are more omni directional and by all accounts sound better than the play 3s. Check this thread for example.
https://en.community.sonos.com/wireless-speakers-228992/stereo-play-1s-vs-stereo-play-3s-44181
Marty Chinn
Member
I'd imagine they're seeing the price tag and comparing the one closest in price not the closest in capability.
Bruce Springsteen
Member
Can this connect to an Apple TV and be used as a TV speaker?
at the very least, you will almost certainly be able to Airplay the Apple TV through this as an Airplay speaker (the same as you can already do).
Luschient
Member
Probably, but you can connect any bluetooth speaker to ATV now to do this. I use my Beats Pill + speaker sometimes for big events or movies I watch on TV.
What are you basing this on? Personal experience? The Sonos app works very well. Sonos isn't perfect--and they've had their ups and downs--but their app pulls all streaming content, all cloud content, and all on disk content into one place and then lets you broadcast this to any room in the house. What else do you want it to do?
Worth noting again that HomePod doesn't have a audio line in, W1 chip or any bluetooth at all. Only way it sources audio input is via Airplay.
Furthermore Sonos already announced months ago that they were working on official integration with Alexa. I bet that Sonos will release a Play 1 equivalent loaded with Alexa at a lower price than the HomePod before Apple ships.
n0razi
Member
Im pretty happy with my Google Home setup right now
Google Home in each bedroom, nvidia shield (built in google cast) on all my HDTVs, and all my TVs are hooked up to Vizio Smartcast soundbars with built in Google cast. I can tell any Google Home device or my phone to play any song or playlist from my Spotify account on any of my TVs or soundbars. Any of my devices using Chrome browser can cast to any of my TVs.
Apple and Amazon dont seem to be as versatile without Casting abilities
Google Home in each bedroom, nvidia shield (built in google cast) on all my HDTVs, and all my TVs are hooked up to Vizio Smartcast soundbars with built in Google cast. I can tell any Google Home device or my phone to play any song or playlist from my Spotify account on any of my TVs or soundbars. Any of my devices using Chrome browser can cast to any of my TVs.
Apple and Amazon dont seem to be as versatile without Casting abilities
you joke but these speakers are quite impressive sound wise. I got a sonos play 3 last year and was blown away at its bass. Especially for the money, when you consider buying some sort of stereo or receiver, possibly an amp and then the speakers themselves. You're looking at an easy 800 bucks for entry level receiver and speakers.
yea i dont get the complaints about the app. I have the sonos "desktop" app for windows and the android app on my phone and the ios app on my wifes phone. They all work the same across all platforms.
Luschient
Member
Ahh, totally missed the "no bluetooth" in HomePod. Wth, $350 and they couldn't include bluetooth??
This isnt entirely true. We DO know from FCC filings that it definitely has BT4 LE. We dont know about W1 or not (guessing not as W1 seems to be used exclusively for personal connectivity). I would guess at bare minimum it at least has a USB-C port for updating.
Id say the chances of pairing over BT seem incredibly high.
Like I said, weve actually known for months that it has BT4 LE. It wasnt mentioned at the keynote, but weve already seen the FCC filing for the device. We also know it needs BT4 LE to act as a HomeKit hub being that the majority of HomeKit devices work over BT.
We're not talking about updating or pairing, we're talking about audio playback as a speaker. Go to Apple's webpage:
https://www.apple.com/homepod/
No mention of bluetooth there
People doing professional audio work get by with similar size drivers.
right, but we know it has Bluetooth from the FCC filing.
But can you use it as a Bluetooth speaker though?
jts
...hate me...
For me it seems like the pairing is done with the bluetooth proximity method, which is a Apple signature move also used with Apple TV 4 and AirPods.
charliebear
Neo Member
I like the look of this.
But as multiroom the cost really stacks compared to something like sonos and echo combo. When echo wokrs wirelessly with a sonos system that will be better.
I have 7 sonos speakers set up now and learnt the hard way that different speakers sounded better in different size rooms etc. Some rooms actually suited the Sonos1 better.
But as multiroom the cost really stacks compared to something like sonos and echo combo. When echo wokrs wirelessly with a sonos system that will be better.
I have 7 sonos speakers set up now and learnt the hard way that different speakers sounded better in different size rooms etc. Some rooms actually suited the Sonos1 better.
I might have to put together a setup similar to this someday.
Yep, called it. Sonos One ($199) officially announced for release on Oct 24. Here's the kicker: Sonos is says they'll add AirPlay2 support in '18
Furthermore, Amazon announced a new Echo ($99) which includes a subwoofer and Echo Plus ($149) which then tacks on a home automation hub, and a free Hue lightbulb (~$35 value).
And if you think Apple is the premium option, Google just announced the Home Max ($399) which looks better designed, includes Bluetooth+Aux in+wireless audio and a free 1yr Youtube Red (~$120 value).
Remind me again what the HomePod's selling point was?
BeardyChan
Member
Apple said:
The homepod seems miss priced now in a market that is devouring up one another's share.
shnurgleton
Member
It's the most courageous option in the market
I was pretty excited about the Sonos One but it only supporting 2.4ghz wifi b/g is pretty much a non-starter for me or anyone else who lives in saturated apartment/condo complexes. I couldn't even connect to my Nest sometimes when it used the 2.4ghz channel.
Both the echo and echo plus still don't compete with the HomePod in terms of audio. The new $100 echo actually has a smaller tweeter than the old echo and echo plus. The HomePod has 7. The woofer is also 1.5 smaller, and the echo has always struggled with lows. The integrated hub is cool, but kind of meaningless for anyone who already has a bridge. And if you don't have one, it's usually a better deal to start with the hue starter kit which has a hub. (1 hue white ambiance bulb is $30, vs a 4-pack kit which is $100)
The Home Max actually does look really good, but how is it better designed? It has dual subs, so it'll def get louder/stronger bass, but it's not omnidirectional like the HomePod. Bluetooth is cool, but I still prefer AirPlay because it uses wifi and AirPlay 2 is supposed to improve on latency as well (something bluetooth sucks at).
So to answer your question, the HomePod is for people who want sound similar to the Home Max but also want AirPlay 2, HomeKit, and/or Apple Music.
Im not routing wires through my living room and kitchen.