According to the latest research from TechInsights, Apple is shelling out $216 to build HomePod, meaning margins from the tech giant's first smart speaker are much slimmer than those of its flagship iPhone line.
An acoustical analysis of Apple's HomePod published Wednesday found the speaker boasts a relatively flat frequency response, characteristics often associated with accurate sound reproduction, but those results might be misleading.
Apple's HomePod is out and users are impressed by the smart speaker's premium sound quality, but some have yet to take full advantage of its voice control functionality. To help users get started, AppleInsider collected a few useful phrases and commands that highlight Siri's capabilities.
There are two different ways to lock your HomePod from outside access — restricting access to AirPlay only, disabling messages, reminders and notes. AppleInsider shows you how to access and control both of these.
HomePod services like sending text messages or creating reminders can only be accomplished with the Apple ID used to initially set up the device. If you want to change the Apple ID affiliated with your HomePod, you'll need to redo the setup process.
Apple's HomePod appears to be leaving white circles on some finished wood surfaces, but what specifically is causing it and any commonalities between the incidents both aren't clear yet. [Updated with Apple support info]
In its advertising push for HomePod, Apple has touted its smart speaker as capable of delivering consistent sound to listeners positioned anywhere in a given room. New testing backs up those claims, and offers insight into how the company accomplished such a feat.
Apple's HomePod may be limited in connectivity, but thanks to its support for the legacy AirPlay standard, it's possible to connect basically anything you want to it over Wi-Fi. One of the best ways to do this is with the Airfoil app, available from longtime Mac developer Rogue Amoeba.
Testing stalwart Consumer Reports declared this week that Apple's HomePod falls behind Google's Home Max — and even the Sonos One — in terms of audio quality. To anyone who knows the publication's controversial history with Apple products, that conclusion is utterly unsurprising.
AppleInsider puts HomePod's sound quality to the test against four smart speaker competitors, Sonos' One, Amazon's second-gen Echo, Google Home and Google's Home Max, in this comprehensive comparison. Find out which comes out on top.
Apple, in its "infinite wisdom," compacted the Control Center in iOS 11, and gave AirPlay even less of a starring role on it. With HomePod now available and able to have audio streamed via AirPlay, AppleInsider shows you where the AirPlay button is, and two slightly different ways to turn it on.
The audiophile community now has their hands on the HomePod, and one Reddit user has thoroughly examined the device from an acoustical standpoint, calling it 'witchcraft" plus "100 percent an Audiophile grade Speaker."
As it does with every Apple device, iFixit has torn apart the HomePod, finding a device that is a "labyrinth to open." That means, like many other devices, it's probably not a great candidate for user repairs.
I love Apple's HomePod, and I want one in every room of my house. But I also kind of hate HomePod for its reliance on Siri. Like any messy relationship, it's complicated. If you can get over the personal assistant's numerous shortcomings, you'll find that HomePod is a fantastic sounding compact speaker, but also potentially the start of something much better.
While the Apple HomePod is the "best sounding" smartspeaker and has a "measurably better" user experience in many areas, its underlying AI assistant — Siri — failed dramatically in a query test versus Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Microsoft Cortana, according to Loup Ventures.
Apple has posted a trio of "how to" videos for the HomePod, instructing users how to use Siri to play music, how the touch controls work, and how to adjust settings on the device.
From multi-array microphones for far-field listening to beamforming tweeters and dynamic audio processing powered by a beefy A8 processor, HomePod is a compact marvel of technology. Despite its smarts, users are unable to access audio output settings as they would a traditional speaker or even Bluetooth devices marketed by companies like Sonos.
With HomePod, accessing Apple's Siri technology is more convenient than ever. But users might want trigger the virtual assistant on an iPhone rather than a speaker that blasts answers to anyone within earshot. Here's how to do it.
Though HomePod integrates with Apple's HomeKit, and even shows up as a smart home accessory within the iOS Home app, it cannot be used as a part of an automated trigger or custom scene.
Sonos on Friday shared a special Spotify playlist on Twitter, taking a friendly jab at the Apple HomePod, its new competition in the Wi-Fi speaker market.
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Mikey Campbell
AppleInsider Staff
Neil Hughes
Mike Wuerthele
Roger Fingas
