“At an event in San Francisco on Wednesday (June 6), the home-audio company Sonos launched an affordable, Alexa-powered TV sound bar,” Mike Murphy writes for Quartz. “But a smaller announcement at the event was perhaps more interesting, and solidified the company’s argument that you really don’t need to splash out for Apple’s first smart-home speaker, the HomePod.”
Murphy writes, “Sonos said that it will integrate Apple’s new AirPlay 2 connectivity standard into its newer speaker models in July. The company has already partnered with Amazon to bring Alexa to its Sonos One speaker, and there are plans to integrate Google’s Assistant later this year, as well.”
“Although AirPlay 2 connectivity doesn’t mean that Sonos owners will now have Siri built into their devices (as they have with Alexa), they will be able to talk to those devices indirectly through Siri on an iPhone they’ve connected to the Sonos,” Murphy writes. “It’s not especially seamless — the iPhone needs to be nearby the Sonos, for example — but it sort of works.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: On other word, if you want it to really work seamlessly, instead of just “sort of,” you’ll want to get yourself a HomePod or, better yet, multiple HomePods!
SEE ALSO:
HomePod stereo pairing took a frustratingly long time to arrive, but it was worth the wait – May 30, 2018
Strategy Analytics: Apple shipped 600,000 HomePods in Q1 for 6% share of smart speaker market – May 17, 2018
The Inquirer reviews Apple’s HomePod: ‘Looks great, sounds fantastic; Siri needs work’ – April 6, 2018
I want another Apple HomePod for sure, maybe two more – March 20, 2018
Sound quality shootout: Apple HomePod vs. two Sonos Ones – March 16, 2018
Apple HomePod: The audiophile perspective plus 8 1/2 hours of measurements; HomePod is 100% an audiophile-grade speaker – February 12, 2018
Apple’s HomePod is actually a steal at $349 – January 26, 2018
Digital Trends previews Apple’s HomePod: Impressive sound coupled with strong privacy – January 26, 2018
Hands on with Apple’s HomePod: Attractive, ultra-high-quality speaker, an excellent Siri ambassador – January 26, 2018
Apple’s HomePod, the iPod for your home – January 25, 2018
One hour with Apple’s new HomePod smart speaker – January 25, 2018
I recently bought my second HomePod and love how they work together. The sound is extraordinary, and having Siri available to control lights, etc. plus provide information is simply wonderful.
Oh yeah? OH YEAH??? I’ve got two.
I said, “Hey Siri, play my Pak and Drake playlist.” She said, “Where is this music coming from?” I opened the wine. She said “Turn it up.” I said, “Hey Siri, increase the volume.” She wandered until she found one of the HomePods. She put her hands behind her back and leaned over to look at the speaker. I like that. Look but don’t touch.
“…She had a bright smile, big white teeth, I mean
Whiter than a white T, remind me of wifey
Met her at the studio, sort of like a high buyer
She told me she had game so we connected like the wifi
She had this Asian swagger ‘bout her, so I call her mai tai
Started followin’ her, she was the only thing on my timeline
And there was this one picture, her in the swimsuit
That made a nigga want to beat it up, and I intend to
But I’mma have to put in work, baby girl then drink it all
Face like Mona Lisa, I’m just tryna be the wall to hang on
I ain’t got no patience, I can’t wait long
She come and see me, and she don’t stay long
And that’s the problem, she a good girl
Maybe it’s too much smoke in the room
And she don’t want that Mary Jane in her Vidal Sassoon
So I’mma take a minute, and walk her to her Uber
Got a bullet in my heart, and she the shooter
Ay, .Paak…”
I proceeded to install a new SSD in her MacBook Pro.
it should read, “there’s really no reason to buy a HomePod now, unless you are willing/able to buy 2,”
I don’t need a robust mono-sound unit and the thought of near $800, which includes hearing an idiot speaking*, doesn’t prompt me to purchase (*you know this person).
Apple has a long way to go to catch up to sonos. If you don’t have any wireless speakers or want to replace what you have then it might make sense to get homepods. I have 6 sonos speakers all over the house. I have all the music sources I need. My sinks sound bar for my TV goes between music and TV seamlessly. My sonos subnis not an option from Apple.
It would be cool if Apple provided all speaker options, but I don’t see that ever happening.
When will iTunes be compatible with stereo paired HomePods? Anyone heard anything about this? Thanks!
Mono speaker playing DRMed compressed and lossy Apple Music files does not sound like a deal at any price unless you are Eddie Cue.
I’ll keep what I have. I have a nice set of Focals in the Living Room set up with my Apple TV as a source. I can tell the ATV to play anything I want and it will sound many times better than that Roll of Toilet Paper wrapped in Fishnets.
Maybe Apple had this song in mind when designing the HomePod
S..urely
I…rritatingly
R…etarded
I…nterface