apple has Launch of HomePod 2 – the successor to the original HomePod, released in 2018. The new wireless speaker is very similar to the first HomePod in most respects, but seems to be designed more with that in mind. Dolby sound movies and Spatial Audio for Apple Music.
Original Apple HomePod one of best wireless speaker on the market, before it was suddenly stopped working in March 2021 and the company decided to focus on smaller and cheaper product Apple HomePod mini.
HomePod 2 . Key Features
– $299 / £299 / AU$479
– Released February 3, 2022
– Support for spatial audio and Dolby Atmos
– High power woofer, five tweeters
– Smart home hub with Thread & Matter
But with sound-enhanced music in Apple’s space now certainly part of its product and recent release. Apple Music session, available in Spatial Audioa new HomePod that boasts support for Spatial Audio always seems inevitable… (and to be fair, it even does. discovered in nature before Apple announced it.)
The Apple HomePod mini is a great speaker in its own right, its small stature and low price put it on par with some best smart speaker on the market, including Amazon Recording Studio and Sonos One. But the HomePod is Apple’s first flagship wireless speaker — and the only one to support Apple Music’s much-vaunted Spatial and Lossless content.
Rumors that it would have a screen or be cheaper didn’t really materialize, but we’re still excited about the redesigned HomePod 2.
Apple HomePod 2: Price & release date
The HomePod 2 is available to order from Apple’s online stores from Wednesday, January 18, 2022, and will actually be released on Friday, February 3, 2022.
It costs $299 / £299 / AU$479, the same price as the previous model at the time it was discontinued. It’s the same price in the US, while it’s a bit more expensive in the UK, but that’s no surprise given recent exchange rates; $AU10 more expensive in Australia.
Price is high compared to most best smart speaker – including Amazon Recording Studio, the most expensive Alexa speaker, costs almost half the price. The Sonos One also much cheaper.
However, there are many much more expensive wireless speakers out there, including things like Bowers & Wilkins Balloon (2021) or mighty Naim Mu-So Qb 2nd generation.
So the HomePod is generally in the middle of the market – it’s definitely far above the high end of what most people would pay for something like this. But then that’s the purpose of the HomePod mini, right?
Apple HomePod 2: design & speakers
The new HomePod 2 looks almost identical to the original HomePod, with its rounded shape and fabric-wrapped exterior. We love this design – it looks good when you focus on it, but it’s also great for just blending into the background when you’re out of focus, because it has a simple black or white finish.
At the top, there’s a swirling color ‘screen’ (it doesn’t show information, it only shows when Siri or music is active). On the original HomePod, this was just a small dot in the center, but now it’s the entire top, just like on the HomePod mini.
The new model has the same diameter as the original at 5.6 inches/142mm and is roughly the same height – it’s slightly shorter at 6.6 inches/168mm instead of 6.8 inches/173mm.
The inside is different, although a lot of the principles are the same. For example, there’s still a large high-displacement 4-inch woofer at the top to handle mids and bass. ‘High-excursion’ means the driver moves particularly far forward and backward, so it can displace more air and produce a louder, deeper sound.
And there’s still a ring of higher-frequency tweeters below the woofer, but there are now five tweeters instead of the seven in the original HomePod, and they’re positioned at the bottom of the device and facing up. This can help add height and Spatial effects when used with Dolby Atmos audio.
Apple HomePod 2: features
There are all kinds of rumors about what will be in the new HomePod, but the second sentence turns out to be very similar to the first; The new HomePod’s features are close to the original.
That means it’s primarily geared towards music within the Apple ecosystem. You can use Siri to request songs from Apple Music, although Siri now also works with some other music services. You can send music (or other audio) to it via AirPlay 2 from Apple devices, although there’s no Bluetooth or other way to stream audio to it – which means Android devices are left out with HomePod.
It works as part of the AirPlay multi-room system, and you can use one HomePod alone or two in a pair.
The new HomePod is designed to support Dolby Atmos music from Apple Music, including Spatial Audio – it will bounce sound off your walls in an attempt to create a sense of the music around you.
And these Dolby Atmos skills will come in handy if you own an Apple TV, as you can use two new HomePods in place of one of the new HomePods. best sound system – Apple TV can send all of its audio to the HomePod, including Dolby Atmos 3D audio.
The HomePod 2 also supports lossless audio from Apple Music, for better overall sound quality.
It has an ultra-wideband chip, which means it can detect when an iPhone 11 or later is near it, making it easy to transfer music from your phone to your HomePod (or vice versa) just by bringing it close. .
For smart home lovers, the HomePod 2 is now even better. It supports Topic and Van dyke, are next-generation protocols that work with more accessories than ever before — as well as Apple HomeKit — and it can trigger automations in your smart home when you’re not there. And it has built-in temperature and humidity sensors, which is very useful for climate control smart home devices.
