The Apple HomePod is a £279 speaker with Siri built-in. It takes on not only the much-cheaperAmazon EchoandGoogle Homebut systems likeSonos too.
Applewants to deliver not only a connectedsmart speakerbut wants to address one of the biggest weaknesses among the current smart speaker pack: sound quality.
With better quality options now appearing from elsewhere with the £199Sonos Oneand £399Google Home Maxand many speakers from traditional speaker companies like Bose coming with Alexa or Google Assistant built-in does Apple have what it takes to challenge an already crowded market with the HomePod?
Our quick take
If we were grading the HomePod on its sound performance alone it would be a slam dunk. Apple has produced a small speaker that produces a sound way above its stature, in a way that is enjoyable to listen to whatever music you’re in to. It is a natural sound that’s nicely balanced rather than one that is too tinny or too bass heavy, and the more we listen to it, the more we realise just how good it sounds given its size.
But we aren’t grading it on just its sound quality, and neither will anyone else - and that’s where it all starts to disappoint. The HomePod is just not smart enough when pitched against the likes of the cheap little Amazon Echo or Google Home, Siri is not refined enough and even the experience between the iPhone and the HomePod feels confused.
We know that this will change, and we know that Apple is great at creating and refining user experiences. Apple has already dropped the price from £319 to £279 and that makes it a bit more approachable. As will the updates coming in iOS 13.
If you live in the Apple ecosystem for the most part, you’ll be fine, but even then, you can be left wanting more. For now, it’s just a speaker that sounds great, that isn’t very smart.
Cautionary note: White marks on some surfaces
The Apple HomePod speaker sits flat on any given surface creating a snug fit, presumably to help resonate and amplify the bass. It is this snug fit that could cause you problems however. For our tests we placed the speaker on a solid oak kitchen worktop treated with Danish oil.
Within 20 minutes the HomePod had caused a white discoloured ring to appear on the wood that some days later has faded, although still hasn’t completely disappeared.
We subsequently tested the HomePod on other materials: the same wood that hadn’t been treated with Danish oil and a regular lacquered desk and haven’t seen the same issues.
When questioned,Apple told usit was “not unusual” for a speaker with a silicone base to leave a “mild mark” when placed on certain oil or wax based wood finished surfaces, suggesting the marks are caused by oils diffusing between the silicone base and the table surface.
The company suggested it can improve over several days after the speaker is removed from the wood surface and if it doesn’t self-correct, to try cleaning the surface with the manufacturer’s suggested oiling method.
For us the mark hasn’t disappeared and we have had to sand and then re-oil our worktop. It’s certainly something to be careful of, especially if you’re about to put it down on that rather nice worktop or quality piece of furniture. It’s also now acknowledged as a singular issue with other reviewers and users reporting the same issue.
This review was first published March 2018 and has been updated to reflect software updates.
Alternatives to consider
Amazon Echo Plus with Echo Sub
Amazon’s Echo dominates the smart speaker segment and if you’re considering an alternative for the HomePod, it doesn’t get smarter than the Echo Plus. The great thing about the Echo Plus is that you can buy a stereo pair with the Echo Sub for less than the price of a HomePod, giving you a smarter system with a 2.1 setup. The downside is that it won’t natively play Apple Music (you’d have to use Bluetooth for that) and there’s no AirPlay 2 support.
Sonos One has the advantage of not only being smart, but sitting as a gateway to a wider Sonos system. As such, not only does it offer Alexa voice control and great Sonos sound, but it can also be AirPlay 2 compatible and play Apple Music - so it’s something of a device that covers all bases. It doesn’t have the punch of the HomePod, but it’s half the price.
Apple HomePod - 3.5 / 5
Apple HomePod
A stylish and simple design
The cylindrical speaker covered in a mesh fabric - which Apple created specifically for the HomePod - promises to put music at the forefront of the experience. The 7-inch tall speaker comes in either white or space grey (pictured) and features an array of speakers within its shell to create a well-rounded balance of treble and bass regardless of where you place it in the room.
A single detachable power cable (although we wouldn’trecommend you try and detach it) comes out just above the base, while a touch-sensitive display panel on the top shows volume controls when needed, as well as a glowing rainbow of lights whenSiriis responding to your commands or questions - called the “Siri waveform”.
Sadly, those Siri lights aren’t always clear enough to be seen from various positions around the room. Amazon solved this problem with a clean light ring around the top of the Echo andEcho Plus, while Google angled the top ofGoogle Home. Apple’s approach? You can have an audible beep, very much like Alexa, to ensure you know that you are expected to give a command, but in the time we’ve been using it, Siri’s voice response is so good not being able to see when it’s listening probably isn’t as important as other smart speakers.
There are resemblances to the company’s cylindrical Mac Pro computer, although it’s not as big or as shiny. Like Google Home and the Amazon Echo, this is a speaker that is designed to sit in any environment, be it the bedroom or the kitchen, and it’s a design that works from all angles when it comes to the sound performance - but more on that in a bit.
HomePod is a self-tuning speaker
Turn the speaker on and it will automatically tune itself to maximise the performance based on its position in the room.
Unlike Sonos that requires you to wave your phone around to create a better “sound landscape” using itsTruePlay technology, Apple says that the speaker sends out an array of sounds and then uses the six built-in microphones to hear how those sounds reverberate around the room.
When freestanding in a room, HomePod beams consistent 360-degree audio throughout the room. When against a wall or on a bookshelf, the included Apple A8 chip (the same chip thatpowers the iPhone 6) analyses the music and appropriately beams direct energy and centre vocals into the middle of the room, while reflecting the ambient reverb and backup vocals against the wall for dispersion into the room.
It means that you should have the “perfect sounding” speaker whatever room you’re using it in, and it won’t matter if you place it on a table in the centre of the room or in a corner. The sound will be adapted to verify you get the best results out of it.
During our testing we’ve listened to it in a number of different rooms around the house and it sounds great wherever we’ve put it. Up against the wall, in a corner, in the middle of the room all produce the same performance. Likewise, rooms with plenty of carpet and fabric faired equally well as rooms with lots of hard surfaces, and even a patio in the garden. Fascinatingly the speaker features an accelerometer that when sensing it’s been picked up will go through the same re-tuning process all over again.
The only time the sound performance did change was when it was placed it on coaster to try to stop the white marks we mentioned above. That then caused a drop in the quality, presumably because it doesn’t resonate as effectively.
Adding a second HomePod to create a stereo pair is equally as easy. Plug it in, find the pair via the Home app and Apple does the rest. The stereo pair works a charm and isn’t just about making things “louder”. We tested it on a number of songs that play with a left and right channel and it immerses and engulfs you in sound. It’s glorious.
How do you set-up Apple HomePod?
Like Apple’s other recent products all you have to do to set-up the HomePod is turn it on and put your iPhone near it. A setup screen will appear, you say yes to a couple of questions and then moments later you’re good to go having added the HomePod to your Wi-Fi, added all your HomeKit accessories, and logged you into Apple Music. It couldn’t be easier.
The bottom line is it takes less than 2 minutes, which is a great start.
Apple Music at the heart of the experience
As it stands, the HomePod can directly connect withApple Musicor play tracks you’ve “iTune Matched”.
While iTunes Match is an option (£21.99 in the UK), as is AirPlay 2, without an Apple Music subscription the HomePod is very limited when it comes to playing music.
There is no Bluetooth support.
you may access a number of radio stations through iTunes, like Capital FM or Apple’s own Beats 1 and later this year with the introduction of iOS 13 Apple is adding TuneIn radio support.
At the moment saying “Hey Siri, play me Radio 1” just isn’t possible, but will become available in the autumn.
Yes, you can AirPlay the radio orSpotifyfrom your iPhone or iPad, but that defeats the point, especially for a smart speaker that you just want to talk to.
Then there are the numerous editorially-driven playlists, genre-based stations, mood-based stations or activity-based offerings. You can go further still, with commands like “Hey Siri, play some upbeat R&B” or “Hey Siri, play this year’s Grammy Nominees”, although these sorts of things aren’t unique to Apple Music. In the 6+ months we’ve been using the HomePod we’ve found ourselves simply saying “Hey Siri, play some music” and sure enough a collection of varied tunes comes streaming back. If, as is sometimes the case were not in the mood for what Siri has suggested, you can simply say “Hey Siri, play something else” and the tempo and style quickly changes.
Apple Music has most tracks you’ll want to play, unless your music tastes are incredibly niche, and for the most part the playlists and radio stations are very good. In the worst case you can always say “Hey Siri, skip” or if you want to improve things, actively tell Siri that you like what you’re listening to - “Hey Siri, I like this track” and the service learns as you listen. Thankfully you can turn off “Use Listening History” if you suspect that your kids will destroy your refined music taste with Disney or The Greatest Showman”, but then you do lose that personalisation feature for yourself - again something that is being addressed in iOS 13.
Controlling the music without your voice at first will seem somewhat clumsy though. The problem seems to come about because Siri on your iPhone is also keen to play you music rather than just being a remote control for your HomePod. In fusing control of two devices, some of the clarity seems to have got lost.
To use your iPhone as a remote for the HomePod - or even to see what is playing - you need to go deep within the Apple Music app, not select the button that seems the most obvious choice, but select another almost hidden button (you can also access it via the Control Center via yet another hidden button). It’s from here you can then control the music on your HomePod from your iPhone or iPad. The experience has been made easier thanks to the introduction of AirPlay 2 meaning you can stream music to your HomePod and still watch YouTube videos at the same time without that blurting over the house.
AirPlay 2 has also introduced multiroom and this is incredibly easy. In the app it’s a case of simply ticking the box to add or remove more rooms. you may also do this via a voice command as well.
Hearing you from all corners of the room
One of the key things the Apple HomePod has going for it, is that it can hear you pretty much regardless of where you are in the room, or at any volume. Say “Hey, Siri” and the speaker jumps into life. We’ve yet to have it where the speaker hasn’t flashed ready to hear our command, even when we’ve said “Hey, Siri” under our breath. That’s something that can’t be said for theSonos Oneor Echo.
It might not get the answer right, or give you the answer you want, but those six microphones inside certainly do a great job listening out for what you’ve got to say.
Apple HomePod sound performance
We’ve tested the HomePod alongside rivals from the Echo and Google Home family, as well as Sonos speakers and we’d say that the HomePod beats all of them in terms of sound performance, making this the best sounding speaker of its type.
It’s coped admirably with every track we’ve thrown at it from Daft Punk to Cyndi Lauper, Hans Zimmer to Drake. Heck, it’s even made the 1987 Bruce Willis album The Return of Bruno sound great. No easy feat.
Where the HomePod excels is in not only capably delivering a thumping bass line when needed, but also producing quality mid-tones and treble too. Artists like Gregory Porter and Norah Jones sound sublime, while pop tracks from Ed Sheeran or Demi Lovato arrive in a way that is a far cry from the Beats sound experience. Because of the design there’s no “sweet spot”: the music simply engulfs you wherever you are standing or sitting in the room. It’s very clever, and very apparent, especially on acoustic live tracks.
While it’s clear that the HomePod enjoys being played loud, remaining distortion-free as you turn it up, it still does a good job at low levels without losing the definition of what it’s playing. Add a second and the stereo pair is equally more than the sum of its parts. It might have set you back £700, but it certainly sounds like it should be more.
It’s not just the smaller smart speakers that the HomePod beats in terms of performance, but more expensive ones too. It’s certainly comparable to the non-smartSonos Play:5, a £500 speaker. Put simply, you’re unlikely to be disappointed with the sound of the HomePod and this is a key strength.
HomePod as a smart speaker beyond music
Beyond being a great speaker, Apple has used an A8 processor to manage a lot of the heavy lifting and power Siri. It means that, like the Echo and Google Home, the HomePod offers a personal assistant: Siri. Like other Apple devices, you may ask Siri questions, issue smart home commands and so on.
Beyond basic music controls, Siri can also handle advanced searches within the music library, so users can ask questions like “Hey Siri, what song is this?” to “Hey Siri, who’s the drummer in this?”
But the smart speaker bar has been set high and the likes of Alexa and Google Assistant are slowly taking over all forms of connected devices and integrating with lots of services, so the offering beyond the music is a lot more important than it might once have been.
It also means Apple can push updates to the speaker. To update your HomePod to iOS 12 and benefit from the new multi-room and stereo pair features that come with Airplay 2, as well as making and receiving calls, multiple timers and finding out song lyrics, you have to go into the Home app on your iPhone or iPad. To check you’ve got the latest update once your iPhone or iPad has been updated, go to the Home app, then tap on the Location arrow in the upper right-hand corner. From there, select Software Update if you’re keen to make sure you’re on the latest version.
