HomePod is the company's first smart speaker Apple Lossless Audio CODEC (ALAC),, being launched on Friday by the American company, and today we also see the first tests done by some experts. We are talking about Consumer Reports, a well-known American publication that tests all kinds of electronic products, stating that HomePod does not have as good audio quality as Google Home or Sonos One.
After a "full evaluation" of HomePod, those from Consumer Reports claim that the smart speaker offers very good audio quality, but Google Home Max and Sonos one offer superior audio quality. HomePod is placed in front of many other smart speakers, but the two above are not among them, the companies Google and Sonos managing to create very good products.
HomePod has a much too intense bass, and mid-range sounds are not reproduced as well as they should be, according to the test done by Consumer Reports. The HomePod would not have good enough speakers to properly reproduce the tone of the sounds produced by the voices of the artists, or by the guitars that are heard in the songs being played.
"The HomePod will serve many music fans well, but CR testers did hear some flaws. The HomePod's bass was a bit boomy and overemphasized. And the midrange tones were somewhat hazy, meaning that some of the nuance in vocals, guitars, and horns was lost: These elements of the music could not be heard as distinctly as in more highly rated speakers. Treble sounds, like cymbals, were underemphasized. But the HomePod played reasonably loudly in a mid-sized room. The bottom line? Overall the sound of the HomePod was a bit muddy compared with what the Sonos One and Google Home Max delivered."
HomePod is also criticized for its lack of support for stereo sound, although Apple will offer it with iOS 11.3 next month, Apple's closed ecosystem is not presented as a plus either. All these criticisms are contrary to the first reviews made by American journalists for the HomePod smart speaker, some of which were also made by audio experts.
I say not to get too excited, these experts are the same who did not recommend an apple product 1 year ago... and a few days later they turned around and gave a great recommendation. As someone from here would say, they have zero credibility.
I say they are right. From yesterday's disassembled article, you can see the subwoofer, which is quite powerful, and the 7 tiny tweeters positioned circularly in the upper part. Media speakers are completely missing. This set-up is able to give a good sound maybe only for some techno music, for all other categories it is totally unsuitable.
And I haven't heard of audio quality correction options, in the case of sources like mp3 - good, it's not a receiver.
I think HomePod is good as an audio speaker in the kitchen, to play something there. Excluded for auditions and even in stereo mode, it won't be a big cheese without media.
It means that Apple has hit the fence again
Have the real reviews that are not ordered by Apple started?
No one allowed themselves to say anything negative about the speaker until it was officially launched. If they had said something negative, would they have received any product before the official launch?
It's just a not-so-smart speaker, but it has extremely strong marketing behind it. We will probably soon hear that he also ruined a person's life.
It is known that these people from CR are laughing and hate Apple. They have nothing to do with the audio industry
It is known that these are not bought by Apple. Just like with the iPhone X, if they gave negative reviews, they weren't allowed to test them before launch :))
you see that mbp contradicts you and shows that you don't really have a clue
Apple had to send them a few pairs of ears. Of all the reviews I've seen, not a single one was negative about the audio quality, on the contrary, it excels in this regard. Certain complaints were related to Siri, which is behind Alexa and Google, the fact that it is restricted in the Apple ecosystem, that you cannot currently use 2, and the most common, that Spotify is not integrated and you have to use the commands from the phone
Nor do they have to be reviews commissioned by Apple. There are quite a few people who don't know what audio quality means and who think that if you can hear some bass rumbling from a can and some piezo tweeter highs that scratch your ears, they have listened to an extraordinary quality. They have probably never listened to anything in their lives other than those low end systems with a subwoofer and 2 watt satellites.
As an owner of sonos one and homepod I can tell you (personal opinion) that homepod is better than sonos one in terms of sound quality. As for functionality, however... siri still has a lot to learn
I'm coming tomorrow. I come back with opinions.
I tested the box over the weekend. It's honestly not worth the money. The sound leaves a lot to be desired. You can listen to techno f well and that's it. Dance or something else with voice or media... are they hidden in the basement?