Pavel Jelic Every true apple fan looks forward to autumn all year long, when Apple traditionally presents new products, most often the popular iPhones. This year, we have already witnessed two Apple Events, where the first Californian giant presented the new Apple Watch SE and Series 6, together with the 8th generation iPad and the 4th generation iPad Air, rather unconventionally. A month later, the second conference came, at which Apple, in addition to the new "twelve" iPhones, also presented the new and more affordable HomePod mini. Despite the fact that the smaller HomePod is not officially sold in the Czech Republic, as we do not have Czech Siri, many users intend to find a way to purchase the new HomePod mini. Let's take a look at how the HomePod mini does with sound together in this article.
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Flying around the world with Apple About the HomePod mini as such
At the presentation of the HomePod mini, Apple devoted an appropriate part of the conference to the sound of the new Apple speaker. We were able to find out at the show that size definitely doesn't matter in this case (it does in other situations after that, of course). As I mentioned above, the new HomePod mini is not officially available in the Czech Republic for now. On the other hand, however, you can order a new Apple speaker from, for example, Alza, which takes care of importing new small HomePods from abroad - so availability is definitely not a problem in this case. HomePod mini, i.e. voice assistant Siri, still does not speak Czech. However, knowledge of English is nothing special these days, so I believe that most users will be able to cope. The new miniature HomePod is available in black and white, making it a perfect fit for any modern home. As for the size, it is 84,3 millimeters high, and then 97,9 millimeters wide - so it really is a small thing. The weight is then 345 grams. For now, the HomePod mini is not even on sale - pre-orders abroad start on November 11, and the first devices will appear in their owners' homes on November 16, when sales also start.
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Look forward to perfect sound
One broadband speaker is hidden in the guts of the tiny HomePod - so if you decide to buy one HomePod mini, forget about stereo sound. However, Apple has adjusted the price, size, and other aspects so that users of these Apple home speakers will buy several. On the one hand, this is to make it possible to use the stereo, and on the other hand, for simple communication with the whole household using the Intercom function. So if you put two HomePod mini next to each other, they can work as classic stereo speakers. In order for the HomePod mini to produce strong bass and crystal clear highs, the single speaker is reinforced with double passive resonators. As for the round design, Apple did not rely on chance in this case either. The speaker is located downwards in the HomePod, and it is thanks to the round design that Apple managed to spread the sound from the speaker to the surroundings in all directions - so we are talking about 360° sound. The Californian giant did not compromise even when choosing the material that the HomePod is covered with - it is acoustically completely transparent.
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It should be noted that the HomePod mini is definitely not just a smart speaker. If you want to use it fully and not just to play music, which would be enough for a speaker for a few hundred, then it will be necessary to include Siri in the running of the household. But how will Siri hear you if your favorite music is playing at full blast? Of course, Apple also thought of this situation and incorporated a total of four high-quality microphones into the miniature HomePod, which are specially developed for listening to commands for Siri. In addition to the aforementioned creation of a stereo system, you can use the Multiroom mode, with which one sound can be played in several rooms at the same time. This mode specifically works with the HomePod mini, of course, in addition to the classic HomePod and other speakers offered by AirPlay 2. Many people then asked whether it would be possible to create a stereo system from one HomePod mini and one original HomePod. The opposite is true in this case, as you can only create stereo from exactly the same speakers. Stereo will only work for you if you use 2x HomePod mini or 2x classic HomePod. The good news is that the HomePod mini can recognize the voice of each member of the household and thus communicate with each one individually.
Another great feature
If you like the HomePod mini and are planning to buy it, you can use many other functions. One can mention, for example, the option to play music from Apple Music or from iTunes Match. Of course, there is support for the iCloud Music library. Later, the HomePod mini should finally also receive support for third-party streaming applications - Apple has specifically stated that it will work with Pandora or Amazon Music. However, for the time being, we would look in vain for the Spotify logo on the list of supported applications in the future - there is nothing left but to hope that the HomePod mini will also support Spotify. The small apple speaker then also supports listening to podcasts from the native application Podcasts, there is also support for radio stations from TuneIn, iHeartRadio or Radio.com. HomePod mini is then controlled by tapping on its upper part, holding down your finger, or using the + and - buttons. Intercom is also a great function, with the help of which all family members will be able to communicate together, and not only through HomePods - see in the article below.
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I have a question. I'm thinking for a long time about a speaker for the Imac.. will I always have to control the homepod mini only via Siri, or is it also possible via the phone, or the Mac via bluetooth? Thank you
When you bring your iPhone close to the top of the HomePod, the music control interface will automatically appear. You can then control the music from Apple Music (or Podcasts) simply using AirPlay, i.e. tap the AirPlay icon to stream music to the HomePod.
Ok, great.. thanks a lot and how will it be with the Imac?
So can it be a full-fledged replacement for the PC speaker?
Unfortunately not full-fledged, within macOS it is only possible to stream music on the HomePod from the Music application. If you would like to use the HomePod as a full-fledged speaker, this option does not exist natively - only more complicated through some programs, which is what I managed to find on the Internet. Anyway, of course users complain about this.
In theory, this is perhaps possible as follows: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTkcElVTHVI
It's a shame that it's this complicated and that Apple hasn't added full support for HomePod on macOS as well.
Ok great.. thanks a lot for the info??
Hello,
can I use the Homepod mini as a central unit for a smart home?
Dekuji