Apple HomePod 2: everything you need to know
>
Apple has unveiled the HomePod 2 – the successor to the original HomePod, which was released in 2018. The new wireless speaker is very similar to the first HomePod in most respects, but seems to be designed even more to target Dolby Atmos movies and spatial audio for Apple Music.
The original Apple HomePod was one of the best wireless speakers on the market, before it was unceremoniously discontinued in March 2021 and the company chose to focus on the smaller and cheaper Apple HomePod mini.
HomePod 2 key features
– $299 / £299 / AU$479
– Released February 3, 2022
– Spatial audio and Dolby Atmos support
– High-excussion woofer, five tweeters
– Smart home hub with Thread & Matter
But with Apple’s spatial audio-enhanced music now a permanent feature, and the recent release of Apple Music Sessions available in Spatial Audio, a new HomePod with support for Spatial Audio always seemed inevitable… (and to be honest to be, it was even spotted in the wild before Apple announced it.)
The Apple HomePod mini is a fantastic speaker in its own right, and its diminutive stature and low price put it squarely against some of the best smart speakers on the market, including the Amazon Echo Studio and the Sonos One. But the HomePod is Apple’s inaugural flagship wireless speaker — and the only one to support Apple Music’s acclaimed Lossless and Spatial Audio content.
Rumors that it would have a screen or be cheaper didn’t really pan out, but we’re still excited about the redesigned HomePod 2.
Apple HomePod 2: price and release date
The HomePod 2 can be ordered from Apple’s online stores starting Wednesday, January 18, 2022, and will actually be released on Friday, February 3, 2022.
It costs $299 / £299 / AU$479, which was about the same as the previous model by the time it was discontinued. It’s the same price in the US, while slightly more expensive in the UK, but that’s no surprise given recent exchange rates; it is $AU10 more expensive in Australia.
The price is steep compared to most of the best smart speakers – even the Amazon Echo Studio, the most expensive Alexa speaker, is almost half the price. The Sonos One is also much cheaper.
However, there are plenty of much more expensive wireless speakers, including those from the Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin (2021) or the mighty Naim Mu-So Qb 2nd Gen.
So the HomePod is generally in the middle of the market – it’s just definitely out of the high end of what most people will pay for something like that. But that’s what the HomePod mini is for, right?
Apple HomePod 2: design & speakers
The new HomePod 2 looks almost the same as the original HomePod, with its rounded shape and fabric-covered exterior. We really like this design – it looks nice when you focus on it, but it’s also great for just blending into the background when you’re not, as it’s a simple black or white finish.
On top there’s a swirling colored ‘screen’ (it shows no info, it just shows when Siri or music is active). On the original HomePod, this was just a small dot in the middle, but now it’s all over the top, just like on the HomePod mini.
The new model is the same diameter as the original at 5.6in/142mm, and is almost the same height – it’s slightly shorter at 6.6in/168mm instead of 6.8in/173mm.
The inside is different, even though many principles are the same. For example, there’s still a large four-inch high-excursion woofer on top to handle mids and bass. Being ‘high-excursion’, the driver moves extremely far forward and back, allowing it to move more air and produce a bigger, deeper sound.
And there’s still a ring of higher-frequency tweeters below the woofer, but now there are five tweeters instead of the seven in the original HomePod, and they’re positioned on the bottom of the device, facing upwards. This probably helps add height and spatial audio effects when used with Dolby Atmos audio.
Apple HomePod 2: features
There were all sorts of rumors about what would come in the new HomePod, but the second verse has turned out to be very much like the first; the features of the new HomePod are close to the original.
That means it’s mainly focused on music in the Apple ecosystem. You can use Siri to request songs from Apple Music, although Siri now works with some other music services as well. You can send music (or other audio) to it via AirPlay 2 from Apple devices, although there’s no Bluetooth or other way to get audio to it – that means Android devices with the HomePod are left out in the cold.
It works as part of multi-room AirPlay systems, and you can use one HomePod alone, or two in a pair.
The new HomePod is prepared for Apple Music’s Dolby Atmos music support, including Spatial Audio – it will bounce sounds off your walls to try and recreate the feel of the music around you.
And these Dolby Atmos skills come in handy if you own an Apple TV, as you can use two new HomePods as an alternative to one of the best soundbars – the Apple TV can send all of its sound to the HomePod, including Dolby Atmos 3D sound .
The HomePod 2 also supports lossless audio from Apple Music for higher quality overall audio.
It has an ultra-wideband chip, which means it can detect when an iPhone 11 or newer is nearby, making it easy to send music from your phone to the HomePod (or vice versa) just by bringing it close.
For smart home enthusiasts, the HomePod 2 just got better. It supports Thread and Matter, the next-generation protocols that work with more accessories than ever – as well as Apple HomeKit – and can trigger automations in your smart home when you’re not there. And it has built-in temperature and humidity sensors, which are useful for smart home equipment with climate control.