Plug in the HomePod mini, hold your iPhone nearby and follow the setup instructions. The outside is wrapped in an acoustic mesh fabric, comes in white or black, and is powered by a fabric-covered USB-C cord that plugs into a 20W power adapter that is included in the box. The device is smaller and denser than I expected at roughly the size of a softball (3.3 inches tall and 3.8 inches wide) and relatively heavy for its size (345 grams) 1 in the same way the original HomePod is. Source: Apple.Īpple has packed a lot of power into the tiny HomePod mini. The HomePod mini is wrapped in an acoustic fabric. The result is a more flexible system that outshines its individual parts and should improve over time as the HomeKit device market evolves. That pair joined my original HomePods and another pair of minis that I added to the setup to get a sense of what having a whole-home audio system with Siri always within earshot would be like.

However, the promise of a ubiquitous audio interface to Apple services, apps, HomeKit devices, and the Internet is more compelling than ever as Siri-enabled devices proliferate.įor the past couple of months, I’ve been testing a pair of HomePod minis that Apple sent me. Apple’s smart assistant still has room to improve. The other part of the story is the way the mini extends Siri throughout your home. Part of the story is the mini’s ability to serve as a border router for Thread-compatible smart devices, forming a low-power, mesh network that can operate independently of your Wi-Fi setup. Of course, the mini comes with tradeoffs compared to its larger, more expensive sibling, which I’ll get into, but for many people, it’s a terrific alternative.Īs compelling as the HomePod mini is as a speaker, though, its potential as a smart device reaches beyond the original HomePod in ways that have far greater implications for Apple’s place in customers’ homes. At $99, the device’s price tag also fits more budgets and makes multiple HomePod minis a far more realistic option than multiple original HomePods ever were. The mini is little enough to work just about anywhere in most homes. As a smaller, affordable smart speaker tightly integrated with Apple services, the HomePod mini is a compelling product for many people.

Users cancel spotify over lack homepod