After Apple discontinued the full-sized HomePod, speculation has been rampant about Apple reviving the overpriced product.
It's very odd when you inject opinion into a straight-news piece. While I can't speak to their market objectives and results, I know that I consider my HPs to be great purchases, and I know many others who feel the same. They provide, big, clear sound and replaced poorer performing AirPlay speakers and sound bars. There's a reason I sold my 5.1 receiver + expensive speakers and adopted these for home theater and music use. It's much cheaper and sounds quite good enough. Apple blogger Gruber has mentioned he's also using multiple sets of full-size HPs around the house, including for TV. The HP minis are fine for casual use but not in the living room.
I dunno what Apple has to do differently, but I hope they return to this area.
I'd like to see Apple acquire Pandora because I've always enjoyed Pandora's discovery/music-genealogy based model. As much as I hate to say it, Siri on HomePod is rather pathetic. Rather than trying to make Siri on HomePod functionally equivalent to Alexa on Echo, Apple should create a Siri-like persona for HomePod (with a new name) that is a music savant powered by the discovery logic that Pandora possesses. I'd like to be able to say "Hey Tunes, I really liked that last track, can you find me more music like that."
These features already exist:
In Music:
Via Siri:
Both from Apple’s documentation. But sure, they need to buy Pandora. 🙄
I actually also prefer Pandora's categorization. Siri's seems to be based off the band/track name, rather than its music/sound attributes. I've gotten recommendations for death metal songs that have in their titles names of the actual genres I like. No joke! For example, I like "trance" music, and I got some Swedish metal w/ "Trance" in its title, but is absolutely not anything I like. Other stuff like this -- an electronic artist I like doing something acoustic w/ a vocalist...I hate the song, but I fear if I Dislike it, it will count against the artist (who I do like) in future recommendations.
Pandora doesn't have these problems because it's based on the music/sound attributes in each individual song.
Maybe it will be a HopePod Soundbar (w/integrated Apple TV).
That would be a good product imho. I use my two HomePods as speakers for one of my TVs. It makes a big improvement.
Unfortunately this is only possible when using an AppleTV to feed the TV.
Indeed, but for many of us safely in the walled garden, that is no problem. I get almost all of my content via ATV, with the exception of occasional local OTA football, where the TV speakers are just fine.
Maybe it will be a HopePod Soundbar (w/integrated Apple TV).
That would be a good product imho. I use my two HomePods as speakers for one of my TVs. It makes a big improvement.
Unfortunately this is only possible when using an AppleTV to feed the TV.
Thankfully, that is not true anymore. The 2022 ATV has eARC, which allows any program playing on the TV to output sound through the HomePods connected to the ATV.
Oh wow, didn't even realize that. I'll have to see if my TV supports eARC (edit: it does! Just had to switch HDMI ports)
Maybe it will be a HopePod Soundbar (w/integrated Apple TV).
That would be a good product imho. I use my two HomePods as speakers for one of my TVs. It makes a big improvement.
Unfortunately this is only possible when using an AppleTV to feed the TV.
Thankfully, that is not true anymore. The 2022 ATV has eARC, which allows any program playing on the TV to output sound through the HomePods connected to the ATV.
Let me rephrase then: Unfortunately only possible when you use an ATV in some backdoor, convoluted configuration that requires a vulcan neck pinch to work. Other than that, it's great.
That's not convoluted whatsoever. If you've already hooked up your ATV you have the skills. You just go into the settings and toggle it on:
I'd like to see Apple acquire Pandora because I've always enjoyed Pandora's discovery/music-genealogy based model. As much as I hate to say it, Siri on HomePod is rather pathetic. Rather than trying to make Siri on HomePod functionally equivalent to Alexa on Echo, Apple should create a Siri-like persona for HomePod (with a new name) that is a music savant powered by the discovery logic that Pandora possesses. I'd like to be able to say "Hey Tunes, I really liked that last track, can you find me more music like that."
These features already exist:
In Music:
Via Siri:
Both from Apple’s documentation. But sure, they need to buy Pandora. 🙄
I'd like to see Apple acquire Pandora because I've always enjoyed Pandora's discovery/music-genealogy based model. As much as I hate to say it, Siri on HomePod is rather pathetic. Rather than trying to make Siri on HomePod functionally equivalent to Alexa on Echo, Apple should create a Siri-like persona for HomePod (with a new name) that is a music savant powered by the discovery logic that Pandora possesses. I'd like to be able to say "Hey Tunes, I really liked that last track, can you find me more music like that."
These features already exist:
In Music:
Via Siri:
Both from Apple’s documentation. But sure, they need to buy Pandora. ߙ䦬t;/div>
I stand partially corrected, thanks! Not for iPhone, which is where I used it most, and where I think it is definitely removed from, but still good news.
Why Apple defaulted it to off and buried it in an easily overlooked menu item instead of under preferences is beyond me, but nevertheless you've made this grumpy sod a whole lot happier today.
I'd like to see Apple acquire Pandora because I've always enjoyed Pandora's discovery/music-genealogy based model. As much as I hate to say it, Siri on HomePod is rather pathetic. Rather than trying to make Siri on HomePod functionally equivalent to Alexa on Echo, Apple should create a Siri-like persona for HomePod (with a new name) that is a music savant powered by the discovery logic that Pandora possesses. I'd like to be able to say "Hey Tunes, I really liked that last track, can you find me more music like that."
These features already exist:
In Music:
Via Siri:
Both from Apple’s documentation. But sure, they need to buy Pandora. 🙄
I'd like to see Apple acquire Pandora because I've always enjoyed Pandora's discovery/music-genealogy based model. As much as I hate to say it, Siri on HomePod is rather pathetic. Rather than trying to make Siri on HomePod functionally equivalent to Alexa on Echo, Apple should create a Siri-like persona for HomePod (with a new name) that is a music savant powered by the discovery logic that Pandora possesses. I'd like to be able to say "Hey Tunes, I really liked that last track, can you find me more music like that."
These features already exist:
In Music:
Via Siri:
Both from Apple’s documentation. But sure, they need to buy Pandora. 🙄
Seems you can produce new Genius playlists on the Mac app, and play them back on iOS.
But on iOS, I don't see how to create a new Genius playlist. It seems like the equivalent is creation a Station?
I honestly don’t know. There may be a difference behind the scenes between Genius and Autoplay, but I haven’t used Genius in forever and use Autoplay all the time … which I think is same or similar to a Station? Not really sure.
Comments
I dunno what Apple has to do differently, but I hope they return to this area.
Pandora doesn't have these problems because it's based on the music/sound attributes in each individual song.
That's not convoluted whatsoever. If you've already hooked up your ATV you have the skills. You just go into the settings and toggle it on:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207117
https://support.apple.com/guide/music/use-genius-musbe3694c1b/mac
Why Apple defaulted it to off and buried it in an easily overlooked menu item instead of under preferences is beyond me, but nevertheless you've made this grumpy sod a whole lot happier today.
Seems you can produce new Genius playlists on the Mac app, and play them back on iOS.
But on iOS, I don't see how to create a new Genius playlist. It seems like the equivalent is creation a Station?