jcs2305

nunzy said:

One million is nothing to Apple. But the PR is priceless.

Way to cheapen a nice gesture by Apple. Cheerleader #1 strikes again...

nunzy said:

Specs mean nothing. Apple has the best user experience no matter what the specs say. Apple carefully integrates the software and the hardware so it seems like it is faster.

Seems like it’s faster ? 

StrangeDays said:

AI_lias said:

Agree with the headphone jack ad: just got off a longer conference call, and I had the dongle connected to not run out of battery while on the call. Removing the headphone jack was not a good move. I don't care who else removed the headphone jack. Talking on the phone with headphones and charging at the same time is a basic use case, not a rare exception. It's an eye-sore and inconvenient. 

Funny, I'm on calls every day with work and have never run into this issue. I tried the in-box wired headphones on my 7 for a while, and never managed to talk for 10 hours straight before need to charge. Later I switched to wireless AirPods and it's never been an issue either. Not sure what I'm doing wrong...

mike1 said:

qwwera said:

I can’t wait. Charging cables have always been the worst part of phone ownership and wireless chargers work amazing. 
The sooner the better.

volcan said:

I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.

volcan said:

maciekskontakt said:

volcan said:

I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.

It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky

Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case. 

Amazing how some people just can't visualize a use case that's not their own.

deepinsider said:

Gee, I wonder why. Could it be...



1) No bluetooth support, automatically cutting their market in half

2) Siri on Homepod won't play anything from your iTunes library that wasn't purchased from Apple, or connect to any alternative streaming services... unlike Alexa on Echo, which will

3) Siri is a lame personal assistant, especially on Homepod

4) The high price



This is a half-baked product that will never be what it should be due to Apple's newfound Microsoftesque obsession with vendor lock-in. What a dud.

Stop talking about a product that you know almost nothing about!! I am sick of the misinformation being tossed around as facts to degredate the HomePod ... it's really getting quite old..

I have personally played Apple Lossless files that were ripped from CD ,directly from iCloud drive via airplay with my iPhone 8 Plus on HomePod.  You can absolutely play any non apple purchased music added to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch via airplay. You can also play your own personal music from iTunes match using any iOS device with what?? You guessed it..airplay. As well as music from ANY other competing service via airplay from an IOS device..

 Sonos is a Wifi only speaker and has done pretty damn well prior to HomePod and without bluetooth support. Google Home Max is $50.00 more than HomePod..Sonos play 3 and play 5 are priced just below and above the HomePod, One of these two is the route I was planning on going.. yet still with no airplay capability it was a deal breaker for me.  I prefer the range and quality of airplay vs Bluetooth.. Others may disagree because it keeps you in Apple's ecosystem but that is not an issue in my household. 

An Overview of Apple’s AirPlay

AirPlay is a network streaming system that works atop your Wi-Fi (or someone else’s…you just need a wireless network for it to function). The strength of the AirPlay protocol for audio is that it uses UDP for streaming audio which has a low overhead. The Apple Lossless codec (AAC Lossless) is what makes up the audio streams, that means stereo audio is sent at 44.1kHz with AES encryption. AirPlay also buffers the stream for 2 seconds so that dropouts are practically non-existent provided your wireless network is even moderately stable. Audio source data transmitted via AirPlay is also sent completely unprocessed with no deterioration in bit depth. Sound quality, as a result, is pristine. Since the original source is sent exactly as transmitted, AirPlay has the added benefit of using the destination devices to individually control the volume.

AirPlay sends metadata along with the audio stream and is known for tracking that data efficiently, so album art, play duration and feedback controls are both accurate and quick. Since AirPlay uses Wi-Fi and not Bluetooth, the range is significantly better, with AirPlay devices having the ability to be placed anywhere in a home or office—even if the controller or source device is a significant distance away from the output device. The downside to AirPlay, of course, is that it is an Apple-only protocol, and thus only available with Apple software and hardware. Because it Is proprietary, manufacturers of AirPlay-enabled speakers and other AV equipment pay a licensing fee to Apple to use the technology and make it available in their products.

http://www.audiogurus.com/learn/speakers/bluetooth-vs-airplay/446


Other than an occasionally asking for a song I have no real need for Siri or any assistant for that matter. Again others may feel differently I am just stating what my needs and usage are as far as Siri or other assistants are concerned. 

If someone wants to play something when they come over and they have an Android phone I can easily play what they want by handing the iPad or iPhone to them, or by asking Siri via Apple Music... which work pretty well for me..again others may disagree..this is just my experience ..