rattlhed

The ability of the S9's camera aperture to switch is quite impressive for a smartphone camera.  Cool piece of tech.  As long as Apple's competitors continue to innovate and push the boundaries that will just force Apple to continue to improve.  I have no interest in an S9, but I like that it has outperformed my X (at least in this test's results), so future iPhones should continue to improve.  Win win for everyone!

I subscribe to CM and find it to be a very useful publication in many areas (food, home appliances, insurance, household goods, etc) but for electronics I take it with a grain of salt.  I'd much rather read customer reviews on Amazon and Best Buy before I trust CM.  
I recently purchased a new washer and dryer and CM was my go-to for starting my research on what to buy.  After reading their reviews on a specific Maytag model that received high marks, I then went to several web sites and read consumer reviews and ratings, all of which confirmed this was a solid unit to buy.  4 months in and I'm very happy with my new appliances.  CM got the ball rolling and helped me narrow down a good unit out of hundreds available.
So they have their place, but they're not the all-encompassing source for finding out about products.  

I primarily listen to heavy metal.  I have a huge album collection on Apple Music.  A lot of the bands I listen to have unique band names (listening to Xanthrochroid right now).  I tried 10 times and I could not get Siri to play any album by them, she consistently butchered their name and played bands ranging from hip hop to classical instead based on what she thought she heard.  

If Apple is going to market this as a smart speaker that sounds great, then they need to make sure the damn thing can read artists from THE MUSIC SERVICE THEY PROVIDE!  It's not like I'm trying to link this up to a 3rd party music service, this is a band on Apple Music.  She should be able to recognize the name and play them.  Very very frustrating for a $350 device.

But I'm going to keep it.  Why?  Because it sounds fantastic and when Siri in all her stupidity can't play an artist I'll just pull out my phone and use the HomePod as a AirPlay speaker.  It's not as convenient but it works and it supplies my living room with great quality music.  I hope they figure this out eventually, because there is so much potential here.

I have no room in my living room for a traditional audio system.  I would love to have a 5.1 system like I do in my media room, but I don't.  And because it's my living room, I find myself listening to music a lot more there than I do in my media room (which is 90% used to watch movies).  So I needed something very small that could fit on a fireplace mantle but deliver satisfying sound.  I have an Echo, but it's crap for audio (but a great assistant).  I decided to give the HomePod a go.  I'm quite happy with it.  The overall sound is truly remarkable for a unit of its size.  It's no perfect, depending on the album, sometimes the sound can be a bit disappointing, but most of the time it delivers a very warm, rich sound with plenty of balance between bass, mid and highs.  

Siri is decent.  Most of the time when I request an album, Siri is able to dial it up.  I have found myself AirPlaying from my iPhone to the HomePod because I'll forget an album's name.  I rarely just listen to one off songs, I much prefer a whole album front to back.  As an assistant, Siri is less than desirable, but I have an Echo so not a big deal for me.  Between the two of them I can usually get the information I need.  I am an iTunes subscriber and having all my music available through the HomePod is pretty incredible.  

I would give the HomePod a 4/5

Got my HomePod today.  Installed and have listened to it for about an hour.  First impressions:

1)  It sounds great.  Really has a good balance of sound.  It is a bit bass heavy at times, but never to the point I don't like it.  Really depends on the album.  Listening to Devon Townsend Project right now, incredible balance.  The bass has a huge range, from deep deep lows from electronic sounds to a nice punchy bass drum.  When I play some albums from the 80's (tried Metallica's "Trapped Under Ice") I can hear the bass but it definitely doesn't have the overall sound that a more modern album has, but it still sounds good.   I have always preferred a deep bass and high upper range with a slightly muted midtones (a u shape on an equalizer) and the HomePod seems to deliver that sound. I wish there was some control over the equalizer (tried adjusting the EQ in my iPhone settings but that doesn't do anything). 
2)  It can get pretty loud for such a small package.  Not room shaking, but definitely loud enough to fill my living room and kitchen.  What is amazing, is when I turn it up all the way, IT DOESN'T DISTORT!  That's right, they made the HP capable of playing at max volume without sounding like crap (why make a device that can go to "10" when it sounds like crap at 9 or 10???").  Yes, the tone of the music does change a bit at different volume levels.  At higher volumes the mid range starts to creep in more.  At lower volumes that bass it a little more dominant. 
3)  Siri isn't bad at all.  Her microphones can pick up my Hey Siri even when the music is quite loud, and I don't have to say "hey siri" and then pause, I can just keep talking and it will understand me.  Music control with my voice works very well.  I also dig the fact she can read my text messages and even reply back.
4)  I subscribe to iTunes (such an awesome service).  It works so well.  I can either play music on my iPhone and airplay to the HP, or I can play music directly through the HP.  What is cool is when I play through my phone, I can control the volume, track, etc with my watch.  Switching between phone and HP is very easy to do.

In conclusion, I'm quite impressed.  Sure it doesn't sound as good as my home audio system in my rec room, but it shouldn't.  It's a 8" high single device but the sound that does come from it is quite amazing.  It takes up very little room on my fireplace mantle and fills my living room with rich, wonderful sound.  It connects to my entire music library without having to reach for my phone if I don't want to.  It looks amazing, another high quality piece of hardware from Apple.  To me it's definitely worth the $350.  I don't have room for a full audio system in my living room.  Right now I have an echo (which for music sounds like crap), a sound bar for my TV (good for movies, bad for music) and really wanted something small that would sound good for music.  The HP fits the bill perfectly.  Very happy customer, and looking forward to future updates that make it even more powerful.