Everything That's Changed in the New 2023 HomePod - MacRumors

Apple this week unexpectedly announced the second-generation full-sized HomePod, astir 2 years aft it discontinued the archetypal astute speaker.

The upgraded HomePod, priced astatine $299, joins the HomePod mini successful Apple's enactment of TV and Home products with respective caller changes and features. A little terms tag astatine launch, a somewhat tweaked design, and a suite of features are expected to marque the second-generation HomePod much palmy than its predecessor, which failed to seizure mainstream marketplace share, yet starring to its discontinuation. Below, we've highlighted what precisely has changed with the second-generation HomePod compared to the first-generation astute speaker.

Faster Siri and Services Performance

As portion of the all-new HomePod, Apple has included the S7 processor, the aforesaid spot recovered successful the Apple Watch Series 7, which powers country sensing, precocious computational audio, Siri, and more. The S7 spot is an upgrade to the A8 chip, which powered the first-generation HomePod and the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The spot volition assistance amended the acquisition of utilizing Siri and services specified arsenic Apple Music and iHeartRadio.

Fewer Microphones and Tweeters

The next-generation HomePod has 4 microphones built-in, compared to the six-microphone strategy successful the first-generation HomePod. Even if users are crossed the room, acold distant from the speaker, and listening to music, the HomePod's microphones alteration them to invoke Siri and power their HomePod.

The latest HomePod besides has less tweeters than the archetypal first-generation model. Apple's specs sheet reveals the caller HomePod has 5 tweeters astir its base, compared to 7 successful the archetypal astute speaker. The tweeters assistance powerfulness HomePod's acoustic show by optimizing "high frequencies to nutrient detailed, articulate audio with stunning clarity." The simplification successful the fig of tweeters and microphones was apt a cost-cutting measurement by Apple. Whether this volition effect successful a noticeable driblet successful audio show is presently unknown.

Detachable Power Cable

Orginal first-generation HomePod

Unlike the archetypal HomePod, the caller HomePod has a detachable powerfulness cable, allowing users to rapidly detach the cablegram from the HomePod for question oregon storage.

Larger Backlit Touch Interface

One of the noticeable plan changes with the updated HomePod is simply a larger backlit interaction interface astatine its top. Compared to the archetypal HomePod, the caller exemplary features a importantly larger interface that glows and illuminates antithetic colors to amusement varying statuses of the talker and erstwhile Siri is successful use.

Lighter and Shorter Design

Dimensions connected Apple's website for the second-generation HomePod assistance enactment into position the updated model's size and signifier origin successful narration to its predecessor. The brand-new HomePod weighs 5.16 pounds, compared to 5.5 pounds for the archetypal astute speaker. The upgraded HomePod is besides 6.6 inches successful height, compared to 6.8 inches. Both HomePods diagnostic the aforesaid width of 5.6 inches.

Thread and UI Ultra Wideband Chip

The caller HomePod supports Thread, a connectivity modular for astute location devices that improves connectivity via a low-power mesh web for your home. The archetypal HomePod lacked Thread support, with lone the HomePod mini having compatibility.

The caller HomePod besides has the U1 Ultra Wideband spot built-in, which detects erstwhile different U1-equipped devices, specified arsenic the latest iPhone models, are adjacent and allows it to rapidly manus disconnected the audio to the astute speaker.

What's Not Changed

With the caller HomePod, determination are 2 things that person not changed: Lack of Bluetooth enactment and in-line audio. Unlike different speakers, the caller HomePod, similar the previous-generation exemplary and the existent HomePod mini, cannot relation arsenic a standalone Bluetooth speaker. Users indispensable brace the HomePod with their iPhone oregon iPad and usage Apple's AirPlay modular oregon Siri to play audio. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the caller HomePod does not diagnostic an audio jack, optical audio port, oregon immoderate ports astatine all. All enactment with the HomePod is done wirelessly utilizing Apple devices.