January 18, 2023
press release
Apple introduces the new HomePod with sound and intelligence
Delivering amazing sound quality, enhanced Siri capabilities and a safe and secure home experience
Cupertino, California Apple today announced HomePod (2nd generation), a powerful smart speaker that delivers next-level acoustics in a sleek, visual design. Packed with Apple innovations and Siri intelligence, HomePod delivers an immersive listening experience, advanced computational audio, including support for immersive spatial audio tracks. With convenient new ways to manage daily tasks and control the smart home, users can now create smart home automation using Siri, get notified when a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm is detected in their home, and check the temperature and humidity in the room – all hands. -free.
The new HomePod is available to order online and in the Apple Store app starting today, with availability starting Friday, February 3.
“Using our audio expertise and innovations, the new HomePod delivers rich, deep bass, natural mids and clear, detailed highs,” said Greg Joswick, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing. “With the popularity of the HomePod mini, we’ve seen a growing interest in more powerful acoustics that can be achieved in the larger HomePod. We’re excited to bring the next generation of HomePod to customers around the world.
Refined design
With seamless, acoustically transparent mesh fabric and an edge-to-edge backlit touch surface, the new HomePod boasts a sleek design that complements any space. HomePod is made from 100 percent recycled mesh fabric in white and midnight blue, with a color-coordinated power cord.
Acoustic Powerhouse
HomePod delivers incredible sound quality, with rich, deep bass and impressive high frequencies. A custom-engineered high-excursion cone, a powerful 20mm driver driving a diaphragm, a built-in bass-EQ mic, and five tweeter beams around the base all work together for a powerful acoustic experience. The S7 chip is combined with software and system sensor technology to deliver even more advanced computational sound to the listener listening to the full potential of the acoustic system.
With room-sensing technology, HomePod detects sound reflections from nearby surfaces to determine whether it’s against a wall or free-standing, and adjusts volume instantly. Precise directional control isolates the beam’s five-tweeter array and distributes direct and ambient audio, immersing listeners in crystal-clear sounds and rich instruments.
Users can listen to a catalog of more than 100 million songs with Apple Music;1 Enjoy Spatial Audio with a single HomePod or as a stereo pair, or create an immersive home theater experience with Apple TV 4K. With Siri, users can access a wide range of music knowledge and search by artist, song, lyrics, decade, genre, mood or activity.
A great experience with multiple HomePod speakers
Two or more HomePod or HomePod mini speakers unlock a variety of powerful features. Using multi-room audio with AirPlay;2 Users can simply say “Hey Siri” or touch the top of HomePod to play the same song on multiple HomePod speakers, play different songs on different HomePod speakers, or use them as an intercom to broadcast messages to other units.
Users can create a stereo pair with two HomePod speakers in the same location.3 In addition to separating the left and right channels, the stereo pair plays each channel in perfect harmony, creating a wider and more immersive soundstage than traditional stereo speakers for a truly immersive listening experience.
Seamless integration with the Apple ecosystem
Using Ultra Wideband technology, users can stream anything they’re playing on their iPhone — like a favorite song, podcast, or phone call — directly to the HomePod.4 Anyone in the home can bring an iPhone to the HomePod to easily control what’s playing or receive personalized song and podcast recommendations, and suggestions will be generated automatically. HomePod recognizes up to six voices, so each household member can hear their personal playlist, request reminders, and set calendar events.
HomePod easily pairs with Apple TV 4K for a powerful home theater experience and eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel).5 Support on Apple TV 4K allows customers to make HomePod an audio system for all devices connected to the TV. Plus, with Siri on the HomePod, users can control what’s playing on Apple TV with their hands.
Find My on HomePod allows users to find their Apple devices, such as iPhones, by playing audio on a device that’s not working. Using Siri, users can request the location of their friends or loved ones that are shared through the app.
Smart home essential
With voice recognition,6 HomePod can listen for smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and send a notification directly to the user’s iPhone if noise is detected. The new built-in temperature and humidity sensor can measure indoor environments, so users can automatically close the blinds or turn on the fan when a certain temperature is reached in a room.
By enabling Siri, customers can control a single device or create scenes such as “Good Morning” to activate multiple smart home accessories at the same time, or “Hey Siri, open the blinds every day. Set repeating automations hands-free. Sunrise.”7 A new confirmation tone indicates when Siri is asked to visibly change something, such as a heater or to control accessories in a particular room. Ambient sounds – like ocean, forest and rain – have also been reworked and are more integrated into the experience, allowing customers to add new sounds to scenes, automations and alarms.
Users can intuitively navigate, view and organize accessories using the redesigned Home app, which offers new categories for climate, lights and security, makes it easier to set up and control the smart home, and includes a new multi-camera view.
Case support
The issue was launched last fall, allowing smart home products to run on the ecosystem while maintaining the highest level of security. Apple, along with other industry leaders, is a member of the Communications Standards Alliance, which maintains the Matter standard. HomePod connects and controls Mather-enabled accessories, and serves as an essential home hub, giving users access when they’re away from home.
Customer data is private property.
Protecting customer privacy is one of Apple’s core values. All smart home communications are always end-to-end encrypted so they can’t be read by Apple, including camera recordings with HomeKit Secure Video. When Siri is used, the audio of the request is not stored by default. These features give users the peace of mind that their privacy is protected at home.
HomePod and environment
HomePod is designed to reduce its environmental impact and includes 100 percent recycled gold — a first for HomePod — in several printed circuit boards and 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in the speaker magnets. HomePod meets Apple’s high energy efficiency standards and is mercury-, BFR-, PVC- and beryllium-free. The redesigned packaging eliminates the outer plastic wrap, and 96 percent of the packaging is fiber-based, bringing it closer to Apple’s goal of completely eliminating plastic from packaging by 2025.
Today, Apple is carbon neutral for its global corporate operations, and by 2030, it plans to be 100 percent carbon neutral throughout its manufacturing supply chain and all product life cycles. This means that every Apple device sold has a net-zero climate impact during physical manufacturing, assembly, shipping, customer use, charging, recycling and material recovery.
Pricing and availability
- HomePod (2nd generation) is available to order. 299 dollars (US) from apple.com/store and in the Apple Store app Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spainof UKof USAnd 11 other countries and regions will be available starting today, Friday, February 3.
- HomePod (2nd generation) is compatible with iPhone SE (2nd generation) and later, or iPhone 8 and later with iOS 16.3 or later. or iPad Pro, iPad (5th generation) and later, iPad Air (3rd generation) and later, or iPad mini (5th generation) and later running iPadOS 16.3.
- Customers in the US earn 3 percent daily cash back when they shop directly from Apple with Apple Card.
About Apple
Apple revolutionized personal technology when it introduced the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV. Apple’s five software platforms – iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS – deliver seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with new services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple’s more than 100,000 employees are committed to making the best products on earth and leaving the world a better place than we found it.
- Apple Music requires a subscription.
- Multi-room audio requires multiple HomePod speakers or AirPlay-compatible speakers with the new AirPlay software.
- Creating a HomePod stereo pair requires two HomePod speakers of the same model, such as two HomePod mini, two HomePod (2nd generation) or two HomePod (1st generation).
- iOS 16.3 is required on iPhone for Handoff.
- Home theater with eARC support requires an Apple TV 4K (2nd generation) or later with the latest TVOS software.
- Voice recognition will be available in a software update later this spring. A sound detector can detect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm sounds and send notifications to users when detected. Voice recognition should not be relied upon in situations where users may be harmed or injured, or in situations of high risk or emergency. Voice recognition requires the updated Home architecture, which is available as a separate update in the Home app. It requires all Apple devices that access the home to use the latest software.
- Smart home appliances are sold separately.
Press the contacts
Emily Ewing
Apple
e_ewing@apple.com
Lance Lynn
Apple
lance_lin@apple.com
(408) 974-5036
Apple Media Helpline
media.help@apple.com
(408) 974-2042