Apple - HomePod mini - Midnight

Having purchased a pair of Home Pods on on launch day from Best Buy (at the $349 price) I've been a long-time fan of the smart speaker category. It wasn't long before my Google Home and Amazon Echos became paperweights. This HomePod mini at a $99 price point makes for the perfect stocking stuffer or even primary gift. In fact it does some things even better than the original. Sound quality is amazing, particular when paired with another for left/right Stereo. Even solo, they produce surprisingly full volume from a small sphere. Siri still trails the other smart assistance, and sends me to my phone more than I care to admit, but the utility of these are amazing. Adding them to rooms in your house makes your abode that much more accessible. Also cool is the ability to schedule or add events to play specific music or playlist based on a trigger (Wake up event, bed time chime, sunrise, sunset, etc. ). We used an Eve outlet to turn on Christmas tree, so "Siri, Christmas time" turned it on, dimmed other (Lutron Caseta) lights, and started playing Christmas Music throughout the house. My wife and I purchased a dozen of these between BB and Apple, mostly as gifts. The responses have been overwhelmingly positive, especially among those who's only other Apple device is an iPhone, thus making this an excellent gateway entry expanding usage on the ecosystem. The new to iOS 14 feature for HomePod mini has to be the INTERCOM. With it you can use your iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, or other HomePod to communicate with Mini's in other rooms. "Hey Siri, intercom, We're starting the movie", or "has anyone taken the dogs out?". Your voice is then played either through the HomePods and mini's in every room, specific rooms, or just a floor (based on the room and floor you select upon setup) Family members then "reply, I did, got it" or whatever. This sure beats the 70s built-in wall units of yesteryear. Additionally the new Mini sports Thread Mesh Networking protocol, so the more Thread devices you add, the more redundant, and wider your mesh network becomes. We're also starting to see other manufactures support Thread, namely $20 Nanoleaf interactive color light bulbs. PROS +compact cute WAF wife-acceptance factor +surprising sound quality +cool factor adds tech to every room +Whole-house (floor, or room) Intercom is great +Thread Mesh Networking future proofs expanded functionality +magic price point +Apple Music and playlist integration CONS -only big brother model sports Dolby Atmos -would love to see a $179 / 2-pack for stereo CONCLUSION This product might be one of Apple's more successful sleeper hits, if the Reddit /Homepod forum is to be believed. Countless new users RAVE about sound quality, and then are later ingratiated with other features they didn't know it could do. Recommend : BUY !!

I recently got the Apple HomePod mini from Best Buy, and I’m honestly so impressed! I wasn’t expecting a speaker this small to have such great sound, but it completely blew me away. It’s got this rich, full sound that fills the whole room, and the bass is surprisingly powerful for something so compact. Whether I’m playing music, listening to podcasts, or using it for phone calls, the audio is super clear and balanced. Setup was a breeze—I literally just held my iPhone near it, and it was ready to go in less than five minutes. If you’re already an Apple user, it’s pretty much plug-and-play. I also love how easily it connects to Apple Music and my other devices with AirPlay. If you have other Apple gadgets, this speaker just makes everything work together more smoothly. It’s like having a mini sound system in my living room without needing a bunch of bulky speakers. Siri on the HomePod mini is surprisingly helpful. I use it to control my smart lights, ask for the weather, set reminders, and send messages. It’s become my little home assistant! The intercom feature is cool too—I can send quick voice messages to other rooms if I ever get another HomePod mini (which I’m definitely considering). One thing I really appreciate is Apple’s focus on privacy. I like knowing that my requests aren’t being tracked or recorded—everything stays secure. It’s a nice reassurance in a world where privacy concerns are everywhere. Design-wise, it’s super stylish and fits into any space without standing out too much. It’s compact enough to sit on my shelf or desk without taking up a lot of room, but it still looks sleek and modern. Plus, it comes in a few different colors, which is a nice touch. Honestly, if you’re thinking about getting a smart speaker, the HomePod mini is a great choice. It’s affordable, sounds amazing, and works seamlessly with everything else in my home. I’m really happy with the purchase! <3

Incredibly compact and very well built! Well worth the money if you’re looking for a good home assistant and you want to be in the Apple ecosystem. Pros: - Sound quality is absolutely amazing for the size. Honestly impressed with how Apple has done this. - Extremely compact so can be kept very easily on a corner table or desk - Integrated with Siri and HomeKit so it works great as a digital assistant - Very easy to set up, takes seconds to connect on an iPhone, compared to the tedious process required to set up an Alexa device Cons: - On the expensive side compared to an Alexa or Google device (sound quality makes up for it though, miles better than the other two) - Space Grey model comes with a black body and black cable but a white power adapter. Looks a little odd and not very aesthetically pleasing

This is an absolutely wonderful and surprisingly powerful little speaker! It’s also absolutely packed with awesome features and it works so effortlessly and seamlessly with any Apple device. Setup literally takes less than 2 minutes; just hold your device near it and it’ll automatically register it. It also has the ability to control your entire smart home with Siri, as well as the ability to do all other features Siri can do. I absolutely love the cool colors they come in, and I also love that you can pair two of these together in one room to make a set of stereo speakers. It’s roughly the size of a softball, but it has the power and sound of a speaker triple it’s size. It also has 360° audio as well as the ability to play music in spatial audio from Apple Music. And the price of it makes it an absolute bargain, making it very easy to have one for the entire family in each of their bedrooms, which also allows you to fully utilize the intercom function of HomePods, which is a super cool feature that works exactly like it sounds, acting as intercoms throughout the whole house to each speaker or to only certain speakers you choose, and you’re able to use this feature from your phone to communicate with someone at home on their HomePod. These are the absolute coolest smart speakers that also offer excellent sound quality and beautiful aesthetics and work flawlessly with Apple products, so it’s especially great for those who already have and own Apple products, but it’s also great for those without any Apple products as well.

I've been using the HomePod mini for a while now, and it's been an amazing experience. From the moment I set it up, I was impressed by its sleek design and compact size, which fits perfectly into any room decor. The sound quality is exceptional for a speaker its size. It delivers clear, rich audio that fills the room, whether I'm listening to music, podcasts, or audiobooks. The integration with Apple's ecosystem is seamless. I can easily control my smart home devices, ask Siri for updates on the weather or my schedule, and even send messages, all through voice commands. The Intercom feature has been particularly useful; it allows me to communicate with family members in other rooms without having to shout up or down the stairs. Moreover, the HomePod mini’s ability to recognize different voices and provide personalized responses is a game-changer.