Apple is ramping up the production of HomePod mini at its Vietnam plant, reports Nikkei Asia. The HomePod mini is the more affordable version of the HomePod.
The HomePod mini is priced at $99 whereas the regular larger HomePod costs $299. The regular HomePod has never been popular with people due to its price. However, the newer and smaller HomePod mini is turning out to be a different story altogether.
Gentler on the wallet
The HomePod mini is gentler on people’s wallets due to its inferior speakers compared to the regular HomePod. However, the quality is very decent for the price. The offerings from Amazon and Google are much cheaper compared to Apple but the promise of “privacy” is stronger in the case of Apple.
Over the past few years, Apple has emphasised a lot on the privacy features its devices offer. The company has always been in the favour of privacy over money, since the Steve Jobs era. However, the recent turn of events with Facebook and other major tech companies, has once again made Apple stress on the privacy and security its devices guarantee.
The HomePod mini has a full-range driver and dual passive radiators, according to Apple. The HomePod mini however lacks “spatial awareness” compared the $299 HomePod. Apple touts the spatial awareness feature as a technology that analyses the surroundings and accordingly adjusts the output sound to better match the environment. Its not a must have feature and is more of a on top of the feature rather than a necessity.
The HomePod mini supports multi-room audio. The feature allows users to set-up multiple HomePod minis to work together in uniformity. The feature allows to have a proper speaker system across the house.
The HomePod mini costs $99 – a decent purchase if you are already invested in Apple’s environment.