The HomePod mini is a smaller version of the HomePod speaker Apple released in 2018. The goal: To give Apple a bigger presence in the growing smart speaker market.
Apple on Tuesday added a new member to its smart speaker lineup. The HomePod mini is a smaller version of the HomePod speaker Apple released in 2018, and if it takes off, it will help Apple grab a bigger piece of the burgeoning smart speaker market. The HomePod still has the mesh grill exterior available in space gray or white, but it has an entirely different shape. It’s round, not a cylinder like the full-sized HomePod. It reminds us of the mesh-protected apples you might find at the supermarket. While we haven’t seen it in person, the screen at the top of the HomePod mini seems more prominent, even brighter. Here are the top six things you need to know about the HomePod mini. The HomePod mini measures 3.3 inches tall, less than half the height of the HomePod. And since it’s smaller, it has fewer speakers and microphones. The HomePod mini has a “full-range driver, powered by a neodymium magnet and a pair of force-cancelling passive radiators,” as well as three mics that listen for voice prompts, and an internal mic to help isolate the speaker’s sound to hear a “Hey Siri” command while playing music. Apple uses its S5 chip to process the sound. Like the HomePod, the HomePod mini plays 360-degree audio.
