Apple unveils HomePod mini 2: Siri AI, Sound Glow, $149, October 30
Apple's HomePod mini 2 costs $149, comes in five colors, and hits stores October 30. Siri AI arrives later via a software update.
Apple announced the HomePod mini 2 on Tuesday, a second-generation smart speaker priced at $149 in the U.S. and available in stores from Friday, October 30. Pre-orders opened the same day in pink, green, blue, white, and midnight through apple.com/store and the Apple Store app, according to Apple.
The original HomePod mini also launched on October 13, back in 2020, so the update ends a six-year gap between models. The current model had already moved from $99 to $129 in June, MacRumors reported.
Siri AI arrives on a HomePod
The headline feature is Siri AI, which Apple says is built on an entirely new architecture powered by the latest generation of Apple Foundation Models. It is not shipping on day one: Apple says Siri AI will come to the HomePod mini 2 in a future software update, in English, in the U.S., Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, and the UK.
Paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone or iPad, the speaker can tap into personal context — finding a song a friend recommended in a text, setting a reminder tied to a calendar event or location, or adding ingredients to a grocery list. It recognizes up to six household members by voice. Apple says that once Siri AI is enabled on a supported speaker, even users without an Apple Intelligence-capable iPhone or iPad get its world knowledge, conversational back-and-forth, and improved music discovery.
Requests can be handled on-device or through Private Cloud Compute, which Apple says does not store data or make it accessible to Apple or anyone else.
Four-speaker surround sound and Sound Glow
Audio runs on the Apple S10 chip with computational audio that analyzes music in real time to tune dynamic range, loudness, and acoustic performance. For the first time, you can build a four-speaker surround setup by pairing HomePod mini 2 units with the new Apple TV 4K (4th generation); the speakers and TV recognize their positions in the room and calibrate timing and levels automatically. The speaker can also serve as a Mac’s default speaker for movies, gaming, and FaceTime calls.
New this generation is Sound Glow: the top of the speaker glows and pulses in sync with the music, reacting to bass and treble, with album artwork from Now Playing generating a color-matched light show per song. Apple says users can also pick a soundscape, such as rain, to trigger animations.
Smart home duties are unchanged in spirit — voice control of locks, garage doors, blinds, thermostats, and lights, plus the Home app for automations and scenes, and home hub access from an iPhone when you are away. Sound Recognition listens for smoke or carbon monoxide alarms and sends a notification to your iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
The HomePod mini 2 is compatible with HomePod software 27.2. Apple says it uses 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in all magnets and 100 percent recycled copper, gold plating, and tin solder in its Apple-designed printed circuit boards, part of the company’s plan to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by 2030.
Sources
- Apple announces the next generation of HomePod mini — Apple Newsroom
- Apple Announcing HomePod Mini 2 Next Week With These New Features — MacRumors
- Report: HomePod mini 2 to release on October 30 with these upgrades — 9to5Mac
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