Apple Announces HomePod mini With Spherical Design and S5 Chip for $99

Apple today announced the HomePod mini with a new spherical design and the S5 chip at its "Hi, Speed" event.

Apple homepod mini white 10132020

The device is the first addition to the HomePod product lineup since the launch of the original ‌HomePod‌, and is much smaller at just 3.3-inches tall, as opposed to the original's 6.8-inches, and looks substantially different with a new spherical design. Following in the footsteps of the original device, the ‌HomePod mini‌ offers Siri, smart home capabilities, and high-quality audio.

The ‌HomePod mini‌ is powered by the S5 processor, which is also used in the Apple Watch Series 5 and Apple Watch SE, to deliver "Computational audio." It sports a full-range dynamic driver, two passive radiators for bass response, and an acoustic waveguide to offer 360-degree sound. ‌HomePod mini‌ uses complex tuning models to optimize loudness and dynamic range. A three-microphone array listens for "Hey ‌Siri‌," and a fourth inward-facing microphone helps isolate sound coming from the speaker to improve voice detection when music is playing.

Apple homepod mini internal hardware overlay 10132020

The device features a backlit touch surface with controls for volume, play, and pause, and it glows when ‌Siri‌ is invoked. Multiple ‌HomePod mini‌ speakers work together to stream music or podcasts to multiple rooms in sync. By placing two ‌HomePod mini‌ speakers in a single room, a stereo pair can be created for a wider soundstage.

‌HomePod mini‌ works with Apple Music, podcasts, radio stations from iHeartRadio, radio.com, and TuneIn, and in the coming months, popular music services including Pandora and Amazon Music.

Later this year, ‌HomePod mini‌ will offer a new handoff experience that understands when a user's iPhone is nearby to give visual, audio, and haptic effects. Moreover, a new "Intercom" feature can send messages from one ‌HomePod‌ to another within a home, as well as other devices such as ‌iPhone‌, iPad, Apple Watch, and even CarPlay-enabled vehicles.

‌HomePod mini‌ is priced at $99 and is available in both White and Space Gray. Pre-orders begin on November 6, and deliveries begin on November 16.

This story is part of our live coverage of today's Apple Event.

Related Roundup: HomePod mini
Buyer's Guide: HomePod Mini (Caution)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Launch Now Just Months Away: Here's What We Know

Tuesday March 18, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...
Windows Vista

Apple Might Be Having Its Windows Vista Moment, Says Analyst

Thursday March 20, 2025 6:52 am PDT by
Is Apple experiencing a "Vista-like drift into systemically poor execution?" That was a question posed by well-known technology analyst Benedict Evans, in a recent blog post covering Apple's innovation and execution, or seemingly lack thereof as of late. He is referring to Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system, which was widely criticized when it launched in 2007 due to software bugs,...

Top Rated Comments

octagrapher Avatar
58 months ago
Pretty cool. Though this is what I'm seeing and I can't unsee it, lol.



Attachment Image
Score: 67 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benshive Avatar
58 months ago
I'm curious how the audio quality will compare with the original.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dominiongamma Avatar
58 months ago

Spotify is shut out? Apple needs to grow up and stop this pettiness.

hopefully it has Bluetooth.
Spotify needs to grow up
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Caviar_X Avatar
58 months ago
Spotify is shut out? Apple needs to grow up and stop this pettiness.

hopefully it has Bluetooth.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SubduedTiger Avatar
58 months ago
Plot twist: the HomePod Mini doesn't come with a charger either.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
58 months ago
Intercom has me more excited than anything else so far.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)