Hands-On Experience of New HomePod Reveals 'Exquisite' Audio Quality

One of the first hands-on experiences with the new second-generation HomePod has offered new details on the latest smart speaker's quality and performance compared to the original ‌HomePod‌ launched in 2018.

HomePod 2023
TechRadar's Lance Ulanoff had the chance to listen to the new ‌HomePod‌ during a listening session by Apple for members of the media and shared his experience with the speaker.

According to Ulanoff, the new ‌HomePod‌ handles the separation of vocals, instruments, and tracks with "excellent" precision when listening to songs like "Everybody" by Ingrid Michaelson. "What I noticed immediately is, from a single ‌HomePod‌ 2, the excellent separation of acoustic instruments and her voice. I could clearly pick out a tambourine, guitar, and drum kit as distinct elements in the air," Ulanoff said.

One challenge often faced by typical speakers is that the louder the volume, the more distorted the audio can become. Ulanoff said that even with the volume at 90%, the new ‌HomePod‌ delivers "aural clarity" with no distortion. According to Ulanoff, the new ‌HomePod‌ has a sensor built into its design that can measure the internal temperature of the system and, if under ideal conditions, can "crank up the power even further."

Like the original ‌HomePod‌, the new model has spatial awareness, but with better performance thanks to advanced computational audio and improved hardware, like the S7 chip. With spatial audio, the new ‌HomePod‌, either alone or in a stereo pair, can offer an immersive 360-degree listening experience.

One of the interesting things about the new HomePod 2 is its spatial awareness. As I listened to music from a single and then stereo pair of HomePod 2 devices, I noticed how the sounds often didn't seem to be coming directly from the HomePods (thanks Spatial Audio!). Some were coming from the left, others from the right, and some (usually, but not always, vocals) from dead center. The most interesting sounds though, were the ones that almost seemed to wash over me; they were bouncing off the back wall (maybe a foot away from the HomePod 2) and then rising and, I'm guessing here, bouncing from the walls to the ceiling to my ears.

Ulanoff called a stereo pair of new HomePods "impressive," adding that certain songs felt as if they were "coming from behind and in front of me. The sound stage was so wide and deep that it didn't matter where I stood in the room." It's worth noting that first-generation HomePods can't be used in a stereo pair with the newer model, according to Apple.

HomePod 2023 Internals

Internals of the new second-generation ‌HomePod‌

Visually, the new ‌HomePod‌ looks a lot like the original smart speaker, but with a larger backlit touch interface and a slightly shorter design. Internally, the new model has two fewer tweeters and microphones than the original ‌HomePod‌, which was likely a cost-cutting decision. The tweeters and microphones are "tilted up to avoid any audio being distorted by reflections from whatever surface the speaker is sitting on," according to Ulanoff.

Like the original ‌HomePod‌, the new speaker can quickly analyze its placement in a room to adjust the audio accordingly in just 20 seconds, thanks to a combination of the four microphones and the S7 chip. A built-in accelerometer also detects movement to allow the speaker to readjust its room analysis.

The new ‌HomePod‌ comes around two years after Apple discontinued its original smart speaker. The first-generation ‌HomePod‌ failed to be the market success Apple was hoping for, because of its high $349 price at launch and limited integration with third-party services. We'll get a closer look at the new ‌HomePod‌ when media reviews are published in the days leading up to its launch on Friday, February 3.

Related Roundup: HomePod
Buyer's Guide: HomePod (Neutral)

Popular Stories

CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 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. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.4.1 With Bug Fixes

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1 come two weeks after the launch of iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. There have been complaints about ...
tvOS 18 Thumb 1

Apple Releases tvOS 18.4.1

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....
iPhone Security Feature 25

Five iPhone Security Features You Should Be Using

Wednesday April 16, 2025 4:15 pm PDT by
Apple has quite a few security features that it's added to iPhones, iPads, and Macs over the years. Now more than ever, it's important to make sure you're taking advantage of the built-in security tools that are available to keep yourself and your data safe, so we've rounded up a list of the most important options. If you don't already have these enabled, you might want to consider turning...

Top Rated Comments

haruhiko Avatar
29 months ago
What we want to know is how does it compare to the original HomePod?
Score: 63 Votes (Like | Disagree)
darthbane2k Avatar
29 months ago

What we want to know is how does it compare to the original HomePod?
I get the feeling Apple only invited journalists whose first experience of the HomePod line was the Mini.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Feek Avatar
29 months ago
This is good to hear, I'd like to see some more reviews as well.

Just because there are fewer speakers, that doesn't necessarily mean that the audio quality will be lower than the original HomePod. There have been many conclusions already jumped to since the announcement.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mebehere Avatar
29 months ago
Exquisite. I know there are other pretentious words, but I can’t think of any other ones right now. Exquisite. Just. Exquisite. Not good. Not great. Exquisite.

BARF ?
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
honglong1976 Avatar
29 months ago
This was all said about the original HomePod. I got one, and there was nothing Spacial about the audio at all.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
willyx Avatar
29 months ago
Apple only invites shilly journalists/youtubers/influencers. Once they stop being shilly, they are not invited anymore.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)