HomePod HomePod vs echo (for someone in Apple ecosystem)

[amnichols10]

Hello. Looking to get a smart speaker. First one that comes to mind are the echos. But HomePod if the HomePod is a better purchase. (Can get a good price for it). Little information about myself.

-Completely vested in the Apple ecosystem
-would use it for smart home functions and everyday tasks (calendar, reminder, weather, directions etc)
-music (obviously ?).

For those who have experience with both can you chip in and give insight?

Thanks.

 

[Bgosh]

Like you I’m totally vested in the ecosystem. I have 2 HomePods set up as a stereo pair that I got at launch as well as an echo dot and an echo show (2nd gen) that was gifted to me. They’re all great devices with some caveats. In my experience the HomePod has outshined the echo devices in more than just sound quality. To be fair, I haven’t been plagued with some of the issues others have posted about with HomePod (ie: multi-user set up or music hiccups). The inclusion of shortcuts with HomePod have made it a fantastic experience.

I found controlling smart home devices with Alexa will randomly not work (“I’m sorry what device?” or “I didn’t find a device called _____”). It’s sporadic, but I haven’t experienced the issue with Siri on HomePod as frequently. I’ve also had issues with Apple Music playback on the echos, it’ll randomly tell me something isn’t available on prime music when Apple Music is set to default. Not a constant occurrence, but annoying when it happens as my wife and I use these devices every day.

Milage varies with every use case. I love that I can ask the echos to show the front door and it shows up on screen. The games available on echo devices are a fun feature and my wife prefers how detailed Alexa’s responses are compared to Siri with things like weather info. I don’t have any experience with Amazon’s latest offerings, but if price isn’t a factor, I’d go with HomePod for sure.

 

[amnichols10]

Thanks for the advice. Yeah I was on the fence. But being that I’m totally vested in the ecosystem already I think that’s the move I’m gonna make.

 

[bbednarz]

For me the only real advantage of Alexa is the lower cost of the dots so you can have them throughout the house, but if you have an iPhone and/or Apple Watch it doesnt really matter because you can just use them for smart home commands if you aren't near the HomePod. Alexa works with more products, but basically every mainstream smart home product works with HomeKit. Alexa also has more skills and stuff, but a lot of it is fluff that most people never really use. Do I really trust the voice input to order exactly what I want? Not at all. Look for deals on the HomePod though. Can get one in great condition on eBay for about $200 right now. That's where I bought one of mine and it has worked great.

 

[JustMartin]

My girlfriend has the Google setup in her apartment and that works very well and is linked to Spotify. It was easy to setup as well. I think that Google home has wider abilities than Siri for asking questions. But, I'm invested in the Apple ecosystem as well and have stuck with HomePod for now.

 

[amnichols10]

My girlfriend has the Google setup in her apartment and that works very well and is linked to Spotify. It was easy to setup as well. I think that Google home has wider abilities than Siri for asking questions. But, I'm invested in the Apple ecosystem as well and have stuck with HomePod for now.

How has your experience been thus far. Improving? I think that it’s a work in progress and is only going to get better.
Ordered mine the other day. Excited

 

[JustMartin]

How has your experience been thus far. Improving? I think that it’s a work in progress and is only going to get better.
Ordered mine the other day. Excited

It's variable.

Sound quality is good and it's fine playing music from my iMac (I don't have Apple Music or iTunes Match), although the combination of remote on the phone and airplay seems a bit clunky, it works well.

Everyday stuff like reading the diary is good and I can get the BBC news (marginally better than Sky), but I can't change what it uses for weather, which is more disappointing because the Weather Channel is awful for my area.

Every so often I'm surprised by what Siri can do (how long will it take to drive to...., how many calories are in a walnut), but it's often frustrating. Google can answer, when is the next train to... and a bunch of other questions that stump Siri.

Home commands through the homed is great though, as long as you avoid obvious phrases. For example, "Hey Siri, going to bed" will get the reply "I never sleep" rather than playing the shortcut 'Going to bed' that I have set. But "Lights on in bedroom" or "lights on full" work very well.

 

[robjulo]

Your best bet is a Sonos. You get the best of both worlds. Apple Music integration with Alexa, Airplay 2, great sound and cheaper than HomePod.

Hello. Looking to get a smart speaker. First one that comes to mind are the echos. But HomePod if the HomePod is a better purchase. (Can get a good price for it). Little information about myself.

-Completely vested in the Apple ecosystem
-would use it for smart home functions and everyday tasks (calendar, reminder, weather, directions etc)
-music (obviously ?).

For those who have experience with both can you chip in and give insight?

Thanks.

 

[newellj]

Our experience with Alexa has been fine. If you add 'skills' when required, HomeKit control works as well as could be expected (very well) - about the same as using Siri with the HomePods. I go with the point above that the only compelling reason to favor one over the other would be cost (favor Alexa) or audio quality (strongly favor HomePod).
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