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Beamforming in a device of HomePod size is a joke. Yamaha builds sound projectors (as they brand them) for years and "smaller" models still can't do this. Their

by Yizahi 9y ago

Beamforming in a device of HomePod size is a joke. Yamaha builds sound projectors (as they brand them) for years and "smaller" models still can't do this. Their first model in lineup that actually has beamforming capabilities that works is a bigass soundbar more than a meter long with 20+ speakers of all sizes and fancy algos to calculate spatial configuration. And it requires that it should be put in a specific room size and plan, in a specific position. Next model has like 50 speakers and is even bigger. This HomePod is just another small wireless speaker, I don't think it is possible to do any high quality music with it or beamforming.

LeoPanthera 9y ago
Do we have any reason to suspect that Apple is lying? It's lucky that Apple don't listen to the millions of internet commenters telling them that their products can't work.
- Yizahi 9y ago
  Typical dialog on the internet: xxx: Apple devices specific function Z won't work properly because of this and that. yyy: so you say Apple device "can't work", you are "one of the millions"
dmitriid 9y ago
> I don't think it is possible to do any high quality music with it or beamforming. Define "high quality". Apple isn't in the audiophile market (a sham in itself), or in the professional audio market. It's in the consumer market. And for the consumer market you need a reasonably good sounding speaker. Which is quite doable in the form factor they announced (hell, Sonos is quite capable of making nice-sounding speakers that are much smaller)
- Yizahi 9y ago
  Easy. Quote "It directs sound to specific places in a room, creating immersive 3-D audio." end quote. I say a) this is exactly what an audiophile would want, and b) HomePod very likely can't do it (simply because it is a physically small device). Also please notice I didn't dispute that HomePod won't "sound nice". I dispute a) "high quality" and b) "beamforming" capabilities directly mentioned in the linked article. And as a reminder, another direct quote from the article: "The engineers wanted a product that would pass muster with audiophiles."
deleted 9y ago
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by Yizahi 9y ago

LeoPanthera 9y ago

Do we have any reason to suspect that Apple is lying? It's lucky that Apple don't listen to the millions of internet commenters telling them that their products can't work.

Yizahi 9y ago
Typical dialog on the internet: xxx: Apple devices specific function Z won't work properly because of this and that. yyy: so you say Apple device "can't work", you are "one of the millions"

dmitriid 9y ago

> I don't think it is possible to do any high quality music with it or beamforming. Define "high quality". Apple isn't in the audiophile market (a sham in itself), or in the professional audio market. It's in the consumer market. And for the consumer market you need a reasonably good sounding speaker. Which is quite doable in the form factor they announced (hell, Sonos is quite capable of making nice-sounding speakers that are much smaller)

Yizahi 9y ago
Easy. Quote "It directs sound to specific places in a room, creating immersive 3-D audio." end quote. I say a) this is exactly what an audiophile would want, and b) HomePod very likely can't do it (simply because it is a physically small device). Also please notice I didn't dispute that HomePod won't "sound nice". I dispute a) "high quality" and b) "beamforming" capabilities directly mentioned in the linked article. And as a reminder, another direct quote from the article: "The engineers wanted a product that would pass muster with audiophiles."

deleted 9y ago

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