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Wow, what a bad review: > I’ve seen a lot of commentary along the lines up “Well, of course Apple is promoting HomePod’s audio quality, because Siri sucks comp

Wow, what a bad review: > I’ve seen a lot of commentary along the lines up “Well, of course Apple is promoting HomePod’s audio quality, because Siri sucks compared to Alexa and Google Home as a voice assistant.” I would argue that’s not true across the board, but it’s inarguably true that Alexa and Google Home are far better than Siri at certain things, and if those things are important to you, you probably aren’t even reading this review, because you know HomePod isn’t for you. "This product is perfect, if it isn't perfect for you is because this product isn't for you" > The harder decisions are choosing between HomePod, the Alexa-equipped Sonos One, and Google’s Home Max. Based on my side-by-side listening experience — admittedly, in a demo set up and conducted by Apple, but in a residential room that I would describe as very typical in terms of its size and acoustics — HomePod does sound better. Pure advert.

pavlov 9y ago
Daring Fireball is an Apple-specific blog with longstanding exclusive insider access. The writer never bites the hand that feeds him.
- jeffbax 9y ago
  https://daringfireball.net/2017/09/iphone_x_event_thoughts_and_observations https://daringfireball.net/2017/09/iphone_x_event_thoughts_a... > THE NOTCH: It offends me. It’s ungainly and unnatural. Clearly, the ideal of an “all-screen” design — to use Apple’s own words — has no notch at all. This is not that. But what I dislike more than the notch isn’t the notch itself but that Apple is fully embracing the notch in software. I really wish their software design rendered the “ears” with black backgrounds while using apps. I’d be fine with embracing the notch on the home screen and lock screen. > It’s the front-facing equivalent of the camera bump. It offends me because it’s not just imperfect but glaringly, deliberately imperfect. But — again, exactly as with the bump — I understand why it’s there. I don’t like it but it wouldn’t keep me from buying the phone. One can be a fan, yet also critical. The best ones probably are given fans also tend to know the ins and outs better than most. Disqualifying Gruber's analysis because he's often a dick and likes Apple just means you're pre-judging information from one of the people who knows Apple best.
  - pavlov 9y ago
    I'm not sure that meets the criteria of objective criticism. He's working hard to justify a design decision that he doesn't personally like, and makes sure that you know he feels you should buy the phone.
artursapek 9y ago
It's daringfireball, basically one enormous advertisement for Apple.
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cptskippy 9y ago
John Gruber is one of Apple's biggest critics and also their largest fanboi. Everything he writes about Apple needs to be taken with a grain of salt because it's written by someone who is 100% committed to their ecosystem.

pavlov 9y ago

Daring Fireball is an Apple-specific blog with longstanding exclusive insider access. The writer never bites the hand that feeds him.

jeffbax 9y ago
https://daringfireball.net/2017/09/iphone_x_event_thoughts_and_observations https://daringfireball.net/2017/09/iphone_x_event_thoughts_a... > THE NOTCH: It offends me. It’s ungainly and unnatural. Clearly, the ideal of an “all-screen” design — to use Apple’s own words — has no notch at all. This is not that. But what I dislike more than the notch isn’t the notch itself but that Apple is fully embracing the notch in software. I really wish their software design rendered the “ears” with black backgrounds while using apps. I’d be fine with embracing the notch on the home screen and lock screen. > It’s the front-facing equivalent of the camera bump. It offends me because it’s not just imperfect but glaringly, deliberately imperfect. But — again, exactly as with the bump — I understand why it’s there. I don’t like it but it wouldn’t keep me from buying the phone. One can be a fan, yet also critical. The best ones probably are given fans also tend to know the ins and outs better than most. Disqualifying Gruber's analysis because he's often a dick and likes Apple just means you're pre-judging information from one of the people who knows Apple best.
- pavlov 9y ago
  I'm not sure that meets the criteria of objective criticism. He's working hard to justify a design decision that he doesn't personally like, and makes sure that you know he feels you should buy the phone.

artursapek 9y ago

It's daringfireball, basically one enormous advertisement for Apple.

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cptskippy 9y ago

John Gruber is one of Apple's biggest critics and also their largest fanboi. Everything he writes about Apple needs to be taken with a grain of salt because it's written by someone who is 100% committed to their ecosystem.