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I think Apple understands the market better than Amazon. Amazon believes that non-phone voice assistants are a big and growing market. However, everyone I kno

I think Apple understands the market better than Amazon. Amazon believes that non-phone voice assistants are a big and growing market. However, everyone I know with an Alexa uses it primarily as a speaker, not an assistant. I’m reminded of Microsoft and Xbox. Microsoft saw the Xbox as a strategic way to get a computer into the living room. But all of these years later, Xbox is still primarily used for gaming by gamers. I think Amazon will find that Alexa will primarily be used as a speaker and not an assistant for quite some time, corporate strategy be damned.

Clubber 9y ago
Yes, Xbox is fairly sophisticated (at least last time I used it for such) as a TV computer, but using the controller is a horrible experience to me. AppleTV, with all it's flaws, is a far superior experience for me as far as a TV add-on.
- r00fus 9y ago
  I think nostromo's point is that Apple knows when a hobby is a hobby. Homepod will distort/control the "voice controlled assistant" market by Apple's sheer size. Also I agree with Apple's approach to privacy. I'm still not convinced I need a Homepod, but if i were to get a voice enabled speaker I'd get that. Alexa skills sound nice, but I've yet to hear of a meaningful usage of them that isn't just "a slightly nicer way to do X". For the price of my privacy, I'm not ready to buy that.
  - Clubber 9y ago
    Yes, the digital assistant doesn't do anything for me either. I'd probably turn that off if I could. Also, I have one I carry around in my pocket that I rarely use. I bought it for the sound and the algorithm they are using inside it to distribute sound with the x tweeters and y mics and all that. I think it's something that hasn't been done before, or I've never owned something that's done that. It might be over hyped, but I hope not.
criddell 9y ago
I like how the incentives align for Apple. It feels like HomePod is there to server users and the Echo is there to sell to users. Google's device is there doing what Google does - ingest all the data.
- jxdxbx 9y ago
  I’m happy to let Amazon labor under the illusion that I want to use their crummy Alexa platform for anything other than music and timers, if it means they’ll sell me a voice-controlled speaker for $40 that I can connect to an existing pair of high-quality speakers. (On the Google side you’d need a Chromecast audio—-not happening.) Since I can check my history of Alexa commands, I can see that I haven’t said anything that Homepod couldn’t do in like, months. But, $40.
  - criddell 9y ago
    Do you think the DAC in the Echo is good enough for high-quality speakers? I have to admit, I'm a sucker for things like Apple's claim that their device measures the room acoustics and adjusts itself for better sound. I don't know if it's true, but I kind of want one in my office now.
- dingaling 9y ago
  But HomePod doesn't make sense as a standalone item, only in conjunction with other Apple devices and services. HomePod might have incredible sound but unless you have an Apple computing device in your house it is useless. And the majority of the World doesn't. So overall it looks like part of an cross-sell strategy; want this nice speaker, add an iOS device to your order. Different to Amazon's 'sell all the things' strategy but still a means of expanding sales.

Clubber 9y ago

Yes, Xbox is fairly sophisticated (at least last time I used it for such) as a TV computer, but using the controller is a horrible experience to me. AppleTV, with all it's flaws, is a far superior experience for me as far as a TV add-on.

r00fus 9y ago
I think nostromo's point is that Apple knows when a hobby is a hobby. Homepod will distort/control the "voice controlled assistant" market by Apple's sheer size. Also I agree with Apple's approach to privacy. I'm still not convinced I need a Homepod, but if i were to get a voice enabled speaker I'd get that. Alexa skills sound nice, but I've yet to hear of a meaningful usage of them that isn't just "a slightly nicer way to do X". For the price of my privacy, I'm not ready to buy that.
- Clubber 9y ago
  Yes, the digital assistant doesn't do anything for me either. I'd probably turn that off if I could. Also, I have one I carry around in my pocket that I rarely use. I bought it for the sound and the algorithm they are using inside it to distribute sound with the x tweeters and y mics and all that. I think it's something that hasn't been done before, or I've never owned something that's done that. It might be over hyped, but I hope not.

criddell 9y ago

I like how the incentives align for Apple. It feels like HomePod is there to server users and the Echo is there to sell to users. Google's device is there doing what Google does - ingest all the data.

jxdxbx 9y ago
I’m happy to let Amazon labor under the illusion that I want to use their crummy Alexa platform for anything other than music and timers, if it means they’ll sell me a voice-controlled speaker for $40 that I can connect to an existing pair of high-quality speakers. (On the Google side you’d need a Chromecast audio—-not happening.) Since I can check my history of Alexa commands, I can see that I haven’t said anything that Homepod couldn’t do in like, months. But, $40.
- criddell 9y ago
  Do you think the DAC in the Echo is good enough for high-quality speakers? I have to admit, I'm a sucker for things like Apple's claim that their device measures the room acoustics and adjusts itself for better sound. I don't know if it's true, but I kind of want one in my office now.
dingaling 9y ago
But HomePod doesn't make sense as a standalone item, only in conjunction with other Apple devices and services. HomePod might have incredible sound but unless you have an Apple computing device in your house it is useless. And the majority of the World doesn't. So overall it looks like part of an cross-sell strategy; want this nice speaker, add an iOS device to your order. Different to Amazon's 'sell all the things' strategy but still a means of expanding sales.