This is a pretty lackluster "update" for a product that had a number of issues. Not to mention a press release doesn't fill me with confidence that Apple even b

This is a pretty lackluster "update" for a product that had a number of issues. Not to mention a press release doesn't fill me with confidence that Apple even believes in this product line (if that wasn't obvious when they pulled the HomePod 1). I'm a hardcore apple fanboy and I just can't justify the HomePods. I want to like them but Siri is useful for setting timers, asking the time/weather, and... that's about all I trust it for. I have near-zero interest in HomeKit (too limited, too locked in, I don't want wifi smart devices) and so while I have hundreds if not thousands of dollars worth of smart devices in my house (Z-wave with a few zigbee, all run by HomeAssistant) I can't even use HomePod device to control my lights/etc. Yes, I know about HomeBridge and HA's HomeKit integration, every time I've tried this it's fallen over after a month or less and you have to set it all up from scratch again, the Home app drives me batty, it's so bad. Maybe Matter will improve things (not holding my breath) but for now I'll stick with my Echo's. They do a decent job of controlling my smart house, are way cheaper, and integrate perfectly with HA. If Siri would actually talk directly to HA then I'd probably switch. It's really not a money thing, it's a reliability thing. EDIT: After reading some more comments (and from things I've read online or heard on podcasts) I have no doubt the audio quality is amazing. My issue is that I just don't really care about feature as much. I have my AirPods Pro in 90%+ of the time I listen to anything and the other <10% is when I'm in the shower and use a Sonos Roam or in my car. My #1 use case for a "smart speaker" is smart home control followed closely by setting reminders/timers. Siri does great with timers/reminders, smart home (or rather MY smart home), not so much.