HomePod mini review: an astonishing format for exemplary sound

The HomePod mini is a smart speaker offered by Apple. It was released on the market on November 16, 2020, after a week of online pre-order. But the Cupertino company had already announced it some time before, during its iPhone 12 keynote on October 13, 2020.

The HomePod mini is therefore available on the shelves from the big brother, the HomePod, published in 2018. It presents itself as a lighter version of the large HomePod precisely, as its name suggests, in a smaller format and with logically revised power. lower, but also at a more accessible price.

We had the opportunity to test a Space Gray version of this speaker from Apple for several weeks. Soour balance sheetwithnos impressionson the product after having examined it from all its (beautiful) angles.

The HomePod mini: an exemplary finish

Unpacking

First contact with the HomePod mini speaker, the box containing it. No need to make a whole speech on the subject, this is a rather pretty compact box which has the particularity, when you want to take out the speaker, of opening slowly while sliding.

Apple takes particular care in the packaging of its products, so the HomePod mini is no exception to the rule.

Inside the box, we find a small booklet, a USB-C charger, a braided charging cable and of course, the speaker itself.

Note that the cable,very good quality,is USB-C and 150 cm long, which is comfortable. It is also non-removable, fixed to the enclosure.

For this Space Gray version of the HomePod mini, the fact that the charger is white for a black cable and speaker may bother some. In my opinion, given that the adapter will often end up under a table or behind a piece of furniture, this is not a big deal in my opinion.

A successful design

On the top of the speaker, there is a sort of smooth black plate, which is also subject to fingerprints. This is where the speaker can be controlled, with volume management, but also Siri wake-up or playback management. Fortunately, it is not obligatory to use this touch interface. Everything can be controlled remotely by voice without difficulty.

You will notice that during reading or when Siri is responding, colors appear on this plate in a sort of cloud moving to the rhythm of the sound. This cloud is also seen when Siri is waiting for a command after being woken up.

Below, the speaker is entitled to a circle of smooth plastic which offers it avery good stabilityon any type of surface.

On a body level, it’s ecstasy. The HomePod mini is dressed in a braided fabric dressimpeccable finish.It is pleasant to the touch and attractive to the eye. We love it!

Special feature: the speaker does not haveno ignition button, which means that it cannot be turned off. However, it is possible to deactivate Siri to prevent the assistant from always listening to the user, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Dimensions and weight

The object measures 97.9 mm in width and 84.3 in height. It weighs 345 grams.

 The enclosure is thereforevery light.You might be afraid that it won't stay in place, especially if its power cable is pulled down to reach a socket hidden under a piece of furniture. But nothing to complain about on that front, the speaker doesn't move a bit once in its defined position.

Regarding size, that's another story. So of course, the speaker is small, it will be discreet and easy to transport, even if that is not its objective. Its fixed power cable at the back and the absence of an internal battery bear witness to this. But this small size does not, in my eyes, bringonly defects, particularly in terms of frequency restitution and power, as explained below.

Installation and adjustments

Setting up HomePod mini is notreally not complex.You basically just plug in the speaker and place your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch right next to it. The iOS device then detects the speaker and initiates an automated pairing procedure.

• Find here the steps detailed by Apple for the HomePod mini initialization procedure

For HomePod controls, everything is done from the Home app. The user can modify different options, concerning Siri for example, but also the Intercom functionality in addition to being able to benefit from some other settings.

Concerning the Intercom function, it is quite fun to use and is quite practical. It allows you to broadcast an audio message to the HomePod mini from an associated Apple device. For example, you just have to say to the iPhone: “Hey Siri, intercom, I'll be there in 5 minutes”. And the message “I'll arrive in 5 minutes” is broadcast on the speaker. It works even when outside the house.

Beyond these practical functions, its perfect integration with other products from the Apple brand and its pretty mesh dress, let's now focus on its most important characteristic,the sound.

HomePod mini: a maxi-son?

After testing several genres of music, at different levels, in several environments and against other speakers of the same size, here are our impressions of the quality of the sound emitted by the HomePod mini.

I first of allreally liked the 360° diffusion of the speaker.Indeed, when rotating around it, no spectral change is to be noted. It therefore truly broadcasts audio 360° around it.

Otherwise, the sound is at a well-balanced frequency level. No frequency band truly masks another. The speaker, however, tends to slightly promote the treble, which is otherwise very well defined, with a sometimes scintillating sound which fortunately does not reach the stage of auditory aggression. The dynamics are also very good, the attacks are frank.

So, the HomePod mini iscomfortable with many musical genres.

Unfortunately, due to its size there are two disadvantages. Already, thebottom of the spectrum is behind, logically. Otherwise, thepower is limited. The speaker struggles to provide sound in a large room. For an average-sized bedroom, office, or kitchen, one speaker is enough. But frankly, for a larger living room, the speaker shows its limits. Better, in my opinion, to accompany it with a binocular, or to move on to the big brother, the HomePod.

However, one or two meters from the speaker, listening to music on the HomePod mini isa treat.With its mini size, the speaker does better than the SoundCore Flare for example, although it is twice as small, than the Invoxia Triby or even the Bose Soundlink Mini, although a reference of its kind, also more expensive (but mobile) .

In relation to its size, the HomePod mini therefore provides aits astonishing in its balance and quality.In my opinion it isof the best audio rendering offered by a speaker of this size.

Conclusions: we like everything, except…

The HomePod mini surprises, on the one hand with its truly mini size, and on the other hand with its excellent audio quality.

But, because there is a “but”, I would have liked to deal with a speakera little bit bigger. This would have allowed him to gain in the low end of the spectrum to be a little more comfortable, especially in music rich in bass. In addition, with a few centimeters more, it would have gained more power and would have been able to provide sound to larger rooms. As it stands, for a large living room, a HomePod mini speaker alone will pale in comparison. From there to seeing Apple's desire to encourage us to buy more than one speaker, there is only one step (which I will not take).

Otherwise, it is a shame that it is not really mobile, because with such a format, it would lend itself particularly well to transport from room to room, or even to use outside the house. Only without an internal battery and with a non-removable power cable, transport is not easy. Even if the cable connection is USB-C, which means that the use of a powerful portable battery is possible to power the speaker while out and about. But without home Wi-Fi, you expose yourself to other technical difficulties in the case of outdoor use, a situation for which the HomePod mini is ultimately not designed.

In short, Apple has produced a smallsmart speaker very good for near listening, but without providing it with sufficiently interesting advantages to transport it easily and without offering it enough power to make it a comfortable speaker anywhere in the house. Even though I consider the product quite excellent, especially for its price, I find myself dissatisfied with lacking power, and at the same time having a speaker nailed to its position which is no match for others Fixed speakers are often larger.

This feeling is obviously specific to me and comes from my personal use of speakers with a voice assistant. This criticism therefore remains debatable.

The HomePod mini is finallya benchmark for its size and price in the smart speaker market. And this observation goes, I think, beyond my personal impression. It is ultimately a very high quality device, with an impeccable finish and an extremely satisfying sound... However, with a few centimeters more (for a little more power and bass), even at 30 or 40 euros more, it would have been faultless in my opinion.