HomePod
$349 From Apple, apple.com
Features Space gray or white color options, voice control using Siri, touch-sensitive top surface
Standing just 6.8 inches tall, HomePod is not at all overbearing. Its black or white mesh covering is nondescript, without the design flourish of the fabric or wood veneer coating of the likes of the second-gen Amazon Echo. It shows that you don’t really need those extras to fit in well in a home, though — of all the smart speakers, HomePod probably looks the least like a tech item. In fact, it has more in common with the Sonos One, but with more sensuous curves.
Setup is easy: Plug it in, then put your iOS device nearby, and HomePod pulls everything off of it, from your Wi-Fi password to your iCloud details. Seconds later, Siri suggests that you tell it to play some music.
A hazy dot of light on the top swirls in multiple colors to indicate Siri is active, as ifcan tap the center to pause or play, hold to invoke Siri, double-tap to skip a track, and triple-tap to skip back. It’s less overtly futuristic than Amazon Echo’s circling light and rotating top, but we like both approaches.
