Apple HomePod mini Speaker Review

As its name implies, this speaker is a smaller version of the Apple HomePod (1st generation). It has a spherical design and is wrapped in seamless mesh fabric for a sleek look. On top, there's a backlit touch surface with the speaker's controls. We tested the 'Space Gray' color of this speaker (now known as 'Midnight'), but it also comes in 'White,' 'Blue,' 'Orange,' and 'Yellow.'

It isn't very portable, but that's expected for a home speaker. For it to work, you need to keep it plugged into a power outlet.

This speaker has a similar feel to the Apple HomePod (1st generation). Its materials feel acceptably solid. The mesh that covers its body feels sturdy if a little spongy, and its sleek glass top adds a stylish finish to the design. Remember that this home speaker isn't meant to withstand the elements and isn't rated for water or impact resistance, so it's not a good choice if you plan to move your speaker around a lot or think you might use it near water, like in a kitchen or a bathroom.

The controls are great. This speaker is designed to be controlled by your voice, and it's easy to command using the built-in Siri. You touch and hold the top of the touch-sensitive glass surface to activate Siri, and Siri is the only way to access some controls. For example, there's no physical control to mute Siri, so you mute it with a voice command. The touch surface can also be used to play/pause your audio and adjust the volume. You can double-tap the top to skip to the next track and triple-tap the top to skip to the previous track. If you're receiving a call while you're already on an ongoing call, you can put it on hold by tapping and holding the green light on its control panel and double-tap it to switch calls. You can end a call by tapping the green light once. You can also dismiss an alarm by tapping the middle of the glass. If you have VoiceOver enabled in the Accessibility settings, double tap to activate it. With VoiceOver enabled, all other gestures will require one extra tap, so, for example, pausing will require two taps.

• Apple HomePod mini (with built-in cable)
• Quick start guide
• Apple sticker
• AC adapter with USB-C port

This speaker has reasonable frequency response accuracy. Its sound is fairly even and balanced, making it suitable for listening to most types of audio content. The mid-range is balanced, so Siri's voice sounds clear and present, and sung vocals and lead instruments in dense mixes sound detailed. There's even a touch of extra warmth in the high-bass, which can make basslines feel fuller. However, as with most small speakers, this device can't bring the deep thump and rumble in the low-bass, which is noticeable with genres like EDM and hip-hop. A larger speaker like the Apple HomePod (2nd generation) is a good option if you want more bass. 

This speaker has a decent soundstage. It only reproduces audio in mono, so you'll need a second one to produce stereo audio. But, thanks to its 360-degree design, it has very good directivity, so your audio is consistent from all angles. That said, like the Amazon Echo Pop, it needs to be connected to another unit to play stereo audio.

This small speaker doesn't get very loud. It can fill an average-sized living room with sound but struggles in larger, more open spaces. That said, it doesn't compress your audio much at loud volumes. Still, a larger speaker like the Apple HomePod (2nd generation) is worth a look if you want a louder speaker.

This speaker has Apple's Siri built-in. You can activate it with your voice, and it does an excellent job of understanding your commands from far away. That said, it has more trouble at picking up your voice in noisier environments than the Apple HomePod (1st generation). While there's no physical mic mute button, you can mute Siri with your voice and unmute it by pressing it into the glass and holding it for a few seconds.

The Apple Home app is okay. You can use it to pair your speaker with other Apple HomePods to create a stereo pair, play your music through a large area, or listen to different audio in different rooms in your house.

We tested the Apple HomePod mini with version 14.3 of its firmware. Since then, Apple has released several updates to the firmware, which is currently at version 18.1. Some of those updates include presets which alter the sound of your audio, such as Enhance Dialogue or Lower Bass. Others let you measure your room's temperature and humidity. Unfortunately, we're unable to test those features so we can't comment on their performance. You can read more about this speaker's firmware updates at Apple's website. 

The Apple HomePod mini has no wired inputs other than its non-detachable charging cable.

According to the manufacturer, this speaker has Bluetooth 5.0, but you can't use it for pairing or playing audio. Instead, you can use it for audio handoff, which lets you transfer audio from your iPhone to the speaker by tapping your device on the top.

Apple AirPlay makes it easy to stream audio from other Apple devices. You get low latency, too, so you don't notice lip-synching issues between the audio you hear and the video you see on screen.