Apple's HomePod mini 2 offers support for Siri AI
What's the story
Apple has revealed the HomePod mini 2, a smart speaker that comes in multiple colors including pink, green, and blue. The new device is priced at ₹18,900. Pre-orders for the product started today and it will be shipped from October 30. Along with the smart speaker, Apple also announced other products like the HomeView smart display, fourth-generation Apple TV 4K, and a range of smart home devices in partnership with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric.
Tech upgrade
It gets the S10 chip
The HomePod mini 2 is powered by the S10 chip, which was first introduced in the Apple Watch Series 10 back in 2024.
This chip will enable Siri AI and provide more intelligent, conversational responses from the speaker.
However, it's worth noting that this advanced feature won't be available at launch but will come with a future software update.
Feature availability
Siri AI will be available in English in select countries
The upcoming Siri AI will be available in English for users in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, and India.
To enable this upgrade on your HomePod mini 2 speaker, you'll need an Apple Intelligence-capable iPhone (iPhone 15 Pro or newer).
The improved Siri AI will be able to understand natural language commands and access broader world knowledge as well as personal context like calendar events and text messages.
Sound enhancements
New audio features for HomePod mini 2
The new smart speaker comes with three new audio features: sound glow, audio companion capability for Mac, and surround sound support on the new Apple TV 4K.
The sound glow facility matches the colors of a song's album art with LEDs on top of the speaker.
Plus, you can use HomePod mini 2 as your Mac's default speaker or pair up to four of them with the new Apple TV 4K for a full surround-sound experience.