The refreshed HomePod mini 2 might not launch until next year or 2025
Apple should launch the referred HomePod mini 2 next year or in 2025, but it’s unclear what new features the refreshed model might bring to the table.
- What’s happening? Reputable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the refreshed HomePod mini 2 will arrive sometime in 2024.
- Why care? While Apple resurrected the full-size HomePod, its smaller brother is two years old now and could use a refresh.
- What to do? Check out Migh-Chi Kuo’s Twitter account for details.
HomePod mini 2 could be coming next year
In a series of tweets, Kuo predicts that Apple’s next significant acoustic product refresh will happen in the second half of 2024 or the first half of 2025.
He believes that Apple will kick off mass production of the second-generation HomePod mini in the second half of next year at the earliest. According to Kuo, Apple supplier Goertek has secured “NPI and assembly orders for HomePod mini 2, which will start mass shipments in the second half of 2024.”
Assuming Kuo is correct, Apple could have the next HomePod mini ready by Fall 2024. However, the analyst doesn’t seem so sure about the exact launch date, and he was wrong many times about launch dates in the past. If the supply chain issues aren’t fully resolved this year, a delayed HomePod mini 2 launch in Spring 2025 instead of Fall 2024 couldn’t be ruled out entirely.
And the HomePod mini could indeed use a refresh sooner than later.
AirPods Max 2 rumored to launch in 2024 or 2025
Released in November 2020 as an affordable ($99) alternative to the full-size model ($249) that was discontinued a couple of months earlier, the HomePod mini is based on the S5 chip that powers the Apple Watch Series 5.
It supports Thread and ultra-wide networking via the Apple U1 chip, two features not found on the first-generation HomePod. The HomePod mini includes some other features that aren’t found in the original full-size model, such as the humidity and temperature sensor and sound recognition support. Thankfully, the revived second-generation HomePod supports the above capabilities out of the box.
It’s unclear which new features the HomePod mini 2 could bring—Kuo hasn’t talked about what’s next for the HomePod mini. However, the analyst claims Apple will update other “acoustic products,” with the refreshed AirPods Max 2 and new low-cost AirPods arriving around the same time as the next HomePod mini.
HomePod tutorials
To get the most out of your HomePod, check out these tutorials from our archives:
- How to fix HomePod repeatedly asking for your Apple ID password
- How to automatically play songs on HomePod at a set time
- How to know what music is currently playing on your HomePod
- How to set up a primary HomePod user
- How to hand off audio from iPhone to your HomePod
- How to change the Apple Music account for your HomePod
Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2023/02/03/homepod-mini-2-prediction-kuo/
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