Apple released iOS 13.3.3 last night with support for Indian English Siri voices for Homepod which hinted at the imminent launch of Apple’s smart speaker in India. And soon enough, the Apple India website got updated confirming the same. Homepod will soon be launching in India for an attractive price of Rs 19,900 (~$279) which is even lower compared to the $299 pricing in the US.
India joins a handful list of countries where Apple Homepod is being sold. That includes the US, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Mexico, China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Taiwan. Homepod was initially launched in January 2018 for $349 in the US and then the price was slashed to $299 in April 2019. The $279 pricing for Homepod in India makes it the cheapest in the world, and possibly hinting at further reduction of prices in the US and other markets or an upgrade launching soon in 2020.
Homepod is designed to accompany Apple’s primary products like iPhone and Mac and seamlessly works with Apple Music to deliver high-fidelity audio wherever it’s playing. It is less than 7-inch tall and comes in white and black hues. Internally, the Apple HomePod boasts of a seven-speaker array of tweeters located to the bottom of its cylindrical enclosure. Each of the seven speakers has its own driver and uses a beamforming system. Alongside the seven-speaker array, the Apple HomePod boasts of a 4-inch upward-facing woofer. This woofer features automatic bass equalization and real-time acoustic modeling. Thanks to the Apple A8 chip, Homepod can automatically tune the audio depending on the space you are in. In fact, it can automatically detect the dimensions of the room it is placed in and can adjust the sound output accordingly. To help in voice commands, Apple has incorporated a total of six noise-canceling microphone array onto the HomePod.
Apple Homepod: India price and availability
The primary competition for Homepod in India includes Amazon’s Echo Plus which retails for Rs 14,999, Google Home which retails for Rs 7,999 and Sonos One which retails for Rs 29,999. While it’s priced higher than Echo Plus, Homepod does come with superior sound, specifications, and features making the Rs 19,900 price really attractive especially for those who are into the Apple ecosystem.
While Apple has revealed the price, the launch in India is still probably a couple of weeks away. We will surely update this article as and when we hear more about the Homepod availability in India.