The recently announced HomePod mini can be a deal maker for Apple in the growing smart speakers global market in 2021. Canalys reports that the shipments of the smart speakers unit can reach 164 million in the coming year, marking an impressive 21 percent growth. Apple’s new smaller speaker has the potential to capture a decent share of that booming market if it performs better than competing products.
HomePod mini is designed to produce room-filling sound, support an intelligent voice assistant, and control users’ smart home while ensuring privacy and safety. It offers innovative features like Intercom, continues to listen on the iPhone, and more. At a low-price tag of $99, users can create a connected sound system for their whole home with multiple HomePod mini sets.
HomePod mini can be a deal maker for Apple
As users’ spending trends in the current COVID-19 pandemic are focused on “noticeable improvements and innovation with minimal increase in costs”, it is likely that Apple might give Amazon and Google a run for their money. Jason Low, Canalys Research Manager, wrote:
“Apple revealed the HomePod mini at its October launch event, mounting a challenge against the incumbents. Apple still has much to prove to attract users, especially as the HomePod mini is up against other new US$99 devices, which are larger in size and with assistants perceived to be smarter.
“Apple must deliver its acclaimed premium user experience by leveraging its proprietary ecosystem of hardware, software and services. The HomePod mini would give its competitors a run for their money if the sound quality proves to be better despite its smaller size, and if the UWB and Intercom features work seamlessly for users.”
Based on effective control of the COVID-19 transmission rate, Canalys reports that Mainland China will grow by 16 percent and the rest of the market by 3 percent to reach 163 million smart speaker units in 2021. Cynthia Chen, Canalys Research Analyst writes that Apple should take advantage of being the only “global platform vendor to sell hardware and service in China to attack buyers for products and subscribers for its services.
furthermore, it is also forecasted that the global smart speaker will reach 640 million by 2024 which would pave “the way for the ambient computing paradigm shift.” The HomePod mini is scheduled to launch on November 6 on apple.com and will be available in stores on November 16, along with iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 Pro Max.
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