I'm not the OP commenter, but uh, I've had a Homepod since launch, and am quite pleased with the device. It has incredible sound quality, but Siri is seriously lacking. If the sound quality wasn't as good as it is, I wouldn't have kept it. I have been using Apple Music since launch, so the fact that it's locked down to Apple Music didn't cause me any concern.
Probably not, I have a pair of Mackie CR4s in my office that sound a bit better, and are significantly louder. The highest volume on the Homepod is a little quieter than I would have expected. I got the Homepod as a replacement for the Bluetooth speaker I used in my bedroom and bathroom and I think it does a great job at that...
HomePod setup was annoyingly buggy when I tried to do it last week. Got a generic “6699” error which Apple support docs said I needed to install Home and Music apps. Did that and got a new error. Apple docs literally said to wait “30 mins” on Home app for a mode to reset configuration. Documented screenshots @reaganbwilliams on twitter. Returned the device this morning.
Siri is bad - can’t tell me calendar information. When I say “play kqed fm” she fails because I didn’t say “play kqed”.
When I ask her what podcasts I have she can’t do it - if I name a specific podcast it’ll work.
She’s bad at pretty basic stuff and it’s irritating to use as a result.