HomePod vs Sonos One - must spend 330K frequent flyer points connected to airline likely to go bust

Hardware
23

I love when people tell others how to spend their money, as if to make them feel guilty.

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26

That whole trade-in program was a mess. Too bad they didn’t do what’s right and contact everyone who sent in Sonos products for trade-in and offer additional credits. Will call them tomorrow.

Thank you for the info.

28

I don’t think you need any vindication at all! Your miles, your choice — it’s better than what many people do with their miles…nothing. :slight_smile:

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29

I’d cash out if you can with vouchers for JB Hifi or the like. All of these kinds of things are likely to go on sale, also the HomePod has just bee reduced to $298 at most retailers, so not sure that FF points would be a good option in this case. Good luck.

30

I already placed the order - oh well!

31

Let’s hope that the rest arrives, my points are with another airline so just weighing up my options now.

Let us know what you think of the multi speaker setup for HomePods, I have a single and have been looking at another.

The two points that I’m cautious about with HomePods are:

1 - Future proofing, they don’t have any kind of input, so if Airplay doesn’t exist, they serve no purpose. Audio equipment typically has a very long service life compared to phones/tablets/laptops.

2 - AppleTV will keep defaulting audio out via HDMI, I can’t find a way to make the HomePod the default audio destination that survives for more than a few hours at a time. If someone can help me fix this, I’d replace my old Bose 3.2.1 system.

PS - As someone who lost a pile of points when Ansett went down the tubes, your decision to get some value for your points is spot on IMHO. All that said, sad day for Virgin and the many employees, let’s hope they can continue trading and find the investment needed to make it through.

32

Airplay is a core Apple technology which debuted in 2004 as AirTunes. I see no reason to worry about its continued existence or development.

Tell that to Sonos. :wink: As an aside, in modern times “audio equipment” has overwhelmingly been taken over in sales volume by cheap(er), replaceable and often battery-powered speakers. I don’t need or expect a $200ish streaming speaker to have the decade-plus life of my old top-end, dumb, wired speakers, nor of the powered monitors I use with my Mac, or the ones connected to an Airport Express. But without a doubt a HomePod’s sound quality by itself matches speakers I’ve heard that cost twice as much, and I constantly use them, as well as Siri in it. And it works seamlessly with Apple Music (and according to Mark Gutman, soon with Spotify and Pandora.) So I don’t see the point in equating it to the longevity of an older generation of a different type of audio output device that requires external amplification.

33

@andrew.j.pfeiffer Vindicated big time.

On the topic of home wireless speakers, I was recently considering HomePod vs Sonos One but ended up going with the Libratone ZIPP 2 for the following features:

  • Supports all the inputs: AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, USB, and 3.5mm jack
    • There is much less latency via 3.5mm for audio from my Mac
  • In-built battery and neat carrying handle for portability

I would use Siri if I had a HomePod but I don’t use Alexa on the ZIPP, for privacy reasons.

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34

I do agree with your points, and actually own (and love) a HomePod (got it on launch day). I’m actually thinking about a purchase of another (Au$ 299 is a bargain) to enjoy some stereo action.

Perhaps if Apple included a baseline bluetooth playback option to allow windows/linux/android support for audio playback, this could go a long way into addressing possible concerns.

35

Thankfully, Virgin Australia have said that all pending orders will be processed (https://experience.velocityfrequentflyer.com/member-support/redemption-update).

I’ve received all the JB Hifi gift cards (now, what to spend $300 on…?). Unfortunately, I received an email saying that the HomePods are out of stock with the supplier, and the pandemic is causing delays in getting more stock. At this stage, if I get them I’ll treat it as a bonus.

36

Best of luck. Crazy situation, there.

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38

With my Sonos speakers hitting 7 years old this year, I can attest to their long service life.

My homepods are working on their 3rd year without issue, so my confidence in their longevity is fairly high.

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39

+1 this. I use homepods around the house, and sonos (without airplay) speakers for my home theater.

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