Apple HomePod 3 vs. The Smart Speaker Competition: 2025’s Ultimate Showdown
Sound Quality & Speaker Hardware When it comes to audio performance, Apple’s HomePod line has set a high bar for what a “smart speaker” can sound like. The HomePod 2nd generation inherited the original’s acoustic prowess: it features a single 4-inch high-excursion woofer for deep, authoritative bass and a ring of five horn-loaded tweeters for clear highs theverge.com. Each tweeter is beamforming, meaning the HomePod actively shapes the sound field and, with an array of built-in microphones, it auto-calibrates to its environment in real time. Place it against a wall or in an open room, and it senses the acoustics