Apple’s new HomePod mini 2
Image credit: Apple
Apple has announced a fourth-generation Apple TV 4K and a HomePod mini 2, with a four-speaker surround setup as the rationale for combining the launch. For the first time, you can run four HomePods as a surround system, two in front and two behind you, with the Apple TV calibrating timing and levels for where each speaker is in the room. Apple TV 4K is $299 and up for pre-order now ahead of a November 13 release. HomePod mini 2 is $149, also on pre-order in pink, green, blue, white, or midnight, and arrives in stores on October 30.
What the surround setup costs
The four speakers have to be HomePod mini 2 or HomePod (2nd generation) in matching pairs, so two minis in the back with two full-size HomePods in front is fine, while one of each in the back is not. The cheapest version is four HomePod mini 2 speakers plus the Apple TV, which comes to $895. Two HomePods in front with two minis behind come to $1,295, and four HomePods come to $1,695. Apple lists only those two speaker models, so it hasn’t said whether the original HomePod mini can join as a rear pair.
Apple’s home theater illustration pairs Apple TV 4K with two HomePods at the front and two HomePod minis at the rear.
Image credit: Apple
I have two of the original HomePod minis as a stereo pair, and I’ve always wished Apple would let me add more speakers to the mix for a more defined surround setup. I’ve also been holding off on an Apple TV 4K to pair with the XGIMI Titan Noir Pro projector I’m testing, which makes this a setup I’d personally put money into once I’ve seen how it performs.
The price is a bit much, though, and my existing pair may end up useless here unless Apple lets the older minis in. Audiophiles will find better sound for the money, since you can get similar high-performance audio setups for much cheaper, and I’m inclined that way myself. If you want surround sound without Apple’s prices, Amazon already lets you add Echo speakers to its Fire TV products for the same kind of setup. If you’re already deep into Apple’s ecosystem, this is likely going to please you, so I wouldn’t ignore it either.
The box costs more than twice what it did in May
The new Apple TV 4K is $299, and Apple sells just the one model now. The previous one launched at $129 in 2022, then went up to $199 in June, when Apple raised prices across its lineup and cited memory costs. HomePod mini followed the same path, from $99 to $129 in June and now $149 for the new one.
For the money, the Apple TV gets an A19 chip, which Apple says is up to 50 percent faster than before, and three far-field microphones, so you can say “Siri” to the box itself instead of holding the remote. The new box also brings Siri AI, the conversational version of Siri, to the TV as a beta in tvOS 27.2, with answers in a small overlay that doesn’t interrupt what you’re watching.
If you already own an Apple TV 4K from 2021 or 2022, Siri AI is coming to your box in the same update, as long as someone in the house has an Apple Intelligence iPhone or iPad. The hands-free microphones and the four-speaker surround are the two things you can’t get without the new hardware. HomePod mini 2 gets Siri AI only “in a future software update,” so it won’t be there when the speaker arrives. Keep that in mind if you’re looking to buy one (or four) of these.
