HomePod Mini 2 Is Here at Rs 18,900, and Apple Is Asking You to Wait for Its Best Feature

Apple has refreshed its smallest smart speaker on the same day it launched HomeView, and the new HomePod mini 2 comes with Siri AI support, a light-up top, fresh colours and the ability to work as part of a proper home theatre. It is up for pre-order in India at Rs 18,900 in pink, green, blue, white and midnight, with sales starting October 30.

The company also launched new product category, and HomeView is making it to India. You can read more about it here.

Siri AI is coming, just not on day one

The biggest upgrade is Siri AI, Apple's rebuilt and far more conversational assistant, but it will reach HomePod mini 2 through a future software update rather than at launch. Once it arrives in English in India, the speaker can recognise up to six family members by their voice and, if they own an Apple Intelligence-capable iPhone or iPad, pull from their messages, calendar and apps to do things like find a song a friend sent over text or add ingredients to a grocery list. Users with older iPhones will still get the smarter general Siri and better music discovery, just without the personal features.

Lights, surround sound, and a speaker for your Mac

The new Sound Glow feature turns the top of the speaker into a light display that pulses with the bass and treble, picking colours from the album art of whatever is playing, and it can also run calming animations with soundscapes like rain. Sound is powered by the Apple S10 chip, and for the first time four HomePod mini 2 speakers can be paired with the new Apple TV 4K for surround sound that calibrates itself to your room. Apple is also pitching it as a desk speaker for the Mac, with colours that match.

Still a capable smart home hub

HomePod mini 2 works as a home hub, so you can lock doors, switch off lights or run bedtime scenes by voice and control accessories from your iPhone even when you are away. It listens for smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and alerts your iPhone and Apple Watch, and with Apple Home Collection doorbells and cameras, it can announce who is standing at the door.

Should you buy it now?

At Rs 18,900, HomePod mini 2 costs close to double what the original sold for in India, and a big part of that price is Siri AI, which you will have to wait for after spending the money. The surround setup sounds impressive, but four speakers alone add up to Rs 75,600 before you even buy the Apple TV, and Apple Home Collection accessories still have no India launch date.

If you already live with an iPhone and Apple Music and want a small speaker that fits into the Apple home, HomePod mini 2 is an easy recommendation, especially once Siri AI lands. If you mainly want a voice assistant for music and alarms, an Echo Dot does that job for a fraction of the price, so it makes sense to wait for Siri AI to actually ship before deciding.