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Ugh, the seemingly intentional lack of support for Spotify and other streaming services makes me see red. It also strikes me as a pretty dumb business move. Someday soon, a company will release a $350 cylinder that sounds just as good as Apple's while supporting every standard service and interface — and at that point, why on earth would anyone get a Homepod?

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Probably it's harder than you think to make a cylinder sound that good, plus Siri will do more over time. We'll see if it's a "dumb business move" to control the whole stack. It's worked out kind of ok for them so far.

For their main devices, sure, but what about Apple TV? I know far more people with Amazon and Google boxes than Apple ones. And stats seem to agree: http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/roku-apple-tv-chromecas...

In the "connected appliance" market, I believe openness is key.

Would this be open market where Google keeps killing YouTube compatibility with Amazon kit?

There’s more Android devices out there than iPhones too. Same story. Apple’s success has been about selling the best and most profitable products, not the most.

You will definitely know more people who own echoes than HomePods, at least for awhile. Echoes are cheap. Doesn’t mean it’s a “dumb business move” for Apple.

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