The new Apple HomePod smart speaker is already experiencing delays

The previous week Apple released the second generation HomePod — the company's latest attempt at breaking into the home smart speaker market after the predecessor more or less failed to achieve that. It seems, however, that Apple was not ready for this release, as the new HomePod is already delayed in most major markets.

The 2023 HomePod comes in two color variants — Midnight and White. Usually, darker color options are more popular with customers, so it is not that big of a surprise that when you open Apple's website the Midnight version says it would take between 3 and 4 weeks to get it delivered to your door. The White HomePod, on the other hand, for now, has no delays in the United States.

As you might suspect, however, the situation starts to degrade more once we take a look at the European market. In the United Kingdom, for example, those who want to purchase the Midnight variant would have to wait 5-6 weeks! Thankfully, there is no delay for the other color option here neither. The same cannot be said about Germany, though, as buyers there will be waiting for more than a month to get their new HomePod.

The new HomePod comes at $299, which is a drop compared to the launch price of its predecessor which came in at $349. The main upgrades that come with the 2023 Apple HomePod have to do with its smart home features, such as sensors for temperature and humidity, as well as the integration of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.

Besides the already mentioned features, new is also support for Spatial Audio and the S7 chipset, the latter of which is found in the Apple Watch Series 7. What's more, you can now pair up two HomePod 2 smart speakers together for better soundscape and stereo experience — this is perfect if you want to watch a movie and upgrade to a better audio experience than what most TVs can offer on their own.