Support More Music and Sound Protocols
There are a lot of rumors about what’s going to be cut from the HomePod mini, such as movement sensors and possibly even Siri herself. However, one thing that absolutely needs to be added is more music and video support. The first HomePod restricted you to sources like Apple Music/iTunes for listening to your songs, and that was unacceptable. Apple cannot compete in this market unless its speaker also supports Spotify, Pandora, and other music platforms where users commonly keep or listen to songs on a daily basis.
It’s also increasingly important that the speaker has some kind of video compatibility, such as easy linking with smart TVs without messy workarounds using AirPlay tricks. Both audio and video roles will make the new HomePod more useful around the house and far more competitive with other modern smart speakers that have similar capabilities.