Compatibility with AirPods/Beats
Apple’s first HomePod model already has the “Handoff” ability, which allows you to automatically connect an iPhone or iPad just by bringing them near the device.
We suggest an additional feature to be added to Handoff: give the HomePod mini innate compatibility with AirPods and Beats headphones. When you put them on close to the HomePod, they’ll automatically connect and route any music directly to your ears until you take them off again.
Other speakers already have similar capabilities. Echo devices, for example, can connect to iPhones and automatically play their music directly over the same Bluetooth connection that AirPods have. It shouldn’t be hard for Apple to do what’s essentially the reverse.