Why Apple’s HomePod Is Three Years Behind Amazon’s Echo
This sounds to me like a regular Apple development process, and I also don’t see how the Echo and HomePod are in competition (Echo starts at $50, HomePod costs $300 more).
That said, the Echo – or rather, the built-in Alexa assistant – has changed what people expect from a “smart” speaker. As an audiophile-ish smart speaker, HomePod seems more in competition with Sonos, and the latest Sonos One – which has Alexa built in – is the product that blows the HomePod, as we currently understand it, out of the water.