New HomePod may still stain some wood surfaces

When the original HomePod launched in 2018, it was discovered that the speaker may leave white rings on some wood surfaces. Now, popular YouTuber Marques Brownlee has confirmed that the problem persists to a lesser extent with the new HomePod.

In a side-by-side test, he showed that the second-generation white HomePod left a white ring on the wooden surface he placed the speaker on, although the smudge was fainter and took longer to heal. appear than the one under the original HomePod. .

In a supporting document first published in 2018, Apple has acknowledged that speakers with vibration-dampening silicone bases may leave slight marks on some wood surfaces due to oils diffusing between the silicone base and the surface of the table :

It’s not uncommon for a speaker with a vibration-dampening silicone base to leave slight marks when placed on certain wooden surfaces. The marks can be caused by oils diffusing between the silicone base and the table surface, and often disappear after several days when the speaker is removed from the wooden surface. If not, gently wiping the surface with a soft damp or dry cloth can remove the marks. If the marks persist, clean the surface with the cleaning process recommended by the furniture manufacturer. If this worries you, we recommend placing your HomePod on a different surface.

Apple has yet to update the support document to mention the second-generation HomePod. The issue does not affect the HomePod mini.

Discover our HomePod review summary for additional impressions of the speaker ahead of its Friday launch. Most reviewers said the new HomePod sounded very similar or nearly equal to the original model, and noted that many of Siri’s shortcomings when the HomePod launched in 2018 have since been addressed. Nonetheless, Siri still lags competitors like Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Assistant in some areas.