Potential disappointment after unpacking: Owners of the brand new HomePod mini report problems with the network connection of the small smart speaker.

Corresponding complaints is available in both the English-speaking and the German-speaking official Apple support forum. The ongoing operation of the Siri loudspeaker is interrupted with the message that there are “problems with the Internet connection”.

Home app is silent The HomePod Mini does not output any further error messages, for example in the Home application, but the music playback and use of Siri no longer work as usual at first. A restart via the home app usually helps, sometimes simply disconnecting the power. The devices do not have an on / off switch, they start up immediately after being supplied with power.

Like its big brother, the HomePod mini is connected to the Internet via WLAN. The spherical smart speaker comes with new network hardware that also supports the thread protocol for the first time. An affected user reports that he has already reset his device, switched from 2.4 to 5 GHz WLAN or addressed three of his minis individually. “It’s so annoying …” This never happened with the original HomePod.

Asus router problematic? It is conceivable that the HomePod mini has difficulties with certain WLAN routers. For example, models from Asus such as the Blue Cave were named. Sometimes it can help to relocate the router or HomePod mini – fortunately, the latter is easily portable and only requires a power connection. Apple itself no longer offers its own routers, but markets HomeKit-compatible models from Eero and Linksys.

Users who suffer from the problem can otherwise only wait to see whether Apple has the error via a software Update solves. The HomePod mini runs the well-known HomePod OS, which is updated regularly. Alternatively, you can only return the smart speaker within the warranty period. Apple support supposedly does not yet know the error. At 100 euros, the HomePod mini is significantly cheaper than its big brother, the regular HomePod.

(bsc)