苹果推出HomePod扬声器 将Siri带入客厅

Apple has announced a voice-activated loudspeaker powered by its virtual assistant Siri.

苹果公司于近日推出了一款支持语音助手Siri的声控扬声器。

Like devices by Amazon and Google, Apple's HomePod speaker can respond to questions and control smart home gadgets such as lights.

与亚马逊和谷歌的设备一样，苹果的HomePod扬声器能回答问题，控制如灯类在内的智能家居设备。

Analysts say Apple has been slow to improve its Siri virtual assistant and launch a smart speaker, after Amazon launched its Echo in 2014.

分析人士称，苹果在升级Siri语言助手和推出智能扬声器上已经落后，亚马逊已经于2014年推出了Echo。

The company has pitched HomePod first and foremost as a music player. This does a great job of extending the tentacles of Apple services.

苹果公司将HomePod定位为一流的音乐播放器。其在扩大苹果设备的范围上做得很出色。

At more than double the cost of Amazon's Echo, the HomePod is a typical Apple move.

HomePod的成本是亚马逊Echo的两倍还要多，带有典型的苹果风格。

So - a cynic might say Apple has just launched the world's most-hyped bluetooth speaker - not much imagination there.

所以，一个愤世嫉俗的人可能会说，苹果刚刚推出了世界上最夸张的蓝牙扬声器，并且没有什么想象力。

But let's face it, before AI and machine learning really matures, most home assistant devices are essentially voice-controlled speakers, and so Apple dedicating its effort into making it sound great is probably a smart move.

但是我们不得不承认，在人工智能和机器学习成熟之前，大多数的家用助理设备基本都是由语音控制的扬声器，所以苹果努力让扬声器音效更棒可能是一步好棋。