Short answer: the Denon Home 150. It ranks #4 of 10 powered desktop speakers by sound quality at $249; the Apple HomePod 2nd Gen ranks #5 and costs $297.71, so there is little reason to consider the other one.
The case for the Apple HomePod 2nd Gen: What Hi-Fi gave it a perfect 5 stars for sound and a What Hi-Fi Award, calling it natural, solid and energetic with a spacious, three-dimensional presentation on Dolby Atmos content. The tradeoff: What Hi-Fi’s own comparison found the pricier Sonos Era 300 has more power, punch and detail, and Siri cannot launch Spotify, Tidal or other non-Apple services directly, only Apple Music by voice; everything else has to be sent over AirPlay from a phone.
The case for the Denon Home 150: A compact mono smart speaker with a 1-inch tweeter and a 3.5-inch mid/bass driver that Tom’s Guide called great-sounding, with bass performance that belies its size. The tradeoff: Tom’s Guide’s own complaints are that it costs more than the Sonos One and has no automatic room tuning to correct for placement.
Buy the Denon Home 150. It ranks higher for sound quality than the Apple HomePod 2nd Gen and costs less, so there is no real case for the other one.
Still deciding? The full Powered Home rankings cover every ranked option.
Specifications Side By Side
| Apple HomePod 2nd Gen | Denon Home 150 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $297.71 each | $249 each |
| Ranked | #5 of 17 in Medium Size Powered Desktop Speakers | #4 of 10 in Small Size Powered Desktop Speakers |
| Aux Input | No | Yes |
| Battery Life | No Battery | No Battery |
| IP Rating | None | None |
| Party Mode | Yes (AirPlay 2 multi-room) | Yes (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 150) |
| Power Input | External AC adapter (detachable cable) | External AC adapter |
| Stereo | No | No |
| Weight | 5.1 lbs (2.3 kg) | 3.7 lbs (1.7 kg) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes (2.4/5GHz) |
| App | Yes (Apple Home) | Yes (HEOS) |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes (far-field array, no physical mute switch) | Yes |
| EQ | Yes (Reduce Bass toggle + automatic room correction) | No |
| Power Bank | No | No |
| TWS | Yes (stereo pairing via Home app) | No |
| Drivers | 4in high-excursion woofer, 5x horn-loaded tweeters | 1x 1-inch tweeter, 1x 3.5-inch mid/bass driver |
| Discontinued | No | No |
| Inputs | Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2 | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, USB, 3.5mm aux |
| XLR Input | No | No |
| RCA Input | No | No |
| TRS Input | No | No |
| Optical Input | No | No |
| Coaxial Input | No | No |
| USB Input | No | Yes |
| HDMI Input | No | No |
| AES Input | No | No |
| Bluetooth | No | Yes, 5.4 |
| Dimensions | 6.7" x 5.6" x 5.6" (170 x 142 x 142 mm) | 4.7" x 7.4" x 4.7" (120 x 187 x 120 mm) |
| Voice Assistants | Apple Siri | Amazon Alexa |
| Streaming Services | AirPlay 2, Apple Music (direct voice control); other services via AirPlay only | HEOS app streaming (Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, SoundCloud, SiriusXM, TuneIn), AirPlay 2 |
| Bluetooth Codecs | - | SBC |
Related Speaker Comparisons
How Apple HomePod 2nd Gen compares with other leading options:
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs JBL Authentics 200
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Denon Home 250
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Google Home Max
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Sonos Era 100
- Denon Home 150 vs Sonos Play
Prices on this page were last checked September 22, 2026 at 5:11 AM UTC. Product prices and availability are accurate as of that date/time and are subject to change; the price and availability shown on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
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The Two Speakers In Full
Apple HomePod 2nd Gen: $297.71 each Amazon eBay
Pros: What Hi-Fi gave it a perfect 5 stars for sound and a What Hi-Fi Award, calling it natural, solid and energetic with a spacious, three-dimensional presentation on Dolby Atmos content. A 4-inch high-excursion woofer moves 20mm of travel, paired with five angled horn-loaded tweeters, and the S7 chip continuously measures the room and re-tunes the output in real time, even as you move the speaker. “Hey Siri” is reliably heard from across a room even at full volume, and two units can be stereo-paired for a genuinely bigger sound.
Cons: What Hi-Fi’s own comparison found the pricier Sonos Era 300 has more power, punch and detail, and Siri cannot launch Spotify, Tidal or other non-Apple services directly, only Apple Music by voice; everything else has to be sent over AirPlay from a phone. There is no way to stream to it over Bluetooth at all, no 3.5mm or other wired input, no battery, and no IP rating, so it’s an AC-only speaker for an already-committed Apple household.
Full Apple HomePod 2nd Gen review and specifications →
| AES Input | No |
|---|---|
| App | Yes (Apple Home) |
| Aux Input | No |
| Battery Life | No Battery |
| Bluetooth | No |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes (far-field array, no physical mute switch) |
| Coaxial Input | No |
| Dimensions | 6.7" x 5.6" x 5.6" (170 x 142 x 142 mm) |
| Discontinued | No |
| Drivers | 4in high-excursion woofer, 5x horn-loaded tweeters |
| EQ | Yes (Reduce Bass toggle + automatic room correction) |
| HDMI Input | No |
| IP Rating | None |
| Inputs | Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2 |
| Optical Input | No |
| Party Mode | Yes (AirPlay 2 multi-room) |
| Power Bank | No |
| Power Input | External AC adapter (detachable cable) |
| RCA Input | No |
| Stereo | No |
| Streaming Services | AirPlay 2, Apple Music (direct voice control); other services via AirPlay only |
| TRS Input | No |
| TWS | Yes (stereo pairing via Home app) |
| USB Input | No |
| Voice Assistants | Apple Siri |
| Weight | 5.1 lbs (2.3 kg) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes |
| XLR Input | No |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs JBL Authentics 200
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Denon Home 250
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Google Home Max
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Sonos Era 100
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Amazon Echo Dot 5th Gen
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Amazon Echo Dot Max
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Amazon Echo Pop
- Apple HomePod 2nd Gen vs Amazon Echo Studio 2nd Gen
- See all 26 comparisons
Denon Home 150: $249 each Amazon eBay
Pros: A compact mono smart speaker with a 1-inch tweeter and a 3.5-inch mid/bass driver that Tom’s Guide called great-sounding, with bass performance that belies its size. The touch controls light up via a proximity sensor for quick-select presets, Wi-Fi setup through the HEOS app is straightforward, and Amazon Alexa is built directly into the speaker rather than relayed from another device. A second Home 150 can be paired for stereo.
Cons: Tom’s Guide’s own complaints are that it costs more than the Sonos One and has no automatic room tuning to correct for placement. It’s a single small driver plus tweeter, so it won’t fill a large room or go especially deep without pairing a Denon subwoofer.
Full Denon Home 150 review and specifications →
| AES Input | No |
|---|---|
| App | Yes (HEOS) |
| Aux Input | Yes |
| Battery Life | No Battery |
| Bluetooth | Yes, 5.4 |
| Bluetooth Codecs | SBC |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes |
| Coaxial Input | No |
| Dimensions | 4.7" x 7.4" x 4.7" (120 x 187 x 120 mm) |
| Discontinued | No |
| Drivers | 1x 1-inch tweeter, 1x 3.5-inch mid/bass driver |
| EQ | No |
| HDMI Input | No |
| IP Rating | None |
| Inputs | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, USB, 3.5mm aux |
| Optical Input | No |
| Party Mode | Yes (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 150) |
| Power Bank | No |
| Power Input | External AC adapter |
| RCA Input | No |
| Stereo | No |
| Streaming Services | HEOS app streaming (Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, SoundCloud, SiriusXM, TuneIn), AirPlay 2 |
| TRS Input | No |
| TWS | No |
| USB Input | Yes |
| Voice Assistants | Amazon Alexa |
| Weight | 3.7 lbs (1.7 kg) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes (2.4/5GHz) |
| XLR Input | No |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- Denon Home 150 vs Amazon Echo Dot Max
- Denon Home 150 vs Google Nest Audio
- Denon Home 150 vs Amazon Echo Studio 2nd Gen
- Denon Home 150 vs Apple HomePod Mini
- Denon Home 150 vs Amazon Echo Dot 5th Gen
- Denon Home 150 vs Google Home Speaker
- Denon Home 150 vs Google Nest Mini 2nd Gen
- Denon Home 150 vs Amazon Echo Pop
- See all 26 comparisons