As expected, Apple on Monday introduced a Siri-backed smart speaker, dubbed HomePod, which is expected to launch in December for $349.
While Apple exec Phil Schiller thumbed his nose at the Amazon Echo for its lack of a touch screen, the HomePod does not feature any sort of display. From what Cupertino showed off at WWDC today, the HomePod looks like a small version of the trashcan-shaped Mac Pro, with little more than speaker grilles adorning its exterior.
Echo devices are intended as a way for owners to get information and tap into the Amazon store to purchase items, but Apple is positioning HomePod as, first and foremost, a music speaker. The name, of course, is a reference to the iPod, which gave Apple its start in…