Apple Discontinues Full-Sized HomePod to Focus on HomePod Mini

[turbineseaplane]

I doubt this. Apple spends millions on R&D and a lot of that will be on products that never see the light of day. They wouldn’t release something just because they’d worked on it. They will only ever put out a product they believe fills a purpose on the market for them.

What you're saying makes sense on its face, but Apple has missed on a lot of product market fits.

I think it's easier for them to talk themselves into a narrative of product market fit when they have something "ready to go" with loads of sunk R&D.

By no means do I think they release "everything" they've worked on (we know that's not true actually), but when something is ready and they have a good story to convince themselves with....I'll bet it gets hard not to roll it out and "see".

 

[timsutcliffe]

Well I really like mine. I just bought a refurbished one for £180 and will probably pick up some second hand ones as time goes on.

 

[Wahlstrm]

The HomePod must be one of Apples least distributed products,
was it released anywhere in Europe outside of the UK?

(Edit: Seems at least DE and FR also received it..)

 

[JonLa]

Probably too difficult or expensive to do another production run

 

[robjulo]

After what Sonos pulled a while back with discontinuing one of their speakers, I would be hesitant in the future to buy a smart speaker.

My iPad 2 lasted 9 years, my phones 4 to 6 years…I would expect a HomePod to last and be supported for 20 years.

Your HomePod is not getting supported for 20 years. Period, end of story. And I assume you don't actually have an understanding of Sonos' discontinuation and are simply parroting someone else

 

[turbineseaplane]

People actually expect to be using a HomePod in 20 years?

What tech products from 2001 are you using right now?

 

[Nuno Lopes]

It seams clearer by the day that Apple lacks a far reaching audio interface vision even though they have mastered the graphical user interface. This is disappointing as I believe its central to smart homes.

 

[fishmoose]

The HomePod must be one of Apples least distributed products,
was it released anywhere in Europe outside of the UK?

I was waiting for it to be released here in Sweden. Wanted to replace an old Marshall speaker with it. Just wasn’t to be.

 

[andreiru]

Wow. That sounds like an April fool's joke.

 

[Allyance]

Got mine when they were on sale for $199, sound quality isn't too bad. I was in the sound business both retail and professional since 1967. I agree most people wouldn't know good sound if it hit them. I hear these cars with their horrific sub-woofers that rattle my house so badly, I can't hear anything else. Lousy mid and high drivers driven to distortion. I read this morning that Apple doesn't have any more Space Gray, just white at no discount.

 

[Wahlstrm]

I was waiting for it to be released here in Sweden. Wanted to replace an old Marshall speaker with it. Just wasn’t to be.

Same, guess Siris Swedish just wasn't good enough.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Same, guess Siris Swedish just wasn't isn't good enough.

A slight tweak...

 

[radgar]

They sounded great. I'm reminded of my Apple Hi-Fi. Still going strong and still produces a great sound. Albeit from an echo dot plugged into it.

Tempted to get an Apple HomePod still. Though Siri is dire.

 

[Rob_2811]

People actually expect to be using a HomePod in 20 years?

What tech products from 2001 are you using right now?

You won't get a reply, i7 guy has logged off to feed his Tamagotchi

 

[turbineseaplane]

If I'm being honest, every time I've heard HomePods, I felt that the bass was too pronounced and sort of overpowering everything else.

Sorry - I'll duck from the tomatoes getting lobbed my way.

 

[turbineseaplane]

You won't get a reply, i7 guy has logged off to feed his Tamagotchi

Shouldn't he be like "Pentium 4" guy still?

 

[ignatius345]

I always wondered why Apple didn't flesh out the features on this thing and add an App Store for HomePod.

 

[SirAnthonyHopkins]

What you're saying makes sense on its face, but Apple has missed on a lot of product market fits.

I think it's easier for them to talk themselves into a narrative of product market fit when they have something "ready to go" with loads of sunk R&D.

By no means do I think they release "everything" they've worked on (we know that's not true actually), but when something is ready and they have a good story to convince themselves with....I'll bet it gets hard not to roll it out and "see".

Sure, they’re going to get things wrong, and some things will be done to test the market rather than in expectation of being a huge hit. But I would maintain that they would never release a product just because they’d invested into it and felt they had to. Look at AirPower. even after publicly announcing something they’d rather can it when it’s not working than release a substandard product. So you can be sure there are many many more unannounced products that got pretty far into development and then dropped.

 

[pcd213]

If I'm being honest, every time I've heard HomePods, I felt that the bass was too pronounced and sort of overpowering everything else.

Sorry - I'll duck from the tomatoes getting lobbed my way.

I very much agree with that assessment. It forced me to have to lower the volume so as not to disturb my neighbors with loud bass. Now that I’m on the Sonos platform, I love that I can adjust the sound to my preference.

 

[SirAnthonyHopkins]

People actually expect to be using a HomePod in 20 years?

What tech products from 2001 are you using right now?

People who bought high-end speakers in 2001 may well still be using them, or certainly could. There’s some very good audio equipment in the homepods and it’d be a shame to have to bin that in a few years because Apple stops supporting the SoC that’s tied to it.

at very best we know now that they’ll last for as long as the AirPlay 2 standard is maintained.

 

[iGeek2019]

I used to have a couple of them but had to sell them for personal reasons.

I’m no Audiophile so can’t comment on sound quality compared to the likes of Sonos et al but I enjoyed the overall performance of them.

But it’s not a surprise, only released in select markets and it’s fair to say the likes of Amazon, Google etc got their foot in the market and Apple were somewhat late to the party.

If they are to focus on HomePod Mini, great, especially if they ever get around to making a portable one that was water resistant so people could use them outside etc.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I very much agree with that assessment. It forced me to have to lower the volume so as not to disturb my neighbors with loud bass. Now that I’m on the Sonos platform, I love that I can adjust the sound to my preference.

Yeah, no ability to EQ and adapt to preferences and situations is a huge miss.

Its yet another area where the Apple hubris is a massive detractor.

You simply can't have one size fits all for something like this.

 

[ondert]

People actually expect to be using a HomePod in 20 years?

What tech products from 2001 are you using right now?

Me, kind of. I'm still using iPod Classic 5.5th gen with an iPod Hifi, both from 2006. Audio tech doesn't die quick.

Discontinuation of regular homepod is ridiculous. They didn't even offer it outside the US properly.. I have waited it for years and they didn't even sell it in EU excluding a few countries..

 

[turbineseaplane]

People who bought high-end speakers in 2001 may well still be using them

That's not a tech product in the sense I'm talking about.

We have a user in here claiming he'll be using his HomePods in 20 years.

No. Chance.

It's not the physical speaker part - it's everything else about it.

 

[Rob_2811]

People who bought high-end speakers in 2001 may well still be using them, or certainly could. There’s some very good audio equipment in the homepods and it’d be a shame to have to bin that in a few years because Apple stops supporting the SoC that’s tied to it.

They've already dropped support for it in iOS14, oldest SOC supported is A9