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Apple Discontinues Full-Sized HomePod to Focus on HomePod Mini

Wow! My favorite HomePod. 😳

Sounds so good.

The mini, by its size alone, could never match sound quality of the big guy. Very sad.
 
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Dorv said:
No ... as long as A) Apple has their own streaming service to run along side streaming hardware and B) TVs built in software is proprietary and not easily upgradable, third-party streaming boxes are going to be necessary. Apple has a premium box to be sure, and could be served by an entry level device, but that's not the level they play at.
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I don't know man - even Gruber is starting to wonder out loud about the future of Apple TV hardware since they made sure to have AppleTV+ apps on all the other services.

Honestly, it's making me concerned as I love the Apple TV (except for the remote)
 
Lies. They ran out of inventory 2 weeks early. What does “focus” mean? Look at it? They are either a) out of the audio game completely and the mini will be discoed in 2 months or b) releasing a $199 mid sized HomePod in 2 weeks.

I could go either way.
 
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Dorv said:
No ... as long as A) Apple has their own streaming service to run along side streaming hardware and B) TVs built in software is proprietary and not easily upgradable, third-party streaming boxes are going to be necessary. Apple has a premium box to be sure, and could be served by an entry level device, but that's not the level they play at.

(Once Roku gets into MORE TVs, and LG licenses WebOS into MORE devices, that will begin to lower the need for third-party boxes ... but not to the point of eliminating them).
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I also love my  tv despite owning an LG OLED with smart web os. I know smart tvs have bad reputation over the years.

But looking at how Apple is getting slow with its tv box I dont know what’s going to happen with it. I mean A10x chip in 2021 while the iPhone and iPad Air is already at A14? It works okay as a tv streamer but if Apple wants to get serious about its service package (especially Arcade), it needs constant updates.
 
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RunsForFun said:
Not a good move IMO. The HomePod sounds way, way better than the Mini and not having a high quality audio option is going to hurt.
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Unfortunately, I think your average "Joe Consumer" doesn't really care about superior sound quality. As long as the sound quality is pretty good they don't care if it's superior.

HomePod was very expensive compared to other smart speakers and I don't think enough people were into the superior sound quality of the HP to make it worth the extra price. Of course some discerning customers who knew the difference had no problem paying the extra price but I fear they were probably in the minority here.

RIP HomePod
 
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anticipate said:
Oh the writing is on the wall on that one for sure.
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I think so too.

My Hail Mary home run hope here is an Apple SoundBar with AppleTV built in.

Combine the HomePod and AppleTV into one, price it right, and they'll sell very well and likely be an awesome product. It would be great to have that and then wirelessly tie in HomePod mini's as rear surrounds.
 
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iSayuSay said:
 TV could also be in danger. Especially since nowadays all TVs have built-in software (albeit suck). I can see how  tv becomes obsolete because unlike iPad or Watch, tv’s hardware updates are pretty scarce.
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That’s why I think the HomePod discontinuation is related.

My long held thoughts on Apple’s strategy with the arrival of the tv app, and widespread AirPlay standard on TVs would be to position iPhone, iPad and Mac as the way you control what to watch and TVs are just larger displays in your home to be AirPlayed to.

The missing piece would be to have HomePod be the home bound devices scattered around your home that could AirPlay tv content to your TVs.

My guess for the next tv is that:
a) it won’t be called tv (that’s reserved for the app)
b) it’ll be an HDMI stick called AirPlay TV for TVs that don’t have built-in AirPlay
c) They’ll release a remote for HomePod mini. HomePods already run a variant of tvOS. The remote would control your tvOS UI that would be AirPlayed from any HomePod mini to any TV in the house. AirPlay 2 mirroring works without lag which would enable this.
 
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turbineseaplane said:
I don't know man - even Gruber is starting to wonder out loud about the future of Apple TV hardware since they made sure to have AppleTV+ apps on all the other services.

Honestly, it's making me concerned as I love the Apple TV (except for the remote)
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I seem to be the only person on the planet that likes the Apple TV remote ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
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I’m really surprised, especially since Apple has put so much into the development of these, I thought they’d expand to home theatre speakers.
 
iSayuSay said:
I also love my  tv despite owning an LG OLED with smart web os. I know smart tvs have bad reputation over the years.

But looking at how Apple is getting slow with its tv box I dont know what’s going to happen with it. I mean A10x chip in 2021 while the iPhone and iPad Air is already at A14? It works okay as a tv streamer but if Apple wants to get serious about its service package (especially Arcade), it needs constant updates.
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Same ... while the LG OS is the best I've ever seen, I still use Apple TV, mainly because I love the hell out of the whole Up Next functionality.
 
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I don't know that the price of the original HomePod is what hampered sales most. I have two and they have never worked properly.

They repeatedly forgot the network they were on... forgot that they had already learned my voice... and Siri would occasionally get stupid. And then... the Fart of Death.

They didn't even have to be working. They would be silent and then a loud fart-like sound would come out of them and all settings would be knocked out. My wife would jump a mile high. And don't get me started about weird, unprompted noises and phrases from Siri.

I finally disconnected my HomePods. I'll have to be convinced to bother with the new ones.
 
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I sense a replacement coming, maybe not anytime soon like later month but soon enough. Premium Audio can be their game if they did as well as they did with the sound of the HomePod.

HomePod PRO - maybe with extra capability to dial the bass and treble and a few other software controls for audiophiles. Perhaps the current hardware is not cost effective for them to make high margin or hit the right volume at a certain price point. I was waiting for that summer deal $100 gift card to grab two in the future - its game over for now. :/

I have a HomePod Mini that's going back - always have felt something is lacking in it. News of Apple's focus on mini could indicate a Mini Pro? ;)
 
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Shame as these are really great speakers, reliable connection (never any sound dropouts since upgrading from other premium Wifi speaker brands), nice solid sound (especially as stereo pairs), and reasonable price considering all these features. And the benefit of neither Mark or Jeff listening in to your voice activated requests.

Luckily Apple has a pretty good history of supporting old products, and not likely to go bankrupt anytime soon.

They should really be dropping the Apple TV+ thing instead and investing that back into more user friendly high quality gadgets, and the side business of distributing other peoples' apps, music and video on those gadgets.
 
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Got one as a gift and it sits on a shelf in our living room collecting dust.... even though it’s plugged in we have absolutely zero use for it. Maybe if it had Spotify integration we would use it once in a while.... but greedy Apple not only decided to overcharge for this thing but also decided to use it as a tool to get people on to Apple Music and cut other services out.
 
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I’ve also started using my airport express recently to stream Apple Music to a huge pair of DJ speakers I set up when working out slide or around the pool. I’m surprised Apple haven’t come out with an Apple Music stick that you can plug in powered speakers into for this purpose.

it would be great if they had some device that runs along side Apple TV to stream music into.
 
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bigjnyc said:
Got one as a gift and it sits on a shelf in our living room collecting dust.... even though it’s plugged in we have absolutely zero use for it. Maybe if it had Spotify integration we would use it once in a while.... but greedy Apple not only decided to overcharge for this thing but also decided to use it as a tool to get people on to Apple Music and cut other services out.
Click to expand...

You missed where apple added the ability for Siri to learn where to get music in 14.5?
 
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iSayuSay said:
 TV could also be in danger. Especially since nowadays all TVs have built-in software (albeit suck). I can see how  tv becomes obsolete because unlike iPad or Watch, tv’s hardware updates are pretty scarce.
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it would be stupid for them to discontinue Apple TV , what if they have a fight with Sony or Samsung/vizio and they remove the Apple TV app

better to keep the Apple TV around , is just needs to be cheaper like $100
 
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bodonnell202 said:
Apple is running a business. The HomePod was selling poorly. The HomePod Mini is selling well. Apple as always made the business decision to focus on products that sell well and generate revenue. From that perspective it’s a good move.
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Tell that to the $54,000 Mac pro.
 
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