Apple discontinues production of Siri-equipped smart speaker 'HomePod'

HomePod, a smart speaker powered by Apple's voice recognition assistant Siri, was unveiled at WWDC 2017 in June 2017 and launched in February 2018. For a long time, only this first model had a lineup of HomePod, but in November 2020, the more compact ' HomePod mini ' was released. Then, in March 2021, it became clear that the first HomePod was finally discontinued and will be discontinued as soon as it is out of stock.

Apple discontinues original HomePod --9to5Mac
https://9to5mac.com/2021/03/12/apple-discontinues-original-homepod/

Apple discontinues the HomePod, but the HomePod mini will live on --The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/12/22328436/apple-discontinues-original-homepod-mini

The HomePod smart speaker announced in 2017 is still on sale on the official online store Apple Store at the time of writing the article, but the product page says 'It will end as soon as it is out of stock.' I will.

Buy HomePod-Apple (Japan)

Apple's Siri-equipped Smart Speaker HomePod was only the first HomePod announced in 2017 for a long time, but in November 2020, the HomePod mini, which finally made the HomePod more compact and cheaper, was released. Appearance. You can find out what kind of smart speaker the HomePod mini evolved from HomePod is by checking the following article.

Smart speaker 'HomePod mini' review that can accurately 'Hey Siri' even in the roaring sound with simple initial settings like Apple even though it is 10,000 yen --GIGAZINE

When TechCrunch, an overseas media company that discovered this 'discontinued as soon as it is out of stock' notation, contacted Apple, Apple revealed that the production of HomePod was discontinued.

Apple told TechCrunch, 'The HomePod mini has been a hit since its debut last fall, offering amazing sound, intelligence assistants, and smart home controls for just $ 99 (10,800 yen plus tax in Japan). That's why Apple is focusing on the HomePod mini, discontinuing the original HomePod, and ending it as soon as it's out of stock at online stores, physical Apple Stores, and authorized retailers. We will provide software update service support through Apple Care. '

It is also reported that Apple discontinued production of the iMac Pro in March 2021.

Professional desktop 'iMac Pro' with standard price of 550,000 yen will be discontinued --GIGAZINE