NEWS – When Apple first released the HomePod, they designed it to be a Bluetooth speaker first and a smart device second. It had amazing sound but cost way too much ($350), and thus it was largely ignored while Echos and Dots sold like crazy. Most people didn’t care about a speaker that was a smart device; they wanted a smart device that was a speaker (even if a crappy speaker). So Apple had to correct course and release the HomePod Mini. It’s a smart device that has decent sound and only costs $100. I bought four of them for my house and mainly use them to control a variety of HomeKit devices, like lights and my thermostat. Nice! In fact, sales have so nice that Apple recently announced that they are dropping the HomePod. I think Apple (finally) made the right choice here, and I’m looking forward to seeing what other cool things I can do with my Minis in the future.
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I was astounded when Apple decided to allow Apple Music to be played on the Amazon Echo devices. For me, that killed the HomePod because I could use the Apple Music subscription I already had without purchasing a $350 device. I guess it supports the theory that Apple is putting a good deal of emphasis on selling services.
Oh course they are. Everybody is going to this model. Why sell you something once, when you can sell the same thing over and over again each month. All the streaming services are a great example. Oh you want to watch that 1 show on CBS? no you can’t just buy the season (I would), no we want $14/mo oh and we are also going to only release episodes every 2 weeks, and at the 8 week mark we will take a 6-7 week break. Don’t worry we will keep billing you monthly so you are all ready to watch when it comes back.
Yes there might be a wee bit of sarcasm in that message.
I agree with you, Andrew, there’s a lot of money to be made in subscriptions, and Apple wants a piece of that pie.
Hey Julie, any plans for subscriptions from The Gadgeteer?
James…. um…. NO! 😉
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