From CNET: Apple's HomePod debuted in 2018. It had a $349 price tag, great sound and the risk of putting white rings on your tabletop. Since then, despite some nice iterations on the HomePod's features via periodic software updates, Apple hasn't made much progress in the smart home, even as Amazon and Google continue to expand their audiences for Alexa and Google Assistant products across the board.
But according to a Bloomberg report in April, Apple isn't giving up on the HomePod. According to "people familiar with the plans," Apple is planning to release a smaller and cheaper HomePod this year. Details are few, but sources say that the new HomePod will be approximately half the size of the original. It will keep the same design, just on a smaller scale.
Apple didn't announce the new speaker at its online Worldwide Developers Conference in June as some expected, and with the announcement of a Sept. 15 virtual event from Apple Park, rumors are back in circulation about a possible HomePod Mini. Apple analyst and YouTube creator Rene Ritchie included the HomePod Mini in his predictions for the event. A report from Bloomberg also tips a new HomePod for an October release.
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