`HomePod Around The World
`
`David Phelan Senior Contributor
`Consumer Tech
`I write about lifestyle tech
`
`Follow
`
`This article is more than 2 years old.
`
`It’s a little over a year since the Apple HomePod went on sale last year
`on February 9, 2018. It's just had a price haircut - and it's permanent.
`
`Apple HomePod - a lower price has just been announced.
`
` APPLE
`
`Apr 4, 2019, 12:00pm EDT | 2,964 views
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`Get Smart about All things Apple with David Phelan
`
`It’s a brilliant smart speaker, better sounding than its rivals, I’d say.
`You can read my full review here.
`
`I wrote that the speaker may sound brilliant but asked if that was
`enough. I certainly knew it wasn’t cheap but argued that the HomePod
`is a smart speaker aimed squarely at music playback, so the important
`thing was the sound quality. After all, once you’ve bought the
`hardware, Apple can improve Siri on the server side without you
`needing to upgrade the speaker.
`
`And Siri has got better in the last year, for sure, in every respect.
`Information and knowledge have been the main things but smaller
`details, like the way Siri says “Mmhmm?” to let you know she’s heard
`you, is subtler than it was. Oh, and now you can set multiple timers on
`the HomePod, which wasn’t possible at first.
`
`From the point of view of a British user, though, there’s still a dearth of
`radio stations available.
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`Apple HomePod, with Siri listening.
`
` APPLE
`
`Anyway, a year on and in the last few hours Apple has significantly cut
`the price of the HomePod on its apple.com website.
`
`HomePod, until today, cost $349, or £319 in the U.K. Now, it’s $299
`and down to £279 in the United Kingdom.
`
`A $50 price cut is not negligible and takes the price under the
`psychologically important $300 mark for the first time.
`
`Apple rarely drops prices while a product is the latest – in this case
`only – iteration available. Usually, the price drop comes at a specific
`time, when a new model is announced. That’s not the case here.
`
`I’ve been looking into this, and it’s not a short-term discount or
`promotion: this is the new HomePod price. Promotions still exist: you
`can snag a HomePod at Best Buy right now for $279.99. This is a great
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`price, though it’s now only a $19.01 discount, not $70 off as it was
`before.
`
`Google Home Max in chalk color nish.
`
`
`Smart speakers are available from under $50, and there are relatively
`few at the upper end of the market. These include the Google Home
`Max, which is more expensive than the HomePod. It sells for $399, so
`it’ll be interesting to see if this price cut leads to Google adjusting the
`sticker price on its device.
`
`Should you buy it?
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`Apple HomePod looks discreet but makes a sound that's hard to miss.
`
` APPLE
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`I don’t think there’s any chance that Apple will be updating the
`HomePod in the near future. My guess is that this fall is the very
`earliest we could see a successor smart speaker, and even that doesn’t
`feel that likely.
`
`Meantime, it remains the best-sounding smart speaker around, and if
`you use other Apple devices like the iPhone or iPad, and especially if
`you are an Apple Music subscriber, which is the service that brings the
`HomePod to life, it’s a seamless, joyous addition to the ecosystem.
`
`It’s not always as capable as other smart speakers in terms of the
`questions it can answer, but Siri is getting smarter every day, as we all
`are, let’s hope.
`
`Which means that HomePod is suddenly a better buy than ever.
`
`__________
`
`If you enjoyed this story, you might also like these:
`
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`
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`Powerbeats Pro
`
`Apple Cancels AirPower Charging Mat: This Is No April Fool's Joke
`
`Apple Watch ECG Feature Goes Live In 19 More Countries Including
`U.K. How To Use It
`
`New 2nd-Gen AirPods Launched: Hands-Free Siri, Wireless Charging:
`Here's All You Need To Know
`
`Apple Reveals Stunning iPad Air, iPad mini With Apple Pencil Support
`
`David Phelan
`
`Follow
`
`I’ve been writing about technology for two decades and am routinely struck by
`how the sector swings from startling innovation to persistent repetitiveness. My
`areas of… Read More
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