Apple has long been rumored to be considering a smaller, more affordable HomePod to rival the likes of Amazon Echo and Google Home. Sources have suggested the new HomePod may launch as soon as later this year, and a new insight from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman points out how Apple is trying to reduce its remaining inventory by discounting the Siri-powered speaker to staff.
Last month, Apple introduced a new discount for employees which cut the price of HomePod down from $299 to $149.50, with the discount limited to the purchase of two speakers per staff member. Now, Gurman claims Apple has upped the limit from two to 10 HomePods – a strong indication Apple is trying to sell as many speakers as possible ahead of the launch of a newer, cheaper model.
Apple released the HomePod in early 2018 after originally advertising the speaker would be available in December 2017. The Siri speaker was limited to customers in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia at launch, with a gradual rollout seeing the speaker launch in Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Mexico, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan and most recently, India.
Interestingly, just a couple of months after initially releasing HomePod, Apple gave the speaker a price cut of approximately 15%, taking the price down from $349 to $299 in the United States, and from £319 to £279 in the United Kingdom.
Apple employees can also now buy up to 10 (up from 2) with their discount. These things are clearly on the way out. https://t.co/X0ey2QKbxC https://t.co/8sXDf6ifmr
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) May 18, 2020
