Apple slashes HomePod price and introduces Powerbeats Pro

Enlarge / Siri on Apple's HomePod speaker. (credit: Jeff Dunn)
Apple has lowered the standard suggested retail price of its HomePod smart speaker from $349 to $299. The price drop follows slow and disappointing sales for the product, according to most analysts.
The speaker has seen temporary discounts at certain retailers before, but this appears to be a permanent adjustment to the base price. It is uncommon for Apple to cut a price like this in the middle of a product's lifespan, but it's not unprecedented.
Reviews (including our own) praised the HomePod's strong sound quality and other aspects of its engineering and design, but they commonly lamented the high price and criticized smart-home and voice-assistant features that lagged behind those in Google's and Amazon's products. Apple may be hoping this price drop will make the HomePod accessible to new potential buyers and drive more sales.
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