The HomePod requires airplay to function, which is why I would not buy one. If Apple decides to deprecate it the long term use of it may suffer. Unlike the HomePod, the AirPods use industry standard Bluetooth. If Apple disappeared tomorrow they’d work as well as any set of Bluetooth headphones and I suspect that since the batteries are screwed in and easily removable, you’ll be able to get replacement batteries for years just like iPod owners can.
Yes it does.
With the discontinuation of the Homepod, I will not be buying this product.
"Fool me once..." kind of reaction.
In fact, I will avoid buying Apples' niche products.
I'm sure they'll support their orphans for a few years.
But it seems that the product eventually becomes unuseable despite "updates".
My discontinued Airport extreme devices barely respond to airplay, so I have had to bin them.
It has services and tech in common (Apple Music, Airplay) and in terms of retail price they are both in the upper middle end of the speaker/headphone market. When some people buy a product, particularly in a closed ecosystem like Apple‘s, it worth hazarding a guess whether they have long term value. The max price is annoying because a lot of the associated costs involved keep edging the price northwards: Charging plug, reasonable protective case, phono lead, AppleCare... a lot of other manufacturers headphones include these things.What does the HomePod have to do with the Max.