Apple already considers the first HomePod as “vintage”

Apple says iPhone X, first-generation AirPods, and first-generation HomePod are now considered “vintage,” reports MacRumors. So if you own a first-generation HomePod — or several, like the person I sold my HomePod to in 2022 — it might pain you to hear that Apple already considers the six-year-old speaker “vintage.”

Apple’s vintage label technically refers to products that it stopped distributing more than five to less than seven years ago, and fortunately, you can still get service for vintage products from Apple and authorized repair shops. But Apple appears to be speeding up the original HomePod’s progress, given that it only stopped production of the product three years ago. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Apple doesn’t yet consider the first-generation HomePod, first-generation AirPods, or iPhone X “obsolete” — Apple won’t repair hardware after this milestone, which it says applies to products the company stopped selling more than seven years ago. But if you have multiple OG HomePods in your home that need repairs — I hope that’s not the case for the person with my old HomePod! — you might want to take care of them sooner rather than later. (I’m sure Apple would prefer if you upgraded to the HomePod Mini or second-generation HomePod.)

Also worthy of note are the first-generation AirPods and the iPhone X. The iPhone X, released in 2017, was stunning and was Apple’s first phone to feature Face ID. And those first AirPods, released in 2016, were arguably the first truly wireless earbuds to really hit the mark. I remember buying a pair right after they launched and being really impressed.