Vratislav Holub Recently, there has been quite a lot of speculation about the return of some Apple devices that the giant canceled in the past. These speculations most often mention the 12″ MacBook, the classic (large) HomePod, or routers from the AirPort product line. Although some apple lovers are directly calling for their return and would like to see them back in the apple menu, the question still remains whether they would make any sense nowadays. If we look at them in retrospect, they weren't that successful and Apple had good reasons for canceling them.
It could be interest you
Adam Kos On the other hand, the situation could have changed dramatically. The world of technology in general has advanced by leaps and bounds, which could make these products, combined with today's options, suddenly significantly more popular. Let's therefore look at them in a little more detail and think about whether their return really makes sense.
12″ MacBook
Let's start with 12″ MacBook. It was shown to the world for the first time in 2015, but was canceled only four years later, and for a fairly valid reason. Although it attracted relatively compact dimensions, low weight and a number of other benefits, it lost significantly in several areas. In terms of performance and overheating, it was disastrous, and the presence of the so-called butterfly keyboard, which many experts consider one of the biggest missteps in the modern history of the Apple company, did not help much either. In the end, it was a relatively nice device, but you couldn't really use it.
This is how Apple introduced the MacBook
But as we mentioned above, time has moved forward significantly since then. Today's Apple computers and laptops rely on their own chipsets from the Apple Silicon family, which are characterized by excellent performance and, above all, solid economy. Newer Macs therefore do not overheat and thus do not have a problem with overheating or possible thermal throttling. So, if we were to take a 12″ MacBook and equip it with, for example, an M2 chip, there would be a pretty good chance that we would create a great device for a specific group of Apple users, for whom compactness and light weight are an absolute priority. And that it is possible even without active cooling in the form of a fan, the MacBook Air shows us for the second time.
HomePod
Whether we could expect the same success in the case of the classic HomePod is a question though. This smart speaker once paid for its exorbitant price. Although it offered a solid sound and a number of smart functions thanks to the voice assistant Siri, when it also managed the complete control of a smart home, this product was still overlooked by most Apple users. And no wonder. While the competition (Amazon and Google) offered relatively cheap home assistants, Apple tried to go the high-end route, but there was no interest in it. Salvation in this industry came only with HomePod mini, which is available from 2 thousand crowns. On the contrary, the original HomePod was originally sold here for less than 12 thousand crowns.
This is precisely why many apple growers are worried about the new generation, lest it encounter exactly the same problem in the finals. In addition, as the market shows us, there is a greater interest in small home assistants, which may not offer such high-quality sound, but what they can do, they can do very well. It is for this reason that other speculations and patents began to appear, discussing the fact that the new HomePod could come with its own screen and thus function as a full-fledged home center with a number of options. But tell yourself. Would you welcome such a product, or are you more than happy with the smaller HomePod mini?
It could be interest you
AirPort
There is also speculation from time to time that Apple is considering a return to the router market. Once upon a time, the Cupertino giant offered several models with the Apple AirPort label, which were characterized by a minimalist design and extremely simple setup. Unfortunately, despite this, they could not keep up with their rapidly growing competition. Apple was unable to respond to given trends and implement them in time. If we then add a higher price to that, it can be expected that people prefer to reach for a cheaper and more powerful variant.
On the other hand, we have to admit that apple routers had a large group of supporters who did not let them go. Because they got along well with other Apple products and overall benefited from the well-connectedness of the Apple ecosystem. But it is again up for consideration whether AirPort routers have the potential to compete with the current competition. After all, this is precisely why their return is the least talked about of the mentioned products.
It could be interest you
