An out-of-warranty HomePod repair will cost almost as much as a new piece

Due to today's official start of sales of the HomePod wireless speaker, Apple has published information regarding service and the possible extended and superior AppleCare+ warranty. The terms of service are currently only valid for countries (logically) where the HomePod is sold. Even so, it is clear that the out-of-warranty repair of the HomePod will be something that its owner will want to avoid. If he does not pay for AppleCare+, the service fee will become very expensive.

If the owner of the new HomePod does not pay for AppleCare+, they will be charged either $279 in the US or £269 in the UK and $399 in Australia for any out-of-warranty service. This fee will apply to any service that is not related to a manufacturing defect that is covered by Apple's standard (in this case, one year) warranty. If the fees seem high to the owner, they can resort to paying for AppleCare+, where the fees are significantly reduced.

AppleCare+ extends the standard warranty period to two years, and if the product is damaged, Apple will repair/replace it at a discounted price up to twice. The fees for these actions are 39 dollars in the USA, 29 pounds in Great Britain or 55 dollars in Australia. It is not clear exactly how much the AppleCare+ service will cost, because the order form is only available to HomePod owners. However, it will probably be a good extra charge considering the prices Apple is asking for repair/replacement.

Update: AppleCare+ for HomePod costs $39 in the US. The postage paid to send the speaker in for service is less than $20. 

Source: Macrumors

Discussion of the article

[Tomas Libensky]

Unfortunately, this is an increasingly popular joke of many manufacturers. Expensive and complex equipment cannot be repaired after the warranty expires, in the event of a defect. Unfortunately, we buyers take it as a fact and still buy :(

[Pepa from the depot]

And AppleCare is not official here anyway.