Gurman: Apple Considered a Battery-Powered 'HomePod' Years Ago

Earlier this month, Apple discontinued the Beats Pill+, its last battery-powered speaker. Following this news, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has revealed that Apple once internally discussed and prototyped a battery-powered smart speaker.

homepod mini power cable
In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Gurman said that while Apple prototyped a battery-powered smart speaker years ago, he would be surprised if one ever launches under the Apple brand. For now, the HomePod mini is the only smart speaker that Apple sells, and it must be connected to a power source to operate at all times.

Gurman addressed a few other topics in his newsletter this week, including Apple's long-rumored AR/VR headset, which he again said will have performance on par with the M1 Pro chip in the new MacBook Pro and could be priced above $2,000 when released.

Gurman also backed a MacRumors report claiming that Hyundai's luxury brand Genesis is planning to support Apple's digital car key feature, which lets users lock, unlock, and start their vehicles using a pass stored in the Wallet app on the iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature has been limited to select BMW models since launching in 2020, but Gurman said Genesis plans to roll out support for the feature by the summer.

Related Roundup: HomePod mini
Buyer's Guide: HomePod Mini (Caution)

Popular Stories

iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 26's Liquid Glass Design Draws Criticism From Users

Wednesday September 17, 2025 2:56 pm PDT by
It's been two days since iOS 26 was released, and Apple's new Liquid Glass design is even more divisive than expected. Any major design change can create controversy as people get used to the new look, but the MacRumors forums, Reddit, Apple Support Communities, and social media sites seem to feature more criticism than praise as people discuss the update. Complaints There are a long...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air Feature

Two iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air Colors Appear to Scratch More Easily

Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed. French blog Consomac also reported on this topic. The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black. Images Credit: Consoma ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.1 Coming Soon, Likely With iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Fix

Thursday September 18, 2025 9:17 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The update will have a build number of 23A350, or similar, the account said. It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's Henry T. ...
M6 MacBook Pro Feature 1

Apple's Rumored MacBook Pro Redesign: 6 New Features Anticipated

Wednesday September 17, 2025 4:26 am PDT by
Apple in October 2024 overhauled its 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, adding M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips, Thunderbolt 5 ports on higher-end models, display changes, and more. That's quite a lot of updates in one go, but if you think this means a further major refresh for the ‌MacBook Pro‌ is now several years away, think again. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has said he expects only a small ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4: Here Are 5 New Features to Expect on Your iPhone

Tuesday September 16, 2025 11:17 am PDT by
iOS 26 was finally released on Monday, but the software train never stops, and the first developer beta of iOS 26.1 will likely be released soon. iOS 18.1 was an anomaly, as the first developer beta of that version was released in late July last year, to allow for early testing of Apple Intelligence features. The first betas of iOS 15.1, iOS 16.1, and iOS 17.1 were all released in the second ...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Reportedly Plans to Launch These 10 Products in 'Coming Months'

Sunday September 14, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual September event is now in the rearview mirror, with the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE 3, and AirPods Pro 3 set to launch this Friday, September 19. As always, there is more to come. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple plans to release many products in the...

Top Rated Comments

Juanchi007 Avatar
48 months ago
The plan: a battery-powered HomePod Mini 2 that sits atop a flush MagSafe station. With a rubber bottom to make sure the MagSafe puck doesn’t move around, it would be perfect.
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
48 months ago
In the future, Apple should consider/offer wireless charging for the HomePod. Maybe MagSafe for the HomePod?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ouimetnick Avatar
48 months ago
Interesting that Apple wouldn’t want to offer something that competes with the Sonos Move. That’s a decent sounding speaker that works over WiFi (and Bluetooth when away from home) that also offers a smart assistant.

I’m sure if they had a competitor to that at a similar price point, Apple fanboys (myself included) would buy it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mnsportsgeek Avatar
48 months ago
I’d buy a portable, weatherproof HomePod mini.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
48 months ago

really, Apple prototyped ... years ago???
Are you running out of news Gurman? Come on ...
Its a slow time in between the 2021 fall announcements and 2022 spring announcements. Expect even more Apple history tidbits. Even Universal Control is now pegged for Spring. ;)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Runequester Avatar
48 months ago
I think Id prefer the cable but itd be nice to have both options
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)