The HomePod 2 — that cylinder of room-filling spatial audio that our reviewer Stephen said he “loved” no less than 3 times in the space of as many paragraphs. Now you can get one of Apple’s Siri-centered smart speakers for less from Apple directly, thanks to the Apple Certified Refurbished program.
If you head to the Apple Store in Germany, the UK, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, and some other countries, you’ll find the HomePod 2 with around a 15% discount. You can also grab one in the US now, with the product listing live and ready to go.
Apple refurbs
In the UK, the discount is £50, and in the US there's $50 off. Apple refurbs are the way to go if you want an effectively brand new speaker for a little less than you might pay at full price — Apple takes returned products, and then thoroughly tests them to make sure everything works correctly as well as looks perfect cosmetically. Once any problems are fixed, the device makes its way to the Apple Certified Refurbished store.
Given that Apple doesn’t reduce the price of its brand-new products, it’s a great way to get something directly from Apple without having to pay full price.
The HomePod 2
The HomePod 2 is a lovely smart speaker that lacks some of the smarts of the competition. It sounds great, has that signature ‘HomePod’ soft aesthetic, and connecting two of them together gives stellar stereo sound.
Siri could be stronger, with the same complaints about the smart assistant rearing their heads whenever it’s mentioned (speed of response, and being directed to your iPhone for web results for example), but if you’re an Apple Music subscriber then you’ll have no problem with just asking for tunes to be played when you want them.
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