Your Apple HomePod Might Have Skyrocketed in Value | Here’s Why

In a rare case of a tech product actually appreciating in value, it seems that Apple’s now-discontinued HomePod speakers are now selling on sites like eBay for well above their original asking prices.

A little over a year ago, Apple discontinued the HomePod in a move that surprised many people. It seemingly came out of the blue, leaving the HomePod mini as the only smart speaker in Apple’s lineup.

However, the full-sized HomePod may have been gone, but it wasn’t forgotten — even by Apple. Two months later, Apple released a new Apple TV 4K with support for eARC — a feature that worked exclusively with the original HomePod.

In other words, Apple chose to discontinue a product already slated to be an important component of its new Apple TV Home theater strategy. The new Apple TV 4K even included a picture of the HomePod on the box, noting that users could “Pair for wireless surround sound.” So, it’s no surprise that the now-discontinued smart speaker saw a surge in popularity.

There were already several good reasons to pick one up, but the addition of Home Theatre Support with Dolby Atmos sealed the deal for many folks.

Now, a year later, Apple’s infamous smart speaker is still in high demand.

Following a Tweet from 9to5Mac’s Chance Miller, the folks over at The Verge decided to do some digging. It turns out that the average selling price for a HomePod speaker — in any condition — is now $350. That’s $50 more than they cost when they were brand new.

The Verge even shared a chart that shows HomePod prices noticeably appreciating over the past year on eBay, adding that factory-sealed non-refurbished HomePods are now selling for over $500.

In fact, some sellers are boasting that they got Apple to replace their old HomePods with brand-new units just so they could flip them.Sean Hollister, The Verge

However, the $350 average selling price excludes these outliers. While the condition of the HomePod still matters, it’s likely that if it’s in reasonably good shape — and you still have the box — you’ll be able to sell it for more than you paid for it.

This makes Apple’s decision to discontinue the HomePod even more of a head-scratcher. At the time, there was some speculation that Apple may have simply wanted to clear out old stock before announcing a new and improved model, but here we are a year later, and there’s no sign of anything on that front. Even the rumor mill has gotten dead quiet.

In the longer term, Apple is almost certainly working on a new HomePod in some form, but these plans seem nebulous at best, and the consensus is that we shouldn’t expect to see it anytime soon.

As for why the HomePod is seeing a sudden resurgence in popularity after all this time, The Verge speculates that maybe this is simply because it’s a piece of Apple history. However, we think that the reasons are likely more pragmatic.

The HomePod was something of an odd product for Apple, but it may have also simply been ahead of its time. Apple entered the smart speaker market with a device that was focused predominantly on audio fidelity. That already gave it niche appeal from the start — “audiophile” speakers are a very competitive market — but then Apple chose to make it even more niche by locking it down to the point where it was more of an iPhone accessory than a speaker.

In the world the HomePod was born into in 2018, it was a tough sell. Many serious Apple enthusiasts were quick to pick them up, especially those with HomeKit setups. Still, many other speaker options were available that offered more of the capabilities most folks were looking for and cost a lot less.

Then, on the eve of the HomePod’s demise, Apple’s tvOS team comes up with the one thing that could have made the HomePod much more attractive from the very beginning: Home Theatre Mode.

Suddenly, not only did the HomePod offer something that few other speakers could, but Apple created a compelling reason for people to have two of them in their living room. HomePods had always sounded great as a stereo pair, but as a Dolby Atmos Surround Sound system, they were downright incredible.

With the HomePod officially discontinued, Apple introduced the ability to use a pair of HomePod minis as Apple TV speakers with tvOS 15. However, without the much more intelligent audio features, the HomePod mini can’t provide the same Dolby Atmos soundstage. It’s much better than using the smaller speakers over AirPlay 2, but it doesn’t hold a candle to what a pair of full-sized HomePods sound like.