Apple’s HomePod has received official FCC approval, which means the smart speaker should be available any day now. Plus, according to the Taipei Times, Inventec Corp., one of the two assemblers for the smart speaker, has released an initial shipment of about one million.
HomePod shipments this year are expected to reach between 10 million and 12 million units, with Inventec and Hon Hai each fulfilling half of the orders, the article adds. Apple unveiled its first voice-controlled smart speaker during the June 2017 Worldwide Developers Conference.
The HomePod was originally slated to arrive before the end of the year. However, in November, Apple issued a statement saying that it needed more time before the product is ready for customers.
The $349 smart speaker is just under seven inches tall and looks like a piece of furniture. It will be available in both space gray and white, and also acts as a hub for HomeKit devices to provide remote access to home automation.
