According to 9to5Mac, Apple has officially discontinued the Beats Pill + portable Bluetooth speaker which launched in late 2015.
The Pill + portable speaker was actually the first new Beats product to launch after Apple acquired the Beats by Dr. Dre brand for US $ 3.2 billion.
The speaker originally debuted for US $ 229.95, but towards the end of its product cycle Apple sold in stores and online for US $ 179.95. The iPhone maker also introduced a Product (RED) version of the Beats Pill + in 2016, a year after the speaker first went on sale.
Additionally, Apple has decided to take the Beats Pill + off the shelves without offering an obvious replacement in the portable Bluetooth speaker category.
Apple has kept the Beats brand alive, despite its own line of hugely successful audio offerings, with regular product launches like the Beats Studio Buds and Beats Fit Pro (available Jan. 24 in Canada), and has even hired a former HTC executive and Android veteran. hardware designer, Scott Croyle, to lead the design of Beats products.
However, Apple hasn’t done much in terms of standalone portable speakers under the Beats umbrella since the Beats Pill +. The Pill + was actually the only Beats-branded speaker still sold by the Cupertino, California-based tech giant before its shutdown.
Sure, Apple has the HomePod mini, but it’s a clever loudspeaker which, although small, does not quite match the bill of a “laptop” because it requires mains power.
Where the Pill + featured a Lightning port for charging, the HomePod mini isn’t battery powered, requires a Wi-Fi connection, and isn’t rugged like the now discontinued Beats Pill +.
You can still get your hands on a Beats Pill + from third-party retailers like Amazon and others while supplies last, but there is no trace of the product left on the Beats and Apple websites.
If you’re looking for a worthy portable speaker this spring and summer, check out the Sonos Roam for C $ 229.
