Time flies, and it's even more so apparent if you own a first-generation Apple HomePod or an iPhone X as those devices are now officially considered "vintage" products.
Spotted by MacRumors, the "vintage" label, which now also applies to first-gen AirPods, basically means that Apple stopped distributing these products more than five, but less than seven years ago. As a reminder, products that Apple stopped distributing more than seven years ago are (sometimes) considered "obsolete."
The moniker seems fitting for the iPhone X, which was the first iPhone with a notch and frankly, it does feel like it came out forever ago (actually, it was in 2017). As a reminder, it was powered by an Apple A11 Bionic chip, and came with 3GB of memory and 64 or 256 GB of storage. It also had just a dual, 12-megapixel camera on the back, as well as a 7-megapixel shooter on the front.
For the HomePod, it feels odd to think of it as a vintage product. It was announced in 2017, but it was only followed by the second-generation HomePod in 2023, and both devices are actually quite similar, with the original actually winning in some regards, with more tweeters and mics, as well as a smaller subwoofer.
The AirPods don't really change that much from version to version, but the original variant was launched in 2016, which, again, does feel "vintage" in the world of wearables.
The fact that these devices are now vintage don't change all that much to owners, as Apple Stores and Authorized Service Providers will continue to offer repairs for them for up to two more years. The clock is ticking, though; if you still rock an iPhone X, congrats on sticking with it for so long, but it might be time for a new model.
