Apple cuts HomePod price by $50 as smart speaker battle intensifies

Apple's HomePod is officially getting a bit cheaper. On Thursday Apple quietly dropped the price of its Siri-powered smart speaker to $299, a $50 drop from its original price of $349. The speaker, which was praised by critics for its sound last year but dinged on its smart capabilities, is Apple's rival to Google's Home, Amazon's Echo and the increasingly crowded field of smart speakers powered by the Google Assistant and Alexa made by the likes of Sonos, Bose and others. All three smart devices can do tasks like play music, give you the weather or set timers, HomePod, however, still lacks the ability to do more advanced functions like call an Uber or play music directly from Spotify, Google Play Music or Pandora (you can play those services off your iPhone through AirPlay). 'What music should I play?':