For Apple's longest running vaporware, it's death after death
Here's a good question that we might soon find out the answer to. How many times does Apple have to kill off a product until everyone believes that it is good and dead? A tweet from Twitter tipster Jon Prosser disseminated on Monday says that Apple has removed all AirPower testing and prototyping for 2021. Prosser's sources believe that the ambitious wireless charging pad is done for good.
You might recall that Apple originally introduced AirPower on September 12th, 2017 during the same event that brought to our attention the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone X. The wireless charging pad was designed to wirelessly charge an iPhone, an Apple Watch, and an AirPods wireless charging case simultaneously. In March of last year, 562 days after it was originally unveiled, Apple officially canceled the product stating that it could not be manufactured to Apple's high standards. Part of the problem was believed to be an issue with the coils which would need to be placed in a manner allowing the pad to charge at once all of the devices that Apple promised it would. There was also concern that the accessory was overheating.
The Twitter tipster who once said that AirPower was resurrected now says that it is dead again
However, last March Prosser sent out a tweet stating that Apple was once again working on AirPower and had built prototypes of the device that "re-engineered" the coils to stop them from overheating. Leaked images posted by Prosser back in June were said to show the revised AirPower in all of its glory. And then, when the MagSafe magnet rings were first discovered, there was talk that the rings were for an AirPower mini wireless charger that would work only with the iPhone 12 Pro Max model. The magnet was supposed to help the device align with the coils. But as we've come to find out, this is actually part of the MagSafe magnetic wireless charging system that uses the magnet to attach itself to iPhone 12 series handsets.
It seems that this time the dirt really has been shoveled over AirPower, especially with MagSafe's potential to generate some revenue for Apple now and in the future.
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