Since then, updates for the devices have bene few and far between. Both devices actually received a rare update earlier this week, but more important changes could be coming down the pipe. According to a report from MacRumors, citing several different tips, the Time Capsule and Airport Extreme are out of stock in Apple Store locations in the United States.
“I was trying to buy an AirPort Extreme today from the Beverly Hills Apple Store and an employee told me that Apple had asked for all of them back from all the stores,”
The Personal Pickup tool, which allows Apple customers to buy a product from the online store and have it ready to be picked up at a local store, is no longer available for either the AirPort Extreme or Time Capsule, either. It may be possible to find a limited selection of the products at third-party retailers.
Interestingly enough, pulling the devices appears to be limited to just the United States for now:
“A retail source informed us that the AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule remain in stock at stores in the U.K., as confirmed by Personal Pickup, and the Wi-Fi base stations are also currently available at most stores in Australia, Canada, and Europe, so the in-store outage appears to be limited to U.S. stores for now.”
It’s an interesting turn of events, too, considering rumors regarding Apple’s plans introducing a competitor to the Amazon Echo and Google Home are ramping up. A new product within the AirPort lineup that works as a Wi-Fi router, as well as an external, wireless speaker and hub for HomeKit devices seems like a perfect device for Apple at this point. Include a microphone, and maybe even a camera, as well as full Siri integration, and Apple has a competing device right there. Or it could be a revamped Apple TV.
Update: In a follow-up to the original report, the publication states that Apple could be complying with a mandate issued by the FCC to be set in place on June 2, 2016, which is related to software security. That could explain why the pulled stock is only happening in the United States:
“Starting June 2, 2016, permissive changes will not be permitted for devices approved under the old rules, unless they meet the requirements of the new rules,” the FCC writes. “All devices partially or completely approved under the old rules cannot be marketed starting June 2, 2016 unless they meet the requirements of the new rules in all the bands of operation.”
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