Apple Cancels Release of AirPower Due to Hardware Issues

"After much effort, we’ve concluded AirPower will not achieve our high standards and we have canceled the project."

March 29, 2019

Apple has canceled the release of the AirPower product, citing hardware issues as the main culprit, TechCrunch reports.

“After much effort, we’ve concluded AirPower will not achieve our high standards and we have canceled the project. We apologize to those customers who were looking forward to this launch. We continue to believe that the future is wireless and are committed to push the wireless experience forward,” said Dan Riccio, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, in a written statement to the outlet.

AirPower charging mats have been delayed over a year since the product was first announced in September 2017. The product has been experiencing engineering problems—specifically, that the device ran too hot, TechCrunch reports.

While the AirPower is no more, there have been other instances where Apple has defied engineering issues and shipped products on time. The iPhone 7 Plus was the first phone with a twin-lens system, and while Apple had a single-lens contingency plan in place, the company committed and shipped the phone out, even though the hardware wasn’t perfect.

However, AirPower was unsalvageable. The project was also canceled so recently that boxes for new AirPod cases and sets mention and have pictures of AirPower on them.

This is a rare lapse in judgment for Apple; the company didn’t once mention that the AirPower would never release, even as it was delayed. According to TechCrunch, “by promising the ability to place multiple devices anywhere on a pad, allowing them to charge simultaneously while communicating charge levels and rates, Apple set its bar incredibly high for AirPower.” However, the company was unable to deliver.