Apple Pulls HomePod 18.1 Beta 2 After Bricking Complaints

The latest beta update for HomePod software was withdrawn following multiple reports of devices becoming non-functional.

Apple released HomePod 18.1 beta 2 on Monday, but quickly pulled it after users reported bricking issues.
This is the second instance of Apple withdrawing an update due to bricking, following similar issues with iPadOS 18 on M4 iPad Pro models.
Users reported that their HomePod minis became unresponsive and could not be restored using standard methods.
Some users managed to restore their devices using Apple Configurator on a Mac, though this was not officially endorsed by Apple.
Apple has not commented on the cause of the issue or provided a timeline for a fixed update release.