Rumors about Apple’s intention to release a home hub with a display and other new products for the smart home have been circulating for a long time. Now Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman has reported that Apple will officially unveil a hub called HomeView and other new products as part of the Welcome Home event, which will take place on October 13.
Image source: 9to5mac.com
At the same time, Gurman revealed some details about Apple’s new products. The report says that HomeView’s design is reminiscent of the iMac G4: the display appears to float above the base, which also serves as an audio speaker. According to Gurman, the hardware basis of the new product is the A18 chip. In addition to the basic version, a wall-mounted hub version with a rectangular base will be available.
The report also says that HomeView will be available in four body colors: space gray, silver, starry dawn and pink. The wall-mounted model will only be available in two monochrome options: silver and space gray.
The main way to interact with the hub will be voice control, and the central element of the user experience will be the AI assistant Siri. The device will run Apple apps, but there won’t be a separate App Store for HomeView. However, it is possible that users will be able to display widgets of third-party applications from nearby iPhones.
As for the new HomePod mini 2 speaker, the developers equipped it with the S10 chip. This is a significant improvement over the current generation model running on the S5 chip. Although the S10 is not the newest version of the S-series chip, its arrival will still be a significant upgrade.
The S10 chip will enable support for the updated Siri AI assistant—a first for any Apple smart home product. The speaker will allow you to extend the functionality of the HomeView hub to the entire home: voice control and music playback can be synchronized with HomeView. Note that the updated Apple TV 4K and HomeView will also support the new Siri.
HomePod mini 2 will be available in black, white, pink, green and blue color options. In addition to the S10 chip, the speaker will be equipped with an N1 network chip, which will provide support for the Thread and Matter protocols, as well as Wi-Fi 7. The cost of the device is unknown, but in June Apple raised the price of HomePod mini from $99 to $129, so it’s unlikely that the new model will be cheaper.
Apple also plans to release an updated Apple TV 4K TV set-top box. According to the source, the developers have implemented two important innovations: built-in microphones and an updated Siri Remote. The presence of built-in microphones will allow users to issue Siri commands directly through the set-top box, without using a remote control or a connected HomePod speaker.
In addition to this, the developers tested a new Siri Remote with a built-in speaker. The current version of the remote supports the basic Find function, and the built-in speaker will be a major improvement. For example, it will make it easier to find a remote control lost between the sofa cushions.
Although the HomeView home hub won’t go on sale until mid-November, the new Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini will hit the market on October 30. More details about Apple’s new smart home products will be announced on October 13.
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