Apple's first HomePod with a screen rumored to launch later this year
The company could finally bring a smart home hub to market by the end of 2025
š Apple is reportedly releasing its much-anticipated smart home hub by the end of the year, according to a report
šŗ The āHomePod with a touch screenā is expected to look like an iPad with a speaker base
šø The screen will be nearly square and come with a camera above it for FaceTime calls
š² Itāll run on Appleās upcoming homeOS operating system
š¦¾ Appleās more impressive smart home hub with a robotic arm isnāt expected be released for another couple of years
Apple could finally release its first smart home hub by the end of 2025, according to a report from Bloomberg.
The device, which is expected to look like a HomePod with a square iPad on top of it. has been heavily rumored for the past year as Appleās newest entry in its smart home device lineup. It was reportedly delayed due to the internal issues releasing the companyās big Siri AI upgrade, but now, it sounds like Apple is pushing through to release the product by the end of this year.
Mark Gurman of Bloomberg says that while the smart home hub could be released by the end of the year āat the earliest,ā he notes that the exact release date remains uncertain. However, Apple has reportedly scrapped some of the ābolderā features of the device in order to rush its release, although itās unclear what those features are. Presumably, they involve Apple Intelligence and Siri, but Gurman doesnāt specify.
The first smart home hub from Apple is expected to ship with a 7-inch square display atop a speaker base similar to the shape of a HomePod. Itāll reportedly run on an A18 chip (the same thatās found in the iPhone 16 series) and homeOS, Appleās new operating system for smart home devices. Youāll have access to apps like Calendar, Notes, and FaceTime thanks to a built-in camera atop the screen. Itāll reportedly feel like using an iPad, except with more reliance on voice commands.
Previous reports indicate that Apple could ship somewhere around 500,000 to a million units of the smart home hub when it launches. The companyās next-generation smart home hub, rumored to come with a robotic arm for following your presence as you speak to it, isnāt expected to ship for another couple of years after the release of the first hub, according to Bloomberg.
Max Buondonno is an editor at The Shortcut. Heās been reporting on the latest consumer technology since 2015, with his work featured on CNN Underscored, ZDNET, How-To Geek, XDA, TheStreet, and more. Follow him on X @LegendaryScoop and Instagram @LegendaryScoop.