Apple will reportedly market its upcoming smart home hub as the HomeView. Powered by an A18 chip, the display will focus on Siri and smart home control, skipping App Store support.
The HomeView will seemingly come two in versions: a countertop model with a metal speaker base and a wall-mounted model with a flat, square base.
HomeView puts Siri at the center of Apple’s smart home plans
Apple is scheduled to unveil its new smart home hub along with official smart home devices from LG at its ‘Welcome Home’ event on October 13.
Spoiling the surprise, Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman provides more details about the smart home display in his latest Power On newsletter. Supposedly called the HomeView, the smart home hub will use an A18 chip and won’t come with a dedicated App Store.
“As for the HomeView name, the use of “view” reflects how the device is meant to be used: as a display that people look at and control primarily with their voice. Though the screen supports touch input, a name like HomePad would suggest an iPad-like experience centered on direct interaction,” says Gurman.
The device is not meant to run a wide range of apps. Instead, it will support select Apple apps, with a focus on integration with smart home devices. Users can control these devices through Siri, the Home app and other Apple devices.
More importantly, Apple will offer two versions of the HomeView: a countertop model with a metal speaker base and a wall-mounted model. The countertop model will come in four colors: Space Gray, Silver, Starlight and Pink. The wall-mounted variant will come only in Space Gray and Silver.
Despite a mid-October unveiling, Apple’s HomeView will apparently hit retail stores in mid-November.
LG to offer complete smart home starter kit for HomeView
At launch, Apple will leverage its partnership with LG to offer a smart doorbell, deadbolt lock, thermostat, indoor and outdoor security cameras, a floodlight camera and a temperature sensor.
That lineup should cover most users’ core smart home needs, from keeping an eye on their property to controlling access and adjusting the temperature. Such an expansive smart home device lineup will make the HomeView more appealing to a lot of people.
Another benefit of this strategy: lower prices. If Apple manufactured and sold these smart home devices, they would likely cost a lot more than whatever LG decides to sell them at.
With a wider range of devices and potentially lower prices, Apple’s smart home plans look more promising this time around. The HomeView could appeal to more people than HomeKit ever did.
Rajesh has been writing about consumer technology for over a decade, with a strong focus on iPhones, Macs and Apple’s ecosystem. He enjoys digging into Apple software updates, hardware changes, and discovering new Mac apps that make work faster and more enjoyable.
You can reach out to him at mail[at]rajeshpandey.me.
