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Apple reportedly to unveil Siri-powered HomeView smart home hub on Tuesday

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Apple reportedly to unveil Siri-powered HomeView smart home hub on Tuesday

Apple will announce a new smart home hub called the HomeView on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The report has not been confirmed by Apple.

Gurman described the HomeView as a Siri-powered device with a display and an A18 chip, meant to let customers control their other smart home devices. It will reportedly come in two models: one designed for countertops and one to be mounted on walls.

TechCrunch notes that over the past couple of years there have been multiple reports of Apple working on a new smart home product, and that it now seems the product has a name and a launch date.

According to Gurman, Apple will also unveil updated versions of two other home devices on Tuesday: the Apple TV set-top box and the HomePod mini. Earlier in the week, he said Apple plans to announce a partnership with LG to create a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell.

TechCrunch frames the HomeView as Apple's most serious bet on the smart home to date, after it failed to get much traction for its HomeKit software framework or its HomePod smart speaker.

Key facts

  • Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports Apple will announce a smart home hub called the HomeView on Tuesday.
  • He describes it as a Siri-powered device with a display and an A18 chip that controls other smart home devices.
  • The HomeView will reportedly come in two models, one for countertops and one for wall mounting.
  • Updated versions of the Apple TV set-top box and the HomePod mini are also expected on Tuesday.
  • Earlier this week Gurman said Apple plans to announce a partnership with LG on a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell.

Why it matters

TechCrunch calls this Apple's most serious bet on the smart home to date. Apple's earlier efforts, the HomeKit software framework and the HomePod smart speaker, failed to get much traction. The HomeView would put a Siri-driven display at the center of the home, with updated Apple TV and HomePod mini units and an LG partnership on a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell announced around it.

Who it affects

Apple customers who want one place to control their other smart home devices are the target of the HomeView, as Gurman describes it. Owners of the Apple TV set-top box and the HomePod mini are affected by the updated versions expected the same day. The LG partnership concerns a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell.

How to use it

Nothing can be bought or used yet. Gurman's description is that the HomeView lets customers control their other smart home devices through Siri and a display, in a countertop model or a wall-mounted one. No price, release date or shipping date for the HomeView is given.

How solid is it

All details rest on reporting by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, relayed by TechCrunch. No Apple statement or confirmation is quoted. The announcement day is given only as Tuesday, and the two-model detail is flagged as reported ("reportedly"). The Tuesday announcement would settle whether the report holds.

Risks and caveats

The report is secondhand and unconfirmed by Apple, so names, specs and timing could differ from what is announced. Beyond Siri, a display and an A18 chip, no other specs are given. No details on the Apple TV or HomePod mini updates are given beyond that they will be updated versions, and no details of the LG partnership beyond a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell, and no timing for those products.