Apple expected to unveil HomeView smart home hub at 'Welcome Home' event

Apple is expected to announce new smart home products at an event called 'Welcome Home' in New York on October 13 at 9AM ET, The Verge reported. The Verge said it expects refreshes to the Apple TV and HomePod Mini, a new smart home hub, and possibly a new platform called homeOS and partner devices from LG. TechCrunch reported that Apple will announce a new smart home hub on Tuesday called the HomeView, citing Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Gurman described the HomeView as a Siri-powered device with a display and an A18 chip that lets customers control their other smart home devices, according to TechCrunch. The Verge reported the hub will reportedly have a 6-inch square touchscreen that can be mounted on a wall or placed on a table or countertop, and that Gurman said the countertop model somewhat resembles the iMac G4. Gurman believes the device will be called HomeView rather than HomePad, in part because it will not be an iPad-like experience since there will be no App Store, The Verge reported.

The Verge reported the hub will supposedly use voice or facial recognition to identify who is interacting with it, pulling up relevant contacts and calendar appointments, with an option for secondary identification through an iPhone. It will reportedly run a new software platform whose interface Gurman described as 'a mashup of iOS, tvOS and watchOS,' and will be capable of making FaceTime calls, The Verge reported. The Verge also reported Apple may have registered a trademark for the name through a shell company called Home Operations Suite LLC.

The Verge reported the Apple TV refresh would be the first hardware update since 2022 and the HomePod Mini's first update since it was announced on October 13, 2020, with the Mini offered in new colors including green and pink. Rumors cited by The Verge say the new Apple TV will have an integrated microphone so users can control it with Siri without speaking into the remote or a paired HomePod, and that the remote will have a speaker to make it easier to find. The Verge reported the Apple TV is expected to start shipping on October 30, alongside the refreshed HomePod Mini. One Verge report said the Apple TV would get an A19 chip to power Siri AI, while another Verge report said both devices are expected to feature Apple's N1 chip.

TechCrunch reported that Gurman said earlier this week that Apple plans to announce a partnership with LG to create a smart lock, a thermostat and a doorbell. The Verge reported the long-rumored touchscreen MacBook is not expected at the event, and that Gurman said it will debut later this month.