Apple's Touchscreen HomePod Coming This Year: Everything We Know

Apple is believed to be working on a new full-sized HomePod that features a touchscreen display for the first time. The device is rumored to launch as soon as the first half of this year, so here's everything we know about it so far.

Second Generation HomePod With Top LCD Feature
Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman was first to suggest in 2021 that Apple is working on new HomePods with displays and cameras. The ‌HomePod‌'s OS is now built upon tvOS, and it appears that the groundwork for a ‌HomePod‌ with a screen has been slowly laid in the background for some time.

Design and Functionality

The first specific report of Apple's intention to launch a new HomePod model with a display came from Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in March 2023. He said the device will feature a 7-inch display supplied by China's Tianma.

In October 2023, the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami" shared information about an upcoming HomePod model with an LCD display. The device will purportedly feature a virtually identical design to the second-generation ‌HomePod‌, but with a large LCD touch screen at the top instead of the LED array used on all ‌HomePod‌ models to date.

homepod b720
This report was subsequently corroborated by other sources, which added that the model is in active development under the codename "B720". Code in tvOS 17 apparently suggests that Apple Music and Apple Podcasts are among the first apps being rewritten to be compatible with the new display, which will show a blurred animation based on the colors of the album art when a song or podcast is playing. The screen could also potentially show important notifications.

In December, Kosutami shared further images of the prototype device, showing a curved, convex LCD screen to display content at the top.

Chip

There is also the potential for a new chip. The 2023 ‌HomePod‌ contains the S7 chip, the same chip used in 2021's Apple Watch Series 7. Despite the introduction of the S8 chip in late 2022 in the Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra, and second-generation Apple Watch SE, Apple elected to use the S7 chip.

s9 chip apple watch
Apple's latest Apple Watch models feature the S9 chip, which is significantly more capable than all of its predecessors because it is based on the A15 Bionic. Many Siri requests are processed locally, meaning that responsiveness could benefit from an improved chip. The S9 could also open the ability for health and fitness-related enquiries, but the exact chip the device will use is unknown.

Additional Features

The next-generation ‌‌HomePod‌‌'s display could facilitate deeper integration with Apple's other hardware products, Kuo believes. For example, a new ‌HomePod‌ could conceivably introduce a lower-latency Handoff experience with the second-generation Ultra Wideband chip used in the iPhone 15 and ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro.

It could also tout improved audio hardware and microphones, as well as specification upgrades like Wi-Fi 6E support.

Release Date

In his original March 2023 report, Kuo said that the new ‌HomePod‌ would launch in the first half of 2024. There are no concrete rumors about any other new full-sized HomePods at the current time. Meanwhile, Kuo said that Apple will begin mass shipments of the second-generation HomePod mini in the second half of 2024.

It is not clear if the touchscreen ‌HomePod‌ will be a direct replacement for the second-generation ‌HomePod‌ or a new, high-end offering in the lineup, but it may not be long before we know for sure.

In the long term, Apple is believed to be rethinking its smart home strategy and is reportedly working on a combined Apple TV and HomePod device, as well as a ‌HomePod‌ with a screen mounted on a robotic arm.

Related Roundup: HomePod
Buyer's Guide: HomePod (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro and Air Feature

Two iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air Colors Appear to Scratch More Easily

Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed. French blog Consomac also reported on this topic. The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black. Images Credit: Consoma ...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

Monday September 22, 2025 2:16 am PDT by
Next year's rumored foldable iPhone will showcase an ultra-thin design resembling "two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says Apple's first foldable device will be "super thin and a design achievement," combining Apple's thinnest iPhone form factor with cutting-edge folding...
Apple Intelligence General Feature 2

iOS 26.1 Adds New Apple Intelligence Languages and Expands AirPods Live Translation

Monday September 22, 2025 11:15 am PDT by
With iOS 26.1, Apple Intelligence is gaining support for additional languages, including Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. Apple announced plans to expand the languages that can be used with Apple Intelligence last year, and now the added language support is here. Apple Intelligence is now available in the following...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air N1 Feature

Some iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Users Experiencing Intermittent Wi-Fi Issue

Monday September 22, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple's latest iPhone models launched on Friday, and some early adopters of the devices are experiencing intermittent Wi-Fi issues. Affected customers say Wi-Fi connectivity periodically cuts out on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air, with hundreds of comments about the issue posted across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, and the Apple Support Community over the...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.1 Coming Soon, Likely With iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Fix

Thursday September 18, 2025 9:17 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The update will have a build number of 23A350, or similar, the account said. It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's Henry T. ...

Top Rated Comments

Piggie Avatar
22 months ago
Said it before and I'll say it again.
It's a stupid location to place a screen.

It's a speaker, you place anywhere in a room and it beams out sound. Having to stand right next to it, and look down onto the top, to actually see the screen is dumb.

Yes, it looks fine in Photo's and will look fine, in a demo of the product, but it's not suitable to have a screen facing the ceiling in real life usage.
Score: 67 Votes (Like | Disagree)
karranz Avatar
22 months ago
We need a x1000000 smarter Siri, not more screens!
Score: 48 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AgentOSX Avatar
22 months ago
They need to make is Left-Right compatible to the 1st Gen HomePods AND the 2nd Gen... that way those of us with stereo pair do not have to replace both of them to preserve the stereo effect.

And then they can make the Minis available to use as rear ATMOS sound speakers.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reverend Benny Avatar
22 months ago
Don't really see the use for a screen on top of a speaker. Sure, its cool when you walk over to see what song that's being played but it feels a bit unnecessary.
I would focus on getting more third party support and better network connectivity. This is why I went with Sonos rather than Apple and why I stick to Sonos.
I love the voicecontrol that comes with Sonos but its very limited and far from what Siri can deliver today.
Haven't tried Siri on the homepod but it can't be worse than Sonos solution.

Maybe the future S10 chip will find its way to the homepod and that might use Wifi6?
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Will Co Avatar
22 months ago
Just give me a HomePod which:
1. Sounds great (check)
2. Is secure and private (check)
3. Has a voice assistant that isn’t dumb as ….
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
japanime Avatar
22 months ago
So, another HomePod feature Siri won't be able to properly handle? ?
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)