Apple reportedly plans to unveil an all-new smart home hub as part of the "Welcome home" product launch it announced for Tuesday, October 13.
Our image above is just a rough concept based on rumored design details, so be prepared for the device's actual appearance to be different.
The device will likely be unveiled in a press release shared on the Apple Newsroom website at around 9 a.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, as that is when Apple's private "Welcome home" experience in New York begins. At the experience, invited reporters and content creators will likely receive hands-on time with the home hub.
The hub is said to be designed for managing smart home accessories in the Apple Home app, home security monitoring, digital photo galleries, calendar appointments, music playback, FaceTime video calls, and more. As a user approaches the hub, or moves away from it, the size of the interface elements will reportedly adjust.
The device will be ideal for the kitchen, bedroom, and living room, and it will reportedly have multi-user support for families.
The hub reportedly has a 6-inch square display, and an A18 chip or newer for Apple Intelligence, with Siri AI expected to be a tentpole feature. A new operating system — potentially named "homeOS" — will feature clock faces, widgets, and more. There will be a tabletop version of the hub with a speaker base, plus a wall-mounted version.
Some of the preinstalled Apple apps that will apparently be available on the new platform include Calendar, Camera, Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, Apple News, Reminders, Notes, and the new Siri app with Siri AI conversation history.
The device is often referred to as a "HomePad" in rumors because of expectations that it will be sort of a HomePod-iPad hybrid, but perhaps Apple will opt for a straightforward "Apple Home" name, or perhaps it will go with "HomeView" based on trademark filings that are potentially linked to the company. We will soon find out.
