Apple is rumored to be working on a new smart home product. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that the company is developing a wall-mounted display for controlling appliances, interacting with Siri, and video conferencing. The tablet is said to look “like a square iPad” with “about a 6-inch screen.” It will have a camera at the top, as well as internal speakers and a built-in rechargeable battery. His sources said that this smart home display could be officially announced as early as March after three years of development.
This description is very similar to the Google Home Hub, which was released in 2018, or the Echo Show, which is already in its eighth iteration. If Apple wants to be a serious competitor in this smart home space, it will have to prove to customers that it has something to offer that these more established brands and products do not.
For now, the only differentiators are probably Apple Intelligence, which finally started rolling out to users in late October, and the upcoming App Intents system for AI-powered software control. But Apple may be looking further afield toward something more extravagant than just a smart device control panel. Gurman said that Apple is already working on a version with a robotic arm that could move the tablet. It will be interesting to see what Apple will officially launch and when.
