Apple's "Home Hub" will probably not arrive until 2026
Apple has been working on a new control device for the smart home for some time. However, due to software problems, this will probably not come until later.
An iPhone is also a "home hub" – in a way.
(Image: Apple)
Apple's "Home device", aka "Home Hub", which has been circulating in the rumor mill for the past year, is unlikely to arrive before next year. This was reported by the financial news agency Bloomberg, confirming earlier reports. The hardware, codenamed J490, was originally supposed to come with new Siri functions that Apple had planned for iOS 18.4, but then had to postpone due to technical problems. These included the ability to access the user's context (context-sensitive Siri) and to read and/or interact with information on the screen. The Home Hub was also supposed to use a new version of the so-called App Intents, which can be used to control apps, but Apple has not yet distributed this either.
Home Hub with and without speakers
The Home Hub is intended to be a piece of hardware that allows users to control their smart home based on Apple's HomeKit standard. It is to have a six-inch square screen, run an operating system called homeOS and be controlled primarily by voice.
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An app store is reportedly not initially planned, but a camera for FaceTime calls is apparently built in. The SoC used could come from the iPhone 16 and would therefore be Apple Intelligence-ready. It was still unclear whether a speaker is built directly into the Home Hub or whether Apple is planning a kind of speaker dock for the device. The rumor mill was also divided whether the Home Hub might (also) represent a new version of Apple's HomePod speakers with a real touchscreen or whether such a model would appear in parallel.
Waiting for the "new Siri"
Bloomberg also writes that there are currently "little to no expectations" that the hardware will be released this year. Instead, Apple is expected to wait until the release of the "new Siri" next year.
Software boss Craig Federighi recently emphasized once again in an interview that this was "not vaporware". However, the decision was made to choose a new technical variant after the first one did not meet Apple's requirements. And that is exactly what will probably take until next year.
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