Apple's new "home device" will probably not arrive until next year
Apple wants to bring a mixture of HomePod and touchscreen to HomeKit control, but the device needs the better Siri. And that won't arrive until 2026.
Siri (symbolic image): Still waiting for the big one.
(Image: Erstellt mit Grok durch Mac & i)
Apple's new “home device” will probably – be postponed until next year, just like the smarter Siri with various new functions –. According to the financial news agency Bloomberg, Apple has tried to postpone the new hardware until the fall, for example, to coincide with the release of the new iPhones. However, this is unlikely to work and Apple is now considering a delay until 2026.
iPad, HomePod, HomeKit and a missing Siri
Apple is planning to launch a new control center for HomeKit homes, which will be a kind of small iPad. It is conceivable that it can be combined with a HomePod speaker via a dock – or that the speaker itself will have a screen. It is clear that the device should have relied less on apps – an app store is reportedly not planned – than on Siri. Apple actually wanted to make the voice assistant fit for the future with iOS 18.4 or 18.5: with context-sensitive actions, knowledge about the respective person and control over apps including reading the screen.
However, although Apple had already advertised some of the functions – even on television – it became apparent that there was a lack of implementation. The company now says that the new Siri will be launched on the market in a year's time. It is unclear exactly what this means in terms of timing. Apple is said to have reorganized its AI department, Siri has a different set-up and a new boss. It remains to be seen whether this will help, as Siri has been a known nuisance for years.
Research projects in the lab
Testing of the device, codenamed J490, continues at Apple headquarters. Numerous employees are also trying it out at home, according to the report. The idea at Apple is said to have been that J490 is just the beginning of a whole new series – with AI personality, innovative sensors and perhaps even a robotic arm that aligns the screen.
Interestingly, Apple itself had such a research project at the start, even with video. However, there is still a long way to go before that happens. First of all, Siri needs to be upgraded. Observers disagree whether Apple will really succeed. Siri will be 15 years old next year and has only ever shown sluggish improvements.
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