What happened
Apple announced the HomeView, a 7-inch screen with a speaker base that also comes in a wall-mountable version, priced at $299 and up for preorder ahead of its November 13 launch.
Why it matters
The device gives Apple's revamped assistant a presence in the home, and can recognize up to six household members by their face, addressing Apple's small share of the smart speaker market.
WHO IT HITSApple's revamped Siri AI only works on the iPhone 15 Pro and later, so family members with older iPhones that don't support Apple's AI features will be able to try Siri AI on the new smart home device.
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Apple's smart home track record has been uneven. The company has been selling HomePod smart speakers since 2017, but those devices have failed to gain widespread traction, and Amazon and Google ran away with the smart speaker market in the late 2010s. By 2025, Apple held just 5.2% of that market, according to the International Data Corporation, compared with 40.9% for Amazon and 29% for Google.
The HomeView arrives as Apple faces pressure to prove it can come up with a new hit product for the age of AI, with analysts pressing executives on earnings calls about whether the company plans to develop new AI-powered gadgets. The device is one of several new gadgets launched under new Apple CEO John Ternus, following the debut of Apple's first foldable iPhone last month. Apple also announced a new version of the HomePod Mini, an updated Apple TV 4K with Siri AI and a collection of smart home devices designed with LG and Schneider Electric.
Apple is betting that its privacy focus and the fact that consumers already run their digital lives on its iPhones, iPads and Macs will give it an edge. The HomeView, which changes its home screen depending on who is interacting with it, follows that strategy. But the company has also insisted consumers don't need a new gadget to get the most out of AI, with Ternus saying at an event last month that "there's no product in the world better designed" to be a personal hub than the iPhone.
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