Apple’s HomePad might make me bin my Google Nest Hubs
The information comes from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who has reported on the launch event date as well as some key details. First-gen devices are normally a steer clear but possibly not in this case.
The smart home hub is code-named J490, though many are pre-emptively calling it the Apple HomePad (understandably so). It’s been delayed a few years due to the development of Siri AI.
Gurman says it will have a roughly 6-inch square display, as thin as an iPhone and you’ll be able to place it on a countertop or wall mount (though this is another version by codename J491).
The idea being that you can place a few around the home. It also has a light around the edge which will activate when you walk up to it.
It’s set to look like a tiny version of Apple’s iconic iMac G4 from 2002, partly thanks to the domed base and a polished metal arm.
That larger display and automatic movement functionality similar to Facebook’s old Meta Portal smart screens sounds like a killer combo
It will be able to “serve multiple members of a household” and it will do this via voice recognition and provide a customised interface and data based on that user. In general, as you’d expect, the device is able to control other smart home devices like thermostats, make FaceTime calls, view photos, control music playback and more.