This is the HomePod with a screen that has been rumoured for years; it’s called Apple HomeView.
It is designed as a smart home hub, but it has some impressive audio chops courtesy of its custom-engineered acoustic system. This comprises two custom full-range drivers within the display itself that deliver Spatial Audio, while the down-firing woofer and two force-cancelling passive radiators in the base take care of the lower registers.
The computational audio (powered by Apple silicon and real-time sensors) promises to optimise continually the loudness and bass response. The wall-mounted version might lack the base’s bass capabilities, but the computational audio is tuned especially for on-wall placement.
That’s right, you can buy it either with the base for placing on a surface such as a kitchen counter or bedside table, or without for attaching to the wall. Both cost the same £299 / $299 / AU$449, but the wall-mounted model requires fittings and a power supply, both of which cost extra.
Like Apple’s HomePods, the HomeView can play music and wirelessly link up to other Apple speakers for multi-room audio. The difference is that the HomeView has a 7-inch Liquid Retina display that can show films and TV series, messages, calendars and FaceTime calls, and let you manage your smart home devices.
You control it either by tapping the touchscreen or with voice controls via Siri AI.
Thanks to facial recognition, it can serve up a personalised home screen for up to six users, all of whom can personalise Siri’s voice and even speaking speed. Pair it with your Apple Intelligence-powered device (such as the iPhone 18 Pro) and it can draw on your personal context, as long as you use Apple’s apps such as iMessage and Calendar.
On the version with a base, the screen can tilt for the perfect viewing angle, making it versatile in terms of placement. It's connected to the base by a stainless-steel hinge, and comes in four colours: silver, starlight, rose pink, or space grey. Each comes with a matching cable.
The screen has Apple’s True Tone tech that adapts the colour temperature depending on the ambient lighting conditions, while automatic brightness adjusts from 500 nits down to 0.3 nits for dark conditions. The interface even adjusts based on how far away from it you are, getting more detailed the closer you get.
You can personalise HomeView with your own photos, effectively making it double as a digital photo frame, or choose the Flow face to make it a piece of interactive digital art. Or add an animated Snoopy to the homepage, and watch him react to the time of day, the weather and sporting events (though thankfully not current events).
Album art on Apple Music is animated and serves up lyrics, while Handoff lets you continue listening to a song from your phone on HomeView by placing your handset in front of the HomeView display.
HomeView also works with Apple Home Collection, a new range of smart home cameras, thermostats and a lock, designed in collaboration with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric.
HomeView is Apple’s big play for the smart home – but how useful it will be depends on how ensconced you are in the Apple ecosystem. We’re looking forward to trying out its AV skills though.
It is available to pre-order now for £299 / $299 / AU$449. Shipping starts on 13th November.
MORE:
It’s official! The HomePod Mini 2 has finally landed – and there’s good news and bad news
The best smart speakers you can buy
