Apple launched the second-generation HomePod in January this year. Now reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reveals the Cupertino-based tech giant’s plans on a new smart speaker and its launch timeline.
As per Kuo, Apple will unveil a HomePod with a new design. It is tipped to feature a 7-inch display panel touted to enable tighter integration with the company’s other hardware products. It will pack more functionality and the device could offer FaceTime capabilities via a built-in camera. This will also mark a significant shift in Apple’s smart home strategy. Apple’s existing HomePods have small circular displays on the top with limited functionality and mostly used as a status indicator.
Kuo adds that Tianma Microelectronics will be the exclusive supplier of display panels for the next-generation HomePod. If all goes well, the supplier may also receive display orders for the iPads in future.
In the past, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman had hinted at Apple’s plans to launch a HomePod with a display and camera. It will reportedly run on tvOS offering various functionalities. Reports also surfaced that Apple was working on a iPad-style device to be used as a smart home controller and FaceTime device with magnetic fasteners. If the reports indeed turn out to be true, the next-generation HomePod with display will compete against the Google Nest Hub and Amazon Echo Show.
Both Kuo and Gurman are reliable when it comes to unreleased Apple devices. Kuo adds that Apple could launch the HomePod with a display in the first half of 2024. The HomePod has been the most unpredictable device in Apple’s product portfolio.
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