Apple’s smart home device ambitions keep running into delays, and it seems the next-gen AI rebirth of Siri is to blame. According to Bloomberg, plans for a smart home display have now been pushed to September, putting it into the same launch slate as the Fall season debut for new iPhones. Some reports are calling it HomePad, while others refer to it as the HomePod with screen or home hub.
What’s the big shift?
“The product, code-named J490, was first scheduled for spring 2025 but was postponed to let the company finish work on a new Siri digital assistant — an integral piece of the device’s interface,” says the report. The device, which is currently in development under the codename J490, was apparently eyeing a March debut, but it seems those plans have now been pushed back by a few months.
Interestingly, the hardware development of the device has reportedly been finished for months, and it is only awaiting the big software upgrade that will allow it to run an upgraded Siri. To recall, Apple recently inked a deal with Google to use the Gemini foundations and use them to upgrade the conversational skills of Siri, and how it handles user commands.
Apple is pretty far behind in the race for AI home assistants. Amazon has already switched millions of Echo devices to the new Alexa+ assistant, while Google has also upgraded its ecosystem to Gemini. Siri, on the other hand, has continued to face delays, and it is taking a toll on Apple’s launch schedule for multiple smart home devices.
What’s this peculiar device?
Apple’s smart home device will reportedly be a mish-mash of an iPad and a HomePod speaker, albeit in a much condensed form factor. “The display, which looks like a square iPad that can be either affixed to a half-domed-shaped speaker base or a wall attachment, is designed to be a central AI hub for the home,” adds Bloomberg.
Separately, it has been reported that the device will use a magnetic wall mount system, somewhat similar to MagSafe on iPhones. The user interface, on the other hand, will look similar to the one on an Apple Watch. The most notable aspect of the device is a facial recognition system that will identify faces as well as voices, accordingly changing the content appearing on the screen as users come closer to the display.