Apple HomePod smart speaker with 7-inch display and AI support will be released next year

A growing number of Apple devices are becoming compatible with the Apple Intelligence feature set, and next year it will include a new version of the HomePod smart speaker, which will get a 7-inch display and an A18 processor, DigiTimes reports, citing its own sources.

Google Nest Hub 2. Image source: Google

Apple chose the Chinese manufacturer Tianma as the supplier of displays for the new product, since it is able to offer an extremely competitive price of $10 per panel. One can only guess how such a decision will affect the cost of the entire device. The appearance of the HomePod speaker with a small display and an A18 processor that allows it to work with a set of Apple Intelligence functions was also predicted by the famous analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in the second half of next year. Such a device will be focused on managing the smart home ecosystem.

Mark Gurman, writing on Bloomberg last month, said that such a device would be proportionally similar to a “square iPad” with a roughly 6-inch display that could be docked with an additional battery and speaker, or hung up. on the wall. The homeOS operating system will focus on managing a smart home; both special widgets and broadcasts from CCTV cameras can be displayed on the device’s display. The device’s built-in camera will provide the ability to make FaceTime calls. This version of HomePod can be accompanied by a wireless video surveillance camera.

A new device with a display may not be included in the HomePod family, but will receive a separate designation. It is also impossible to say with certainty whether the HomePod family of speakers will be updated at the same time, but an updated compact HomePod mini may appear next year.