The usually very knowledgeable Mark Gurman explains in his latest Power On Newsletter that Apple is preparing a new ultra-premium HomePod as well as a new version of the HomePod. For the time being, the firm’s connected home efforts remain behind the competition.
Not that HomePods are bad products per se – in many ways it’s quite the opposite. But the price charged by the firm, and the weakness of the HomeKit connected object ecosystem compared to what Amazon and Google offer, clearly did not help Apple in the category.
Apple will go back on the offensive on the HomePod and the connected home
Apple even withdrew from sale the first HomePod, the most hifi and advanced – proposed around 350 € when it was released. The HomePod mini by comparison is sold for a much more accessible price of 99 euros and is offered in a range of more attractive colors.
However, according to the journalist, Apple has “at least four new connected home devices in development, although not all will see the light of day”. One of the devices, codenamed B620, will carry the same S8 chip as the Apple Watch S8 and will be closer “in terms of audio format and performance” of the original HomePod.
A new HomePod mini, for its part, would benefit from Bluetooth 5.2 among other new features. But according to the journalist, Apple is also preparing surprises. There would thus be a kitchen appliance that combines an iPad and a connected speaker. And a device for the living room that combines Apple TV, video sensor, and HomePod.
According to Mark Gurman, we should know more quickly. Apple has already largely planned the launch of these products – it should be about 2023, or even the very beginning of 2024. The whole question now is whether Apple has learned from its mistakes in the category.
Read also – Will Apple try its luck again with a new HomePod?
The question of price, but also compatibility seem to be the two main points that prevent more users from taking an interest in the firm’s efforts in the connected home… at least for the moment.
