Apple announces the all-new HomeView, its Smart Display for the Home

Apple HomeView Is Apple’s All-New Smart Display for the Home

Apple is officially entering the smart-display market with HomeView, an all-new device designed to bring entertainment, communication and smart-home controls together in one place.

HomeView looks like a compact display attached to a speaker base, but Apple wants it to be much more than a screen for checking the weather. It can play music, make FaceTime calls, show family photos, display recipes, control compatible smart-home devices and provide personalised information using Siri AI.

What makes HomeView especially interesting to me is how deeply it connects with the wider Apple ecosystem. It is not simply an iPad permanently attached to a speaker. Apple has designed the hardware and software specifically for shared spaces such as the kitchen, living room, hallway or bedroom.

A shared device that feels personal

HomeView can recognise up to six people by their faces. When someone approaches the display, it automatically switches to that person’s Home Screen, apps, widgets and personal information.

This allows everyone in the household to share the same device without seeing each other’s private messages, calendars or reminders.

Apple has added another layer of protection for particularly sensitive information. Personal content is only displayed after HomeView recognises the enrolled user and confirms that their paired iPhone or iPad is nearby and has recently been unlocked.

That is a thoughtful approach to privacy for a screen that could be placed in a busy family kitchen or hallway.

Siri AI Is at the Centre of HomeView

HomeView is powered by the A18 chip and includes Apple’s more conversational Siri AI assistant.

Anyone can use Siri AI to ask general questions, discover music or control compatible smart-home devices. Owners of an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone or iPad receive a more personalised experience, with Siri able to use relevant information from apps such as Messages and Calendar.

This could make everyday requests much more natural. You might ask Siri about an upcoming appointment, find information someone sent you in a message or continue a conversation on another Apple device.

Siri conversations can move between HomeView, iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro through privately synchronised conversation history.

Even people without a compatible iPhone or iPad can still use Siri AI’s general knowledge, conversational abilities and music-discovery features. Personal-context requests, however, require a compatible paired device.

Designed for a Table or Wall

The standard HomeView has a 7-inch Liquid Retina display connected to a domed speaker base by a stainless-steel hinge. The screen can be tilted to improve visibility when the device is positioned on a kitchen counter, desk, nightstand or side table.

It is available in silver, starlight, rose pink and space grey, with a matching power cable included for each colour.

Apple is also releasing a wall-mounted model in silver and space grey. It offers the same display and core features, although its audio system has been adjusted for wall placement.

Purpose-built wall mounts will be available with self-installation and professional-installation options.

A display that reacts to its environment

The Liquid Retina display uses True Tone to adapt its appearance to the room’s lighting.

Brightness can reach 500 nits during the day before dropping as low as 0.3 nits at night. That extremely low minimum brightness should make HomeView far more suitable for a bedroom than a conventional tablet or smart display that remains distractingly bright.

The interface also changes depending on your distance from the device. From across the room, HomeView displays larger and simpler information. As you move closer, it can reveal additional controls and details.

Personal faces and family photos

HomeView includes a collection of customisable faces that turn the display into a clock, information panel, digital photo frame or piece of interactive artwork.

The Photos face can apply portrait-style depth effects to images, keeping the main subject sharp while softly blurring the foreground and background. Shared albums can also be displayed, allowing family members to add new photographs remotely.

The animated Flow face reacts to nearby movement, while the Snoopy face changes its animations according to the time, weather, sporting events and holidays.

More serious audio than you might expect

The tabletop HomeView has two full-range drivers built into the display, a downward-firing woofer and two force-cancelling passive radiators in its base.

The system supports Spatial Audio and uses computational processing to optimise its volume and bass response in real time. Apple claims it can produce room-filling sound despite the device’s compact size.

The wall-mounted version uses two custom drivers and computational audio tuned specifically for its position against a wall.

HomeView supports Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, Apple News, Apple TV and compatible third-party applications. Handoff allows you to transfer music from an iPhone by holding it near the display.

It can also join HomePods, other HomeView devices and AirPlay-compatible speakers as part of a multiroom audio system.

FaceTime, Messages and Family Communication

HomeView includes FaceTime with Center Stage, allowing its camera to keep people framed as they move around the room.

Messages can be read and answered with your voice or the onscreen keyboard. The Intercom feature can broadcast announcements to a particular room or across the entire home through other HomeView devices, HomePods, iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches.

HomeView can also display shared locations through Find My and help locate devices or belongings connected to an AirTag.

Live Activities provide glanceable information about active timers, currently playing music and incoming Intercom messages.

Apple HomeView Specifications

• Price: $299 in the United States

• Processor: Apple A18

• Display: 7-inch Liquid Retina display

• Display features: True Tone and automatic brightness

• Maximum brightness: 500 nits

• Minimum brightness: 0.3 nits

• Interface: Automatically changes according to the viewer’s distance

• Voice assistant: Siri AI powered by Apple Intelligence

• User recognition: Facial recognition for up to six people

• Personalisation: Individual Home Screens, applications and widgets

• Camera features: FaceTime with Center Stage and smart-home camera viewing

• Tabletop audio: Two full-range drivers, one downward-firing woofer and two force-cancelling passive radiators

• Wall-mounted audio: Two custom drivers tuned for wall placement

• Audio technologies: Spatial Audio and real-time computational audio

• Music features: Apple Music, lyrics, animated artwork, Handoff and multiroom audio

• Communication: FaceTime, Messages and Intercom

• Smart-home controls: Lights, thermostats, locks, blinds, cameras and automations

• Camera dashboard: Up to nine live camera feeds

• Security features: Recognition of people, faces, pets, packages and vehicles with a supported iCloud+ plan

• Alarm detection: Listens for smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms

• Smart-home compatibility: Apple Home Collection, Works with Apple Home and Matter accessories

• Other applications: Calendar, Reminders, Find My, Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, Apple News and Apple TV

• Privacy processing: Secure Exclaves, on-device processing and Private Cloud Compute

• Tabletop colours: Silver, starlight, rose pink and space grey

• Wall-mounted colours: Silver and space grey

• Installation options: Tabletop model or separate wall-mounted model

• Release date: November 13

• Initial markets: Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States

• European Union availability: Not available at launch because of Siri AI.

My Take

Amazon and Google have offered smart displays for years, but Apple’s approach places a much stronger emphasis on personalisation, privacy and integration with the devices people already use. Facial recognition for six household members, powerful audio, FaceTime, Find My and a complete Apple Home dashboard make HomeView feel far more ambitious than simply a HomePod with a screen attached.

One important limitation is that HomeView does not include an App Store. Apple says the device supports compatible third-party audio and video apps, but users will not be able to browse a traditional store and install any application they want.

Services such as YouTube and Netflix could eventually be supported, but neither company has confirmed a dedicated HomeView app yet. Until they do, buyers should not assume their favourite streaming services will be available at launch.

Apple HomeView will also not be sold in the European Union at launch because Siri AI is not currently available there. Apple says it is working to find a path forward, but there is no confirmed European release date.

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