Apple launched several new smart home products on Tuesday, October 13, including a new iPad-like device called HomeView. The company hopes its AI-upgraded Siri virtual assistant will help it gain a bigger share of the competitive smart home market.
Apple’s new HomeView device is priced at $299 and will begin shipping next month. HomeView comes with a 7-inch display and face recognition technology. Apple has been trying to expand its presence in the connected home market for around a decade, but its products have not achieved major success against rivals such as Amazon and Google, Reuters reported.
It can help users manage smart home products such as video doorbells, thermostats and smart locks, according to Reuters. It is designed to help people control connected devices around their homes. Apple wants its AI-powered Siri assistant to do more than respond to basic voice commands. The company hopes Siri will help people manage everyday household tasks more easily through connected devices. Apple’s new device will compete with Amazon’s Echo range of smart speakers and Google Home devices. Amazon has also invested heavily in its Ring video doorbells. The competition is becoming stronger as companies upgrade their devices with newer AI features.
HomeView starts at $299, making it more expensive than Amazon’s Echo Show 8, priced at $199.99, and Google’s Nest Hub, priced at $99.99. Because many people already use its products, pescatore said Apple has an opportunity. Because its Siri AI features remain unavailable there due to EU regulations, apple said it would not sell HomeView in the European Union.
Alongside HomeView, Apple announced updates to its HomePod smart speaker and Apple TV devices.
Paolo Pescatore, an analyst at PP Foresight, said Apple needs to show that its AI technology can provide meaningful benefits beyond simple voice commands. He said AI should make everyday household tasks easier and make smart home devices more intelligent. He warned that AI alone may not convince households to buy more devices, according to Reuters. However, analysts remain uncertain about whether Siri’s AI features are strong enough to convince consumers to choose Apple’s smart home products over competing devices, according to Reuters. Mohit Agrawal, research director at Counterpoint, said many smart speakers and home hubs currently used by consumers are low-cost devices that cannot run AI directly on the device. He said these products could be ready for replacement, creating an opportunity for Apple, according to Reuters. Agrawal said Amazon and Google had only recently begun refreshing their hardware for Alexa+ and Gemini, respectively. He said the upgrade cycle was still open, giving Apple an opportunity to win customers looking for more advanced smart home devices.
However, he added that reliability, trust and ease of use will determine whether consumers adopt the new features. Apple upgraded Siri’s capabilities during the summer with assistance from Google. The company is expanding its smart home offerings as it tries to compete more effectively with Amazon and Google. During a video demonstration, Apple showed that HomeView could be hung on a wall or placed on a tabletop. The demonstration also showed Siri handling voice requests from multiple members of a family at the same time. This limits the device’s initial market reach. Analysts have identified two major problems for Apple in the smart home market. Its devices need to work smoothly with products made by different companies, and Siri needs to provide more useful answers to users. Apple will need to convince customers that its features and user experience justify the higher price. Apple’s HomeView launch gives the company another chance to expand its smart home business. However, its success will depend on whether Siri can offer genuinely useful AI features, work reliably with connected devices and convince consumers to pay more than they would for competing products from Amazon and Google.
