Apple used press releases, not a keynote, to rebuild its smart home on October 13. The headline is a product Apple has never sold before: HomeView, a $299 smart display meant to sit at the center of the house. It arrives alongside a $149 HomePod mini 2 and a fourth-generation Apple TV 4K that also costs $299, according to MacRumors’ recap of the announcements. Preorders for all three opened the same day.
HomeView is the screen Apple Home never had
HomeView pairs a 7-inch Liquid Retina display with an A18 chip and a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera. The tabletop version sits on a domed speaker base and comes in silver, starlight, rose pink and space gray. A separate wall-mounted version costs the same $299, comes in silver and space gray only, and needs a Schneider Home mount sold separately, starting at $59.95, according to MacObserver’s breakdown of Apple’s pricing.
The pitch is a shared screen that still feels personal. HomeView can recognize up to six people by face and switch to each person’s own content, act as a home hub, and show up to nine camera feeds at once. It runs Siri AI in beta at launch when it goes on sale November 13. That is a different promise from the one in our preview of the ‘Welcome Home’ event, where the hub was still an expected product rather than a priced, dated one.
The speaker and the TV box took opposite paths on Siri AI
HomePod mini 2 is the first of the new devices to arrive, on October 30. It uses an S10 chip and comes in pink, green, blue, white and midnight. But the feature that defines the rest of the lineup is not ready for it: Siri AI will reach HomePod mini 2 in a future software update, and Apple has not named a date, according to the launch coverage.
The new Apple TV 4K, also due November 13, moves the other way — and moves up in price. Its single 128-gigabyte configuration costs $299, compared with a $129 starting price for the previous generation in 2022. Inside are an A19 chip and Wi-Fi 7. Built-in far-field microphones allow hands-free Siri without the remote in hand, the updated Siri Remote gains Find My support, and the box can drive surround sound using four HomePods. Owners of older Apple TV 4K models, from the second generation onward, are not left out entirely: they are also set to receive Siri AI through the tvOS 27.2 beta, according to MacRumors.
Partners fill in the rest of the house
The fourth announcement, Apple Home Collection, is built by partners rather than by Apple itself. LG Electronics and Schneider Electric are making cameras, a video doorbell, a deadbolt lock, thermostats and sensors under the program, with prices starting at $39.95. The accessories begin arriving in December, with some products following in early 2027, and availability centered on the United States and Canada, with cameras also reaching the United Kingdom, according to the launch roundup.
The fine print is an iPhone, a map and a calendar
Across the lineup, the new intelligence leans on hardware many buyers already own. HomeView needs an iPhone or iPad for setup and for some AI features, and personal content depends on a paired, Apple Intelligence-capable device being nearby. HomeView will not be sold in the European Union at all, where Siri AI is not available on iOS, according to the launch coverage.
Timing is staggered, too. HomeView and the new Apple TV 4K carry Siri AI, in beta, from November 13. HomePod mini 2 waits for an update with no announced date. So Apple’s home finally has a screen, a cheaper entry speaker and a more ambitious TV box — but whether the household brain tying them together feels finished will depend on which device you buy, and when its update lands.
