Apple moves into the home: at 4 p.m. Kyiv time it is expected to show a hub with a screen, a new HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K. No live broadcast appears to be planned.
Today, October 13, Apple holds a launch event called Welcome Home. The company announced it on October 8, and the teaser tagline gives nothing away about specific products. Beyond the date, the name and the venue, everything below comes from leaks and reporting rather than from Apple itself.
No Cupertino, No Keynote Stage: What Apple Has Confirmed
The date is Tuesday, October 13, and the announcement came from Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak. The event is not at Apple Park. Press and creators have been invited to an Apple Experience in Tribeca, New York, starting at 9 a.m. Eastern, which is 4 p.m. in Kyiv.
The format looks different from a classic keynote. Welcome Home was not added to Apple’s Events page, and no livestream has turned up on YouTube or in the Apple TV app. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says to expect an online video presentation alongside a hands-on session for journalists, so there may be no live stage to watch.
A Screen in Every Room: What Apple Will Likely Show
The smart home hub. This is the headline act. Rumors call it HomePad, though Apple’s real name is unknown. It is described as a touchscreen device with a display of roughly six inches, a camera and a presence sensor that recognizes who has walked into the room and rebuilds the interface for that person. It is expected to handle FaceTime, calendars, news and video. Two versions are reported: one for the wall and one on a countertop stand. The price most often mentioned is around $350.
A new HomePod mini. Expect fresh colors, the N1 networking chip for better Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and a faster processor that can run Siri AI.
A new Apple TV 4K. The box has not been refreshed since November 2022. A new chip should let it run Apple Intelligence and Siri AI, and code references hint at a mode that ties four full-size HomePods into a surround system with the Apple TV.
Accessories made with LG. Gurman suggests Apple may also show a doorbell, a smart lock and a thermostat built together with LG.
Pricing, release dates and supported countries will only become clear once Apple speaks.
A Year of Delays and a Game on Someone Else’s Turf
The hub was meant to arrive in 2025. Delays to the rebuilt, AI-powered Siri pushed it back, and Siri AI only appeared last month, still labeled as a beta. Now Apple enters a category where Amazon and Google have been selling screens for the home for years, and it does so with its second major launch under CEO John Ternus.
This Is Only the Start: Two More Launches in Two Weeks
Welcome Home is not the last event of the autumn. The foldable iPhone Duo is reported to arrive on October 23. Four days later, on October 27, Apple is expected to follow up with a MacBook Pro that has a touchscreen OLED display and an iPad mini with an OLED panel.
Keep Reading: Every Device on Its Own
- The smart home hub
- HomePod mini
- Apple TV 4K
- LG smart home accessories
- iPhone Duo
- MacBook Pro with OLED display
- iPad mini with OLED display
Більше новин в телеграмі
