New York Apple event teases AI features for your home

Apple launched three devices built around Siri AI and a new range of accessories made with partners. Here’s the lineup:

• HomeView, $299: a 7-inch touchscreen hub in a countertop version with a speaker base or a slim wall-mounted version.
• HomePod mini 2, $149: the small speaker gets a faster chip, new colors including green, and better sound.
• Apple TV 4K, $299: the fourth-generation box adds microphones for Siri, more storage, a faster A19 chip and Wi-Fi 7.
• Apple Home Collection: cameras, a video doorbell, a lock and thermostats made with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric.

The format was unusual too. Rather than a traditional keynote, Apple put out the news by press release and gave invited reporters hands-on time at an “Apple Experience” session in the Tribeca neighborhood of New York, with a “Welcome home” theme.

Most of the pre-event reporting held up. Leaks had pointed to exactly three devices: a home hub, a second HomePod mini and a new Apple TV 4K, all running Siri AI. They also correctly predicted desk and wall-mount versions of the hub and a partnership with LG.

The misses were in the details. The hub was widely called the Home Hub or HomePad, and some reports said it would look like the old iMac G4, the classic Mac whose screen sat on an arm like a desk lamp. The final product is called HomeView, and it looks more like a square mini iPad sitting on a rounded speaker. The screen is 7 inches, not 6.

Welcome home. October 13. pic.twitter.com/ChelGSDOTI

— Greg Joswiak (@gregjoz) October 8, 2026

HomeView acts as a control panel for your smart home. You can check up to nine security camera feeds at once, change the temperature, switch lights on and broadcast an intercom message to one room or the whole house. It also plays Apple Music, podcasts and Apple TV content, and it works with Find My, so you can ask it to locate a lost iPhone.

Its built-in camera recognizes up to six household members and shows each person their own apps, widgets and calendar. Apple says each person’s chats and personal details are kept to themselves, while family photo albums and music can be shared by all.

There is a catch for some households. At launch, third-party apps are not available, so there is no Spotify app and no Google Calendar view. Spotify only works by streaming to it with AirPlay. The wall-mounted model also needs a separately sold mount, starting at $59.95.

For iPhone owners, the appeal is setup and privacy. Apple’s new accessories pair by tapping them with an iPhone, and the LG and Schneider devices are end-to-end encrypted, meaning only your devices can read the video and data.

The cost adds up, though. HomeView makes the most sense if you already use Apple Music and own devices that work with Apple Home or Matter, the industry standard that lets smart home gear from different brands work together. Buying a hub, a few cameras and a thermostat at once is a several-hundred-dollar project.

The HomePod mini 2 is the easier buy. At $149 it costs more than the cheapest Google and Amazon speakers, but four of them can be paired with the new Apple TV 4K for surround sound. One early tester said that setup sounded close to a soundbar.

The Apple TV 4K upgrade is more practical than flashy. Its three microphones let you ask Siri what to watch, with answers shown as text in a corner of the screen, and you can ask the box where your remote is, which makes the remote chime.

Preorders for all three devices opened on October 13. The HomePod mini 2 ships first, on October 30. HomeView and the Apple TV 4K follow on November 13. Apple has confirmed HomeView for the US, the UK and Canada, among other markets, but the European Union is left out for now because Siri AI isn’t available there.

Two caveats if you’re planning a purchase. Apple says the HomePod mini 2 won’t support Siri AI right away, and Siri AI starts as a beta in English only. No launch date had been given for the Home Collection accessories when the products were announced.