Apple is set to hold its "Welcome Home" launch event in New York on October 13th at 9AM ET, with smart home hardware and software expected to dominate the announcements. The company is anticipated to refresh the Apple TV and HomePod Mini while introducing an entirely new smart home hub. A new platform called homeOS and partner devices from LG may also make their debut.
The centerpiece is expected to be a device that could carry the name HomePad, HomeView, or Apple Home Hub. According to Mark Gurman, it will feature a 6-inch square touchscreen that can be mounted on a wall or set on a table or countertop, with the countertop version resembling the iMac G4 in the way its screen attaches to an arm set into a half sphere. The device is said to use voice or facial recognition to identify who is interacting with it and pull up relevant contacts and calendar appointments, with an iPhone serving as an option for secondary identification to protect personal data.
The hub will reportedly run a new software platform. Apple may have registered a trademark for the name through a shell company called Home Operations Suite LLC, a tactic the company has used before to quietly secure naming rights. Gurman describes the interface as a mashup of iOS, tvOS, and watchOS, with a focus on smart home functions such as controlling thermostats and smart locks, plus FaceTime calling and standard Apple apps and widgets including Apple Music, Podcasts, News, Reminders, Notes, and Siri AI.
Changes to the HomePod Mini and Apple TV are expected to be modest. Both will keep their current designs but gain a new processor to handle the added demands of Siri AI. The HomePod Mini update would be its first since it was announced on October 13th, 2020, exactly six years before the Welcome Home event, and it will arrive in new colors including green and pink. The Apple TV would see its first hardware refresh since 2022, with the new processor also speeding up navigation. Both are expected to use Apple's N1 chip, which includes support for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 6.0.
Apple is likely to mention products that integrate with HomeKit and add features built on top of homeOS and its hardware hub. A leak has already shown LG smart home products including deadbolts and thermostats. Those devices will reportedly include an NFC-based Proximity Control that surfaces a hint in the iPhone's Dynamic Island when held near the device, along with a tap to set up without power pairing feature.
One product likely absent from the event is the long-rumored touchscreen MacBook, which Gurman says will debut later this month.
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