It’s been another crazy and busy week for Apple, headlined by Tuesday seeing the company unveil several home-related products as part of a “Welcome Home” launch wave.
And as if that wasn’t enough, Friday saw the start of iPhone Duo pre-orders with delivery estimates quickly slipping by the month amid its popularity and apparent product shortages, while we can’t wait to launch even more products later this month, so read on below for all the details!
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Apple announces “HomeView” smart home hub.
Apple’s long-awaited smart home hub is finally official, with Apple debuting the $299 HomeView as part of its “Welcome home” product launch this week.
Apple HomeView features a 7-inch Liquid Retina display and AI Siri support and is available in both desktop and wall-mount versions. The device can recognize multiple users and adjust the presentation of information depending on the user’s distance from the screen, and supports Photos faces, Apple Music playlists, FaceTime calls and more.
Pre-orders are now underway with launch scheduled for November 13th.
New Apple TV 4K announced with A19 chip, updated Siri remote and more
While Apple HomeView was the main attraction at this week’s presentations, the Apple TV box also received its first update in four years with the unveiling of the fourth-generation Apple TV 4K.
The new box gets a big update to the A19 chip, which provides AI Siri support and improved performance. A new Siri Remote (also available separately for older devices) includes Find My with Precision Finding support and a speaker to let it be heard if you lose it. And for times when you want to use Siri without the remote, the box itself now also includes microphones for hands-free Siri AI.
The new box comes with a significant price increase to $299 and is available to pre-order now ahead of its November 13 launch.
Apple announces $149 HomePod Mini 2 with Siri AI, “Sound Glow,” and four-speaker surround sound
Apple’s third home product announcement of the week was a new HomePod mini featuring Siri AI, new colors and improved audio experiences. The HomePod mini 2 has an S10 chip that supports advanced computational audio, and Apple says it optimizes dynamic range, loudness, and acoustic performance in real time.
A Sound Glow feature transforms the top of the HomePod mini into a “visual canvas” that lights up and comes alive in sync with music, reacting to bass and treble. It uses the colors generated by the song’s album cover for a unique experience for each song.
The HomePod mini 2 is priced at $149 and is available for pre-order now ahead of its October 30 launch. However, Siri AI will not be available at launch, as it will arrive in a future software update.
iPhone Duo sold out for Christmas as shipping estimates slide to 2027
Apple began accepting iPhone Duo pre-orders in several countries at 5 a.m. Pacific Time on Friday, with delivery estimates starting to drop within minutes if not seconds. Within half an hour, US delivery estimates finally stabilized at the end of January 2027, a three-month delay.
It remains to be seen how much stock Apple will have in its retail stores for walk-in purchases on its October 23 launch date, and scalpers are already selling off advance pre-orders for up to $5,000.
Apple invites the media to the “Launch Experience” on October 28
After previously reporting that Apple was planning a two-day product reveal in Los Angeles on October 27 and 28 for select content creators and members of the media to try out even more upcoming Apple products, BloombergMark Gurman now says that Apple has started explicitly inviting members of the media to the October 28 event.
We expect to see several more products launch on October 27 or 28, including new high-end 14- and 16-inch MacBook models with touchscreen OLED displays, new iMac and entry-level MacBook Pro models based on the M6 chip, and a new iPad mini with an OLED display.
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