Apple's Smart Home Hub: everything we know so far

Apple is working on a new smart home accessory that will act as a hub for interacting with Siri AI, controlling HomeKit devices, watching videos, checking the calendar and weather, and generally offering useful information to all members of the family.

This guide compiles everything we know about Apple’s smart home hub.

Project

Apple’s smart home device will look somewhat like an iPad and have a display-focused design. It should be square rather than rectangular and will measure 6 inches with quarter-inch black frames around the edges.

In terms of size, it will look similar to two iPhones side by side and will be as thick as one iPhone. Apple envisions people having multiples of the hub in different rooms of the house. The device will support touch input for opening apps and controlling connected devices.

Apple is making two versions of the home hub. One will have a 6-inch display and is meant to be wall-mounted, while the second version has the same 6-inch display and a hemispherical speaker base that resembles the iMac G4. The display attaches to the base with a shiny metal arm that supports the small screen and allows it to be tilted forward or backward. The base features perforations for speaker holes and a rubber bottom for stability.

The original ‌iMac‌ G4

The wall mount version will have a slim square base for the speakers and microphones and will sit flush with the wall. Both models will have a 1080p front camera for FaceTime calls, user authentication and recognizing different people in the home. Apple plans to release the hub with a gray aluminum finish.

The device has no internal battery and is instead meant to be used while connected to power via USB-C.

Sensors

The smart home hub will be able to determine how close a person is to it, adjusting features from there. When no one is nearby, for example, it might show the temperature, but when someone approaches, it might switch to an interface for adjusting the thermostat.

People detection will likely allow it to be used in smart home automations to do things like turn on lights when someone enters a room. The sensor will be able to distinguish one person from another and could recognize hand gestures for long-range control.

Facial recognition

The Home Hub will use a feature similar to Face ID along with voice for authentication and to identify who is in a room. With the recognition features, the home hub will be able to switch to the profile of the person in the house who interacts with the device. Each user will have a customizable profile and an interface with options to edit profiles via Control Center.

The camera won’t be as accurate as Face ID, so voice is an alternative. Apple’s HomePod also uses voice recognition for some personalized features. Users will be able to set up secondary authentication with an iPhone for added security, and a visitor mode will hide personal information.

Rumors suggest that there is a Mac-style side light around the screen to offer illumination so the device can identify people in the dark.

Chip

Apple’s smart home accessory is expected to use an A18 chip or better for Apple Intelligence support. Since ‌Apple Intelligence‌ requires a minimum of 8GB of RAM, it will have at least 8GB of RAM.

Operating system

Apple’s Home Hub will run an operating system that Apple internally calls “Charismatic,” though it may be called homeOS at launch. It will use elements of tvOS, watchOS, and iOS and will sync with your iPhone for setup purposes.

Interface

Apple doesn’t plan to create a dedicated App Store for the Home Hub, but it will come with several pre-installed apps. The main view will be a customizable home screen with widgets that can show the weather, important home controls, photo slideshows, upcoming events, and more. A built-in camera will scan each user’s face, displaying different apps and a home screen for each person.

The interface is something like a cross between watchOS and the iPhone’s StandBy mode, with a heavy focus on watch faces and photo slideshows when the device is idle. The ‌Home Screen‌ will feature icons similar to those on the Apple Watch, but the apps will have an iPad-like design with a two-panel layout. There will be familiar customization options like holding to rearrange icons and swiping up to access the app launcher.

There will be a Widget Gallery that suggests widgets from a connected iPhone. Widgets viewed on the device from a connected iPhone will only display the widget content when the primary user is at home. A Smart Stack will be available to intelligently rotate different widget options throughout the day, and the watch will be customizable with a Face Gallery.

The hub will adopt the visual aesthetic of ‌Siri‌ AI, with darker design elements. There will be a software-based dock for launching apps, and the hub will be built around ‌Siri‌ artificial intelligence.

App

Several Apple apps will be installed even if there will not be a dedicated ‌App Store‌. Rumored App:

The hub will support integration into ‌HomeKit‌ scenes alongside other smart home products and will play video, so it can be used for things like following a recipe when you’re in the kitchen.

Intercom

You can use more than one device throughout your home, and two or more can act as a room-to-room intercom.

AirPlay

With its built-in speakers, the device will support music playback and can function as an AirPlay receiver.

Registered trademark homeOS

Apple appears to be using a shell company to register the “homeOS” trademark in several countries around the world, with the trademark set to begin in October 2024. Apple has secured the homeOS trademark in Liechtenstein, and trademarks are pending in the United States, Argentina, Peru, and more.

Future smart home accessories

Apple is creating an in-home security camera that will connect to your home hub and is rumored to be for 2027. Privacy would be a focus, providing an alternative to cameras from companies like Ring and Nest.