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Apple announced HomeView, its first smart home display, and The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy tried the device in a hands-on session. The $299 display combines Apple Home controls, camera feeds, Siri features and recipe guidance; preorders are open, with shipping scheduled to start Nov. 13.
Apple has announced HomeView, its first smart home display, and The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy has tested the $299, 7-inch device in a hands-on session. The display is designed to control Apple Home devices and serve as a household assistant, with preorders open and shipping scheduled to begin Nov. 13.
Tuohy described the HomeView as smaller than expected, with a square Liquid Retina touchscreen and a compact aluminum base that also serves as a speaker. The screen appeared bright and responsive during her trial. Apple offers tabletop and wall-mounted versions, and the device can display photos and customizable “faces,” many of which resemble Apple Watch faces.
A dedicated Home Widget face brings controls from the Apple Home app to the display. In her hands-on, Tuohy tapped controls for a thermostat and door lock and activated a scene. She also swiped to view live feeds from HomeKit Secure Video cameras; selecting a feed provided access to nearby accessories, including a garage door. When she attempted to unlock a door, the device required authentication with her face or iPhone.
The display uses a series of swipe gestures to move among faces, widgets, apps and a control center. Its 12-megapixel camera can be enabled from that control center. The report also describes demonstrations of Siri features, FaceTime with Center Stage, and a cooking mode that can transfer a recipe from an iPhone using Handoff and display it with step-by-step instructions and inline timers.
A Wall Display for Apple Home
HomeView gives Apple customers a dedicated, walk-up screen for controlling connected devices, rather than requiring them to find and unlock an iPhone. That could make common household actions—checking a camera, adjusting a thermostat or running a scene—easier to carry out from a central spot. The wall-mounted option could serve as a fixed control point, while the tabletop model is suited to counters or other shared spaces.
Apple is also positioning the device as more than a remote control. The company’s demonstrations showed Siri drawing on personal information to coordinate an arrival with a smart-home routine, while the recipe feature links a phone’s content to an at-home task. Those capabilities could make the display more useful across daily routines, but the hands-on report tested only a limited set of functions. How well they work in regular use remains to be seen.
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How HomeView Fits Apple’s Home
The Home Widget is described in the report as a larger-screen version of controls available in Apple’s Home app. It surfaces compatible smart-home devices and camera feeds, while maintaining security checks for sensitive actions such as unlocking a door. The display also shows apps that populate from the user’s phone, according to Tuohy’s account of the device.
Apple’s pitch extends beyond device control: HomeView combines the Home app, Siri and personal context on a shared household screen. In one demonstration, Siri answered a question about a visitor’s flight using a message, estimated the trip from the airport by train, and set a coffee-maker routine for before the expected arrival. Tuohy did not personally test that feature, so the example is a demonstration rather than an independently verified result.
“The first thing that struck me about the HomeView was its size. It’s much smaller than I expected.”
— Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, The Verge
Features Still Awaiting Testing
The hands-on report covered only a portion of HomeView’s functions. Tuohy said she did not personally test the Siri feature that combines messages, travel information and smart-home actions; she saw it in a demonstration. The report also does not establish how accurately or consistently Siri will handle those requests in everyday use, or how the device performs over extended use.
Apple says most recipes using Google formatting will work with the guided cooking experience, but the report does not confirm compatibility across recipe sources. Tuohy specifically wondered how it would handle recipes from TikTok. Details not provided in the report include battery or power requirements, privacy settings for personal context and the camera, and whether all functions require other Apple devices or services.
Preorders Before November Shipping
HomeView is available to preorder for $299, with Apple’s stated shipping start date of Nov. 13. The next useful test will be a fuller review covering daily smart-home controls, Siri’s use of personal information, recipe transfers and FaceTime. Until those tests are available, the reported features should be understood as a mix of limited hands-on observations and Apple demonstrations.
Key Questions
What is Apple HomeView?
HomeView is Apple’s first smart home display, built around a 7-inch square touchscreen. It is designed to control Apple Home devices and provide features such as Siri, camera feeds, apps and FaceTime.
How much does HomeView cost, and when does it ship?
The reported price is $299. Preorders are open, and shipping is scheduled to start on Nov. 13.
What smart-home controls did the hands-on report describe?
The report describes tapping controls for a thermostat and door lock, activating a scene, viewing HomeKit Secure Video feeds and accessing nearby accessories such as a garage door. The door-unlock attempt required authentication with a face or iPhone.
Did the reporter test HomeView’s personal-context Siri features?
No. Tuohy said she saw a demonstration in which Siri used message and travel information to set a coffee-maker routine, but she did not test that feature herself.
Can HomeView display recipes?
The report says a recipe on an iPhone can be transferred to HomeView using Handoff and reformatted with step instructions and inline timers. Apple says most recipes using Google formatting will work, but broader compatibility was not established in the hands-on report.
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