References to iPad mini in tvOS 17.2 beta revive 'HomePod with display' rumors

AppleInsider

Apple's rumored display-clad HomePod may be edging closer to reality, with Apple seemingly trialing the running of tvOS on an iPad mini.

A mock-up of a HomePod with a display

Rumors have circulated earlier in 2023 that Apple wanted to expand the HomePod into becoming more than just a smart speaker, with the inclusion of a seven-inch display. In the latest update to tvOS 17, it seems Apple is still working on the concept.

In an inspection of the firmware for tvOS 17.2's first developer beta, 9to5Mac reports that the firmware includes some unusual devices under its list of compatible models. Alongside the HomePod range and some Apple TV models, there's also apparently support files so the firmware could work on an iPad mini 6.

Similarly, support for the iPad mini 6 was found in Xcode 15's tvOS 17 SDK. Drivers for the iPad mini have also been discovered in tvOS 17 frameworks for audio calibration.

Previous mentions

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode.

There have been quite a few murmurs of more smart home-specific items on the way, with talk of a HomePod-with-display happening a few times in 2023.

Bloomberg claimed in April 2021 that Apple could marry the iPad and HomePod into a smart speaker with a display. Sources said that it would be able to play music like a HomePod but also hook up to a television, and using a built-in camera to enable video calling.

In January 2023, Bloomberg wrote about a smart tablet that would control home devices, as well as displaying video and handling FaceTime chats. The concept was thought to be somewhat similar to an iPad in functionality.

By March, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo joined in, claiming in March that a revamped HomePod with a built-in 7-inch screen will ship in the first half of 2024.

In October, a hardware prototype surfaced in pictures, showing a large touch-enabled LCD screen in the top of a HomePod. However, while this seemed to demonstrate more a future iteration of the established HomePod form than a smart home device, it does at least demonstrate that Apple has more ideas it wants to achieve for its smart speaker.

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eightzero

AppleInsider said:

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts [sic] like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode. 

OK, I gave away my last ATV, as I don't need or use it (I have a Roku TV that has the ATV app on it or the rare occasion I watch something on ATV) but don't recall ATV actually having any networking capability. What is this reference to? Because if the rumor might include such a ATV with a touchscreen to actually work as a new Airport...well...whoa. Take my money. 

xed

eightzero said:

AppleInsider said:

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts [sic] like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode. 

OK, I gave away my last ATV, as I don't need or use it (I have a Roku TV that has the ATV app on it or the rare occasion I watch something on ATV) but don't recall ATV actually having any networking capability. What is this reference to? Because if the rumor might include such a ATV with a touchscreen to actually work as a new Airport...well...whoa. Take my money. 

If you aren't aware that the Apple TV has had both Ethernet and WiFi since it's first iteration then I can see why you would find it unusable, but I can assure you that the Apple TV is faster, has a much cleaner interface that is less prone to crashing, and do not make its money by selling ads or your viewing habits to others. That said, if you don't mind any of those caveats or find the entry price of an Apple TV too high then the Roku is a perfectly fine device.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/20/17595384/roku-ceo-anthony-wood-ads-hardware-business-interview-business-model

eightzero

Xed said:

eightzero said:

AppleInsider said:

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts [sic] like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode. 

OK, I gave away my last ATV, as I don't need or use it (I have a Roku TV that has the ATV app on it or the rare occasion I watch something on ATV) but don't recall ATV actually having any networking capability. What is this reference to? Because if the rumor might include such a ATV with a touchscreen to actually work as a new Airport...well...whoa. Take my money. 

If you aren't aware that the Apple TV has had both Ethernet and WiFi since it's first iteration then I can see why you would find it unusable, but I can assure you that the Apple TV is faster, has a much cleaner interface that is less prone to crashing, and do not make its money by selling ads or your viewing habits to others. That said, if you don't mind any of those caveats or find the entry price of an Apple TV too high then the Roku is a perfectly fine device.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/20/17595384/roku-ceo-anthony-wood-ads-hardware-business-interview-business-model

I understand the ATV box had a ethernet port (that I used) and the ability to receive WiFi input (that the now owner of that box now uses) but I don't see that as "set[ting] up and manag[ing] a smart home network in their abode." When they use the term "smart home network" I'm guessing this isn't synonymous with creating and managing a WiFi network? It is something associated with latest craze in Internet of Shit Things devices? Shirley ATV isn't anything more than a Wifi receiver, right? Or have I completely missed the boat? 

edited October 2023

dewme

eightzero said:

AppleInsider said:

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts [sic] like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode. 

OK, I gave away my last ATV, as I don't need or use it (I have a Roku TV that has the ATV app on it or the rare occasion I watch something on ATV) but don't recall ATV actually having any networking capability. What is this reference to? Because if the rumor might include such a ATV with a touchscreen to actually work as a new Airport...well...whoa. Take my money. 

Certain versions of the Apple TV 4K also act as Thread border routers (LAN to Thread routing) to bring Thread/matter smart home device support into Apple HomeKit. This is distinctly different from the higher level networking functionality (WAN to LAN routing) provided by Apple's Airport products.

A reasonable model for what Apple is potentially envisioning with iPad mini + HomePod integration is more akin to Amazon's 3rd Gen 10" Echo Show product, which resembles a HomePod with an iPad mini permanently stuck to it. If you think about it, Apple could achieve comparable functionality using separate HomePod and Apple TV devices. The differentiator from Amazon's approach would be the fact that you could still use the iPad mini as a standalone device. Seems reasonably straightforward.

edited October 2023

austriacus

I really hope that the person creating the picture with the mini iPad stuck to the front of the homepod did it for space reasons rather then believing it would be done that way --> blocking soundwaves leaving the homepod from the front....

guyfromnrt

I really wish, they would bring something similar to this great design. Probably they won't.

• The bottom part is the HomePod.
• The screen could be swiveled

edited October 2023

fallenjt

eightzero said:

AppleInsider said:

Apple already has a lot going for it in the smart home category, with HomeKit and poducts [sic] like a HomePod and Apple TV helping users set up and manage a smart home network in their abode. 

OK, I gave away my last ATV, as I don't need or use it (I have a Roku TV that has the ATV app on it or the rare occasion I watch something on ATV) but don't recall ATV actually having any networking capability. What is this reference to? Because if the rumor might include such a ATV with a touchscreen to actually work as a new Airport...well...whoa. Take my money. 

Apple TV by far is 1 of the best streaming devices. Don’t know what you are talking about. It has both Ethernet and wifi, also a central hub for HomeKit. 

chasm

I think most of the prognosticators have it completely wrong. As we’ve already seen from a leaked photo of the next HomePod, it looks exactly like the current HomePod, but with a more intelligent top screen.

What Apple is MUCH more likely to do, IMO, is create a HomePod app (or expand the Home app for this) so that users can more directly interface with the HomePod and other smart peripherals through their existing iPad (or iPhone, or Mac).

Those who think Apple is just going to hot-glue an iPad mini  the front of a HomePod … well, let’s say I have a low opinion of that opinion.

edited October 2023

dewme

chasm said:

I think most of the prognosticators have it completely wrong. As we’ve already seen from a leaked photo of the next HomePod, it looks exactly like the current HomePod, but with a more intelligent top screen.

What Apple is MUCH more likely to do, IMO, is create a HomePod app (or expand the Home app for this) so that users can more directly interface with the HomePod and other smart peripherals through their existing iPad (or iPhone, or Mac).

Those who think Apple is just going to hot-glue an iPad mini  the front of a HomePod … well, let’s say I have a low opinion of that opinion.

They could make a special HomePod jacket that's one half of a hook & loop fastener system (Velcro) and sell a special iPad mini case that is covered in the other half of a hook & loop fastener. You could then stick the iPad mini to the HomePod in any orientation you choose.

Not recommended for cat owners.

With all of the care that went into the HomePod's acoustic design I cannot see them wanting to distort its best qualities by sticking a slab on it. Why mess with a good thing? 

ravnorodom

A more elegant way to do this is to wrap flexible LED screen around the Pod and make it seamless.