The long rumoured Apple HomePad – a HomePod with a screen – may have just been revealed by none other than Apple itself.
After diving into the iOS 18.4 beta release, it’s been noticed by the team over at Macworld that many changes are pointing towards entirely new hardware for Apple, soon.
The idea behind the HomePad is to offer all the audio powers of the HomePod, including Siri voice controls, only with all the advantages of an iPad. This is very much a smart home device that will be designed to stay in one place and support your day to day activities. From checking who’s at the door to guiding you through a recipe.
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All that sound familiar? Yup, it’s very similar to what Amazon already offers with its Echo Show devices. But this wouldn’t be the first time Amazon led Apple to copy – the HomePod itself was hot on the heels of the Echo speakers in all their success.
So how does iOS 18.4 beta point towards a HomePad?
There is a new food section that’s been added, under the Apple News+ subscription section. This lets you view recipes and cooking directions in a striking large font with huge buttons that feel more like something you’d see on a wall mounted device to be viewed from afar.
All that could simply be a way to offer guidance clearly from afar on an iPad. But it’s in conjunction with other clues that make it seem more like a step towards the HomePad.
In tvOS, there is now some ChatKit framework extras which are used to handle iMessage features – something neither Apple TV nor HomePods offer. It would make sense that texting controls could be used on the HomePad platform.
The addition of the CookingKit framework allows for Spotlight recipe searches by ingredient – suggesting Apple is building an entire system here intended for growth, updates and future use at scale. Perhaps as a great launch example when showing uses cases on the new HomePad – a device ideally suited to kitchen use.
Lastly, there is a new Home category, which could point even more directly to a HomePad release coming in the future.
When will the HomePad be released?
HomePad won’t arrive without Siri, as that will be a big part of how people interact with the device – especially with mucky hands while cooking. Since that major update has been pushed back to “the coming year” it’s likely the HomePad will be too.
This may be revealed at Apple’s WWDC in June, or at the later iPhone 17 launch in September.