SAN FRANCISCO, CA - FEBRUARY 09: A customer takes a picture of the new Apple HomePod at an Apple ... [+]
The new iPhones were always going to grab the headlines. And yeah - a new Apple Watch is always big news too. But what about poor old HomeKit? Where was the love for Apple’s smart home platform at the big September launch event?
We only had faint hopes of a the much rumored cheaper HomePod 2. But we at least expected something new on the HomeKit front. Something. Anything.
Yes, the Apple TV+ stuff is great and will, without doubt, be a big hit for the Cupertino tech giant. But while the likes of Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Assistant are on an all-out assault to be anywhere and everywhere; there’s a worry that Apple’s smart home efforts are being left in the dust.
The latest major update on the HomeKit front came back in June at WWDC 2019, when Apple revealed that smart security cameras and routers would finally be added to the smart home platform. There were also big improvements for the HomePod announced as well, such as the ability for it to recognize individual voices so as the smart speaker knows who’s speaking to it; and a new feature to handoff music from your iPhone or iPad to the HomePod itself.
Since then, zilch. Nada. Sure, there has been a bunch of new devices with HomeKit compatibility hitting the shops - thanks largely to Apple relaxing its strict, hardware-powered, encryption standards. But when it comes to improving the experience, enhancing the Home app or indeed launching new hardware, all is quiet on the Apple smart home front.
Apple’s big rivals in the smart home space (and in every other area now, it seems) - Google and Amazon - both have smart home ecosystems that are built around hugely successful smart speakers, which are available in models much cheaper than Apple’s $299 HomePod.
But while Apple has the huge advantage of having the Home app, and therefore HomeKit, in millions of people’s hands through iPhones and iPads (and indeed Apple TV boxes and Macs), it’s still a platform lagging a long way behind its rivals.
It’s a shame for smart home enthusiasts - including me - who are just waiting for Apple to breathe life into HomeKit. Hopefully next time Tim Cook and co. take to the stage at the Steve Jobs Theatre, they’ll have some big smart home news for us.
