Apple makes another push into the smart home market with HomeView

Apple is taking a big swing at the smart home market with its latest product that competes with Amazon Echo Show and Google Nest Hub. Apple is taking a big swing at the smart home market. The company on Tuesday unveiled its long-rumored smart home hub, dubbed HomeView, that can act as a central control point for smart home devices, be used for FaceTime calls, playing music, watching videos, displaying photo slideshows, and more. The new $299 device looks like a cuboid version of the HomePod, but with a display added to the front. The HomeView comes in two versions: one can sit on a countertop, and the other can be mounted on a wall.

Measuring 7 inches wide, the hub features a single FaceTime camera on the front, and has microphones and speakers built into its base. Apple has preloaded the device with several of its apps, including Calendar, Messages, Photos, FaceTime, Notes, Reminders, Music, and Podcasts. That means users won’t need to reach for their iPhone if they want to check a calendar appointment, send a message, play some music, or look at photos. Apple sees the device being particularly useful in places such as the kitchen. Someone cooking dinner, for example, could pull up a recipe, watch a video, check a calendar, or start a FaceTime call