Apple unveils smart home range, but its HomeView hub will skip the EU for now

Apple has announced a push into the smart home market, with a new hub, a refreshed speaker and a set of connected accessories. There is a catch for readers in Bulgaria: according to Apple, the central device will not be sold in the European Union for now.

The range was reported by Mediapool, which says the company is taking on platforms such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home, as well as open standards like Matter.

What is in the range

The accessories were developed with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric. They include indoor and outdoor security cameras, a video doorbell, a smart lock, thermostats and temperature sensors. Everything is set up and controlled through the existing Home app, rather than separate apps and accounts from each maker.

Apple says adding an accessory takes a single tap with an iPhone. The devices use Thread, a network technology designed for connected homes, and can work together or on their own. Apple also says they update their network details automatically when the home Wi-Fi changes.

The company says the collection will begin to appear in December, with some accessories following in early 2027.

The HomeView hub

At the centre is HomeView, a hub with a 7-inch Liquid Retina display on a dome-shaped speaker base. It can stand on a surface or be mounted on a wall. It uses Siri with Apple Intelligence to control lighting, climate and locks by touch or voice.

• It can recognise up to six household members by face or voice.
• It can show feeds from up to nine security cameras at once.
• It supports FaceTime calls, music, calendars, recipes and messages.

On privacy, Apple says camera and microphone data is processed separately in secure areas of the hardware. Personal information is handled either on the device or through its Private Cloud Compute system, which, according to Apple, does not store the data or make it accessible to the company.

What it means in Bulgaria

Apple has said HomeView will not be sold in the EU until Siri AI is available in iOS there. Bulgarian buyers should therefore not expect the hub on local shelves for now. Whether the other accessories will be sold locally was not covered in the source, and no prices were given.

The next-generation HomePod mini, with an Apple S10 chip, adds a feature called Sound Glow, where the top surface pulses in time with the colours of the music. Details on its availability were not included in the report.