Apple has tried to sell you the smart home before — usually by pointing at other companies' devices that happen to work with its software. On October 13, 2026, in New York, Apple changed its approach. At an event called "Welcome Home," held roughly six weeks after John Ternus took over as Apple's CEO, the company announced a full lineup of its own smart home hardware for the first time.
Here's what was announced, what each product actually does, and what it costs.
Why this event matters
Until now, Apple's smart home strategy was mostly software. HomeKit, Apple's smart home platform, and the Home app were designed to control devices made by third parties — lights, locks, and thermostats built by other brands. That left the actual hardware to partners, while Amazon Echo and Google Home devices dominated the market for smart speakers and smart displays.
The Welcome Home event flips that. Apple is now making the devices itself, in partnership with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric for accessories. That means one app, one brand, and — Apple says — one security model for the whole home.
1. Apple HomeView: Apple's first smart home display
The headline announcement is HomeView, Apple's first-ever smart home display. It's a 7-inch square Liquid Retina display mounted on a rounded speaker base — designed to sit on a countertop or to be wall-mounted. It comes in four colours: silver, starlight, rose pink, and space grey.
A built-in 12-megapixel camera handles FaceTime calls and can recognise up to six household members, switching to personalised content when the feature is enabled. The display shows smart home controls, clock faces, and photos, and it can stream feeds from up to nine security cameras at once.
Some of the smarter features run through a connected iPhone. Apple Intelligence-powered Siri features — such as personal context (Siri knowing what's on your screen or in your day) and spoken descriptions of security camera footage — work on HomeView via your iPhone rather than entirely on the display itself. In plain terms: the display is the window, and your phone does some of the thinking.
Price: $299. Preorders opened October 13, with availability starting November 13, 2026.
2. HomePod mini 2: the second-generation smart speaker
The HomePod mini 2 is the follow-up to Apple's compact smart speaker. The event didn't spotlight major new features the way HomeView got — this is an update to an established product line rather than a brand-new category.
Price: $149. Availability starts October 30, 2026 — the first of the announced products to reach stores.
3. Apple TV 4K (4th generation): the new streaming box
Apple also refreshed its streaming box with the fourth-generation Apple TV 4K. The Apple TV has long doubled as a hub for Apple's Home platform, so a refresh arriving alongside the rest of the smart home lineup makes sense — it's the living-room anchor for everything else Apple announced.
Price: $299. Availability starts November 13, 2026, the same day as HomeView.
4. Apple Home Collection: the accessory lineup
The fourth announcement is the broadest: the Apple Home Collection, a range of smart home accessories developed with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric. The lineup includes:
- Indoor and outdoor security cameras, with up to 2.5K video resolution and intelligent detection that can tell the difference between people, pets, vehicles, and packages.
- A video doorbell and a floodlight camera.
- A smart deadbolt lock that works with compatible iPhones and Apple Watches.
- Thermostats and temperature sensors with an "Adaptive Temperature" feature that adjusts heating and cooling based on whether you're home, asleep, or away.
Everything is managed through Apple's Home app. Camera video history requires an eligible iCloud+ subscription, and Apple says all Home app data — including camera footage — is end-to-end encrypted, meaning neither Apple nor anyone else can view it without your devices.
For context on why that matters: security cameras are some of the most sensitive devices in a home. Footage of your front door, your children, or your daily routine is exactly the kind of data you want locked down — which is why it's worth understanding the basics of how your devices stay protected. (See our guide on cybersecurity basics everyone should know.)
Price: US prices start at $39.95 for a temperature sensor and go up to $399.95 for the floodlight camera. The products arrive in December 2026, with select products following in early 2027.
The whole lineup at a glance
| Product | Starting price | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Apple HomeView | $299 | November 13, 2026 |
| HomePod mini 2 | $149 | October 30, 2026 |
| Apple TV 4K (4th gen) | $299 | November 13, 2026 |
| Apple Home Collection accessories | $39.95 | December 2026 (select products early 2027) |
What this tells us about Apple's strategy
Apple is doing what it usually does: entering a category late and trying to win on integration. Every device runs through the Home app on your iPhone, every accessory carries the Apple brand or its partnerships, and the privacy story — end-to-end encryption across the whole lineup — is aimed squarely at the trust problem that has slowed smart home adoption.
The biggest open question is the one Apple couldn't answer at a product event: whether people who have already built their homes around Amazon or Google devices will switch. Smart home hardware lasts years, and nobody replaces a working setup casually.
There's also a practical consideration many buyers underestimate: a house full of cameras, displays, and sensors depends on a solid Wi-Fi network. If your router is already struggling with two phones and a laptop, a dozen smart home devices will make it worse — which is why understanding how Wi-Fi actually works is worth doing before you start buying.
Takeaway checklist
- Apple held a smart-home-only event, "Welcome Home," on October 13, 2026 in New York, about six weeks after John Ternus became CEO.
- HomeView is Apple's first smart home display: 7-inch square screen, 12MP camera with FaceTime and recognition of up to six people, nine-camera feeds, $299, available November 13.
- HomePod mini 2 is the updated compact smart speaker at $149, available October 30 — the first to ship.
- The 4th-generation Apple TV 4K costs $299 and arrives November 13.
- The Apple Home Collection (built with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric) adds cameras up to 2.5K, a video doorbell, a floodlight camera, a smart deadbolt lock, and thermostats with Adaptive Temperature — from $39.95 to $399.95, arriving December 2026 (some in early 2027).
- All of it is managed through the Home app, with camera history via an eligible iCloud+ subscription and end-to-end encryption across the lineup.
- Before buying, make sure your Wi-Fi can handle a house full of connected devices.
