That oft-delayed Siri-powered smart display is finally coming… in 2026
Apple’s first home hub with a screen will have to take on the larger and cheaper new Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11. | Image Credit — Amazon
The price(s) may not be right
As hard as Apple has reportedly tried to reduce the home hub’s production costs in recent months, this is currently tipped to fetch “around $350” in the US when it eventually goes on sale.
That wouldn’t exactly be a very competitive price in a market dominated by cheaper devices like the $90 Echo Show 5 and $150 Echo Show 8, especially with the hot new Echo Show 11 setting you back $220 and even the gargantuan Echo Show 15 going for $300… before relatively frequent discounts.
Following this potentially overpriced first-of-a-kind home hub with a screen, Apple is reportedly planning to release an unprecedented indoor security camera (presumably, to rival Amazon’s Blink line), as well as a so-called “tabletop robot” with a motorized arm.
You don’t really think Apple will rival the affordability of the Blink Mini 2, now, do you? | Image Credit — Amazon
The first security camera could become a commercial reality “as soon as the end of next year” at an unspecified price, while the robot, which is described as similar in its essence to the home hub display, will probably come at a price in the “several-hundred dollar range.”
That doesn’t sound very encouraging, but it was definitely to be expected from a highly advanced gadget with not just a bigger 9-inch touchscreen in tow, but also the ability to follow you around your house to fulfil various complex tasks. As you can imagine, this thing is still not very close to production, currently eyeing a 2027 release… that I fully expect to be further delayed.
What exactly is Apple trying to do here?
Whether you find the idea of having a little Apple-branded motorized helper in the kitchen neat or creepy, it’s pretty obvious that the company is looking for new revenue streams and untapped market segments for the so-called “post-iPhone era” so many analysts have heralded for so many years.
No one knows how Apple’s smart home robot will look, so here’s a picture of beloved Pixar character Wall-E instead. | Image Credit — Disney
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