Apple HomeView brings a shared 7-inch screen and Siri AI into the home

HomeView is Apple’s new 7-inch touchscreen for music, video calls and controlling connected home accessories. Apple unveiled it today in two forms: a tabletop device with a speaker base and a separate wall-mounted model. Both start at USD 299 or about KES 38,800 in the US, with availability beginning on 13th November 2026 in the announced launch markets.

The screen stays in the home and recognises up to six enrolled people as they approach. Each person gets their own Home Screen, apps and widgets. Guests can control home accessories, check the weather, set timers and play music without an Apple Account or access to anyone else’s personal information. A personalised experience needs an Apple Account, a compatible iPhone or iPad and membership of the shared home in Apple’s Home app, the application that groups compatible accessories together.

Earlier this month, we covered Apple’s home launch plans when the display was still unconfirmed.

A screen that stays plugged in

The tabletop HomeView has an aluminium speaker base and a stainless steel hinge for tilting the display. It comes in silver, starlight, rose pink and space grey, with a matching cable. The wall-mounted version comes in silver and space grey.

Both use Apple’s A18 chip and a square 1088-by-1088-pixel display. True Tone adjusts the screen’s appearance to the surrounding light, while brightness ranges from 500 nits down to 0.3 nits for a dark bedroom. The interface shows simpler information at a distance and more detail as you move closer. Its 12MP Center Stage camera automatically keeps participants in frame during FaceTime calls; both ends of the call need FaceTime-enabled devices, and HomeView needs Wi-Fi.

The tabletop model includes a 1.5-metre USB-C cable and 30W adapter. The wall model requires a compatible mount, USB-C cable and an adapter of at least 20W, each sold separately. Both require wired power.

Schneider Home’s mounts start at USD 59.95 for the Power Mount USB-C Wall Connector, and USD 79.95 for the Power Mount AC Wired. Orders open on 13th October 2026. The Power Mount PoE Wired, which supplies power over an Ethernet connection, is due in early 2027 at USD 129.95. The display price excludes installation and any additional power accessories.

The tabletop model has two full-range drivers in the display, a downward-facing woofer and two passive radiators for bass. The wall model has two full-range drivers with audio processing tuned for wall placement. Spatial Audio works with compatible content and apps, and AirPlay can distribute playback across other HomeView devices, HomePods and compatible speakers.

HomeView plays music and video and displays shared photo albums, animated Snoopy faces and Flow artwork that responds to movement. Handoff lets a task started on an iPhone continue on HomeView, including audio, calls, videos and recipes. Safari recipes can switch into step-by-step cooking instructions, while Live Activities keep timers and other ongoing tasks visible. Intercom broadcasts messages around the home, and Find My displays shared locations or helps locate supported devices and tagged belongings. Compatible third-party audio and video apps come from the iPhone; subscriptions and regional restrictions still apply. Apple News is available in Australia, Canada, the UK and the US.

Siri’s personal features depend on your phone

Siri AI is Apple’s rebuilt conversational assistant, powered by Apple Intelligence, Apple’s AI software. Its general knowledge and music discovery work without an Apple Intelligence-capable iPhone or iPad. Requests that draw on your own messages, calendar and other app information need a paired Apple Intelligence-enabled device with Siri AI turned on and a supported language selected.

Setup requires an iPhone running iOS 27.2 or later, or an iPad running iPadOS 27.2 or later, plus Wi-Fi internet access. Siri AI is a beta feature in HomeView software 27.2. More expressive, adjustable Siri voices have narrower requirements: iPhone Duo, iPhone 18 Pro models, iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro models, or an M4-or-later iPad with at least 12GB of unified memory. They are available in supported English variants.

Some server-based Apple Intelligence functions have daily limits. Apple says expanded access will cost extra in future, but the announcement and usage terms give no allowance, fee or start date. Its usage terms allow a feature to become unavailable or restricted until its limit resets. We examined that fee policy earlier today.

Apple says Secure Exclaves, isolated compartments in the A18 chip, process camera and microphone data used for recognition separately from the operating system. Personal content appears when HomeView recognises an enrolled face and the paired device has recently been unlocked and is present. Normally the paired device shares HomeView’s Wi-Fi network. Apple’s footnote also allows access after a paired phone disconnects from Wi-Fi, provided it remains in the same location, has an active cellular connection, was recently on the same Wi-Fi network and was recently unlocked. Private Cloud Compute handles some Siri requests remotely; Apple says this processing does not store data or make it accessible to Apple.

Home control and launch markets

HomeView controls compatible accessories through touch or voice, including cameras, lights, locks, blinds and thermostats. The Home Camera face streams up to nine feeds at once. HomeKit and Matter support cover compatible accessories, with Thread networking for supported Thread devices. The new Apple Home Collection accessories are sold separately, with the first products due in December 2026 and some following in early 2027.

Camera recognition and HomeKit Secure Video, Apple’s encrypted camera recording system, need compatible cameras and a supported subscription to iCloud+, Apple’s paid cloud storage service. Video descriptions and natural-language recording search also require setup with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone or iPad and an eligible plan; supported camera counts depend on that plan. HomeView can also recognise smoke and carbon monoxide alarm sounds and send alerts. Apple expressly says this sound recognition should not be relied upon in emergencies or situations where someone could be harmed.

Pre-orders open on 13th October 2026 in Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, the UK and the US. Singapore follows at 9am SGT on 15th October 2026. South African pre-orders go through authorised resellers; Apple gives no separate opening date. Availability starts on 13th November 2026 across those eight markets. Siri AI launches in English, with Canadian French coming through a later free update. HomeView is not being sold in the European Union because Siri AI is unavailable there on iOS. Kenya is not among the announced launch markets.

Checking the front door, calling family or controlling the home from a screen left in the room saves reaching for a phone. Personal access still follows the paired device’s presence and unlocking rules, while camera features can add subscription costs. For wall placement, the mount, power accessories and installation belong in the budget: the matching display price does not make it as cheap to set up as the tabletop model.