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The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy tested Apple’s newly announced HomeView, a 7-inch smart display built for controlling Apple Home, viewing camera feeds and using Siri. Apple says it costs $299, is available for preorder and starts shipping Nov. 13; several AI features were shown in demonstrations rather than tested independently.
Apple has announced HomeView, its first smart home display, and The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy has tried the $299 device ahead of its planned Nov. 13 shipping date. The hands-on report describes a compact, square-screen controller for Apple Home, with access to smart-home devices, camera feeds, Siri and household features such as recipe guidance.
HomeView has a 7-inch square Liquid Retina touchscreen and a small aluminum base that also serves as a speaker. Tuohy described the display as bright and responsive and said it was smaller than expected. Apple offers a tabletop version and a wall-mounted model. The display can show photos and a selection of changeable “faces,” many of which resemble Apple Watch faces.
For smart-home control, a dedicated Home Widget face draws controls from the Apple Home app. In her hands-on session, Tuohy tapped to operate a thermostat and door lock and activate a scene. She also viewed live feeds from HomeKit Secure Video cameras. When she tried to unlock a door, HomeView requested authentication with her face or iPhone. The report describes the interface as a series of swipes between faces, widgets, apps and a control center.
The report also covers features that Tuohy saw demonstrated but did not test herself. In one Siri demonstration, the display used message and travel information to estimate when a visitor would arrive and set a coffee maker routine. Another demo played a song mentioned in a friend’s text. Tuohy also tried a recipe handoff from an iPhone: HomeView reformatted the recipe into steps with in-line timers. Apple says most recipes using Google formatting will work this way. A FaceTime demonstration showed Center Stage keeping callers centered in frame.
HomeView puts Apple Home controls on a screen designed for walk-up use, rather than requiring a household member to open the Home app on a personal phone. That could make common tasks—checking a camera, adjusting a thermostat or activating a scene—more accessible to other people in the home, particularly if the wall-mounted version can be placed where it is easy to reach.
The more ambitious pitch is the link between Siri, personal information and connected devices. The airport-arrival demonstration suggested that Siri could use a message and travel estimate to schedule a smart-home action. If the feature works reliably beyond a staged demo, it could make the display more than a larger control panel. The source report does not establish how well it performs in everyday use, however, and Tuohy said she had not personally tested that capability.
At $299, HomeView is also a substantial purchase for a device whose value depends on a household’s use of Apple Home and its interest in a shared display. The hands-on report gives a first look at the interface, but not enough evidence to judge long-term performance or whether the device is worth the price for different homes.
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From Home App to Household Display
Apple positions HomeView as a smart-home controller, personal assistant and home hub. The Home Widget is described in the report as a larger-screen version of controls already available through the Apple Home app on iPhone. Users can reach deeper app controls by tapping widgets, move between faces with horizontal swipes and open a control center by swiping down from the top.
The device also links with other Apple products. The recipe feature uses Handoff from iPhone to HomeView, while the report says onboard apps populate automatically from the user’s phone. A camera can be enabled through the control center; Tuohy noted that this makes the display usable as a mirror. These details frame HomeView as part of an existing Apple household setup, rather than a standalone smart display with no connection to the company’s other devices.
The report’s testing was limited to a hands-on session and selected demonstrations. Tuohy said she had tried only a few features and was looking forward to testing more. That distinction matters: direct observations such as the screen response and door-lock authentication are separate from Siri capabilities she saw shown by Apple.
““The first thing that struck me about the HomeView was its size.””
— Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, The Verge
Everyday Siri Performance Remains Untested
The report does not establish how Siri’s personal-context features perform in routine use, how consistently they interpret messages and travel details, or what safeguards apply when using that information to control household devices. Tuohy watched the airport-arrival and song-retrieval demonstrations but said she did not test the personal-context function herself.
Other open questions include how HomeView handles recipes outside the formats Apple says it supports, including recipes from social-media platforms; how useful the interface is to people who do not already use Apple Home; and how the display performs over extended use. The source provides no battery information, broader compatibility details, or independent evaluation of the device’s speaker and camera. Those points should not be inferred from a brief hands-on session.
Preorders Ahead of November Shipping
Apple has opened preorders at $299, with shipping scheduled to begin Nov. 13, according to The Verge report. The next useful evidence will come from longer-term testing of the device, especially its Siri functions, recipe handoff and day-to-day smart-home controls.
Tuohy said she looked forward to testing more HomeView features. Until a fuller review is available, the report offers an initial account of the hardware and interface, while the performance of several headline AI functions remains based on demonstrations.
Key Questions
What is Apple HomeView?
HomeView is Apple’s first smart home display, according to The Verge report. It combines a touchscreen interface for Apple Home controls with Siri, camera feeds and other household features.
How much does HomeView cost, and when does it ship?
The report lists a $299 price, says preorders are open and gives Nov. 13 as the start of shipping. The source does not specify a year for that date.
What can users control from HomeView?
In the hands-on session, Tuohy used the Home Widget to control a thermostat and door lock, activate a scene and view HomeKit Secure Video camera feeds. Unlocking the door prompted face or iPhone authentication.
Did the reviewer test HomeView’s Siri AI features?
Some features were demonstrated rather than independently tested. Tuohy watched Siri use message and travel details to estimate a visitor’s arrival and schedule a coffee maker, and saw a song-retrieval demonstration. She said she had tried only a few features overall.
Can HomeView show and guide recipes?
The report describes a feature that transfers a recipe from an iPhone using Handoff and presents it as steps with in-line timers. Apple says most recipes using Google formatting will work; support for other sources was not confirmed in the report.
Source: rss
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