Apple HomePod With 7-Inch Display Likely to Launch in 2024: Ming-Chi Kuo

Apple’s redesigned HomePod is likely to launch in the first half of 2024 coupled with a 7-inch touchscreen display, according to an analyst. The company launched the second-generation Apple HomePod earlier this year. Available with Siri, Apple’s voice-based personal assistant, the smart speaker also features built-in sensors and an EQ microphone. The newest HomePod is powered by Apple’s in-house S7 chipset. This latest smart speaker can also be used as an in-home intercom system. A newer version of the HomePod will likely have even more design and characteristics enhancements.

According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Tianma will be the exclusive panel supplier for Apple’s redesigned HomePod, which will feature a 7-inch panel, and is likely to be launched in the first half of 2024. Tianma may start receiving display orders for Apple iPads in the coming years, according to Kuo. Tianma Microelectronics is an electronic technology company that supplies displays to other businesses, with production lines based in China.

Kuo added in his note that Tianma’s Android smartphone panel manufacturing capacity is presently at its full, and its occupancy rate exceeds that of competitors. If this pattern continues until the second half of 2023, its revenue and profit this year may surpass market expectations.

Apple will be able to compete with Google‘s Nest Hub and Amazon‘s Echo Show models by releasing a speaker with a smart display. When it comes to smart home devices, Apple lags behind its competitors — its smart speaker, for example, debuted years after the Echo. The new display will enable more functionality from the smart home device as well as better integration within Apple’s device ecosystem.

Apple’s current HomePods come with small circular displays on top, but their capabilities is restricted. The Cupertino giant has previously been rumoured to be working on such a device. Bloomberg reported in April 2021 that Apple was “mulling” creating a “high-end speaker with a touch screen” that would “combine an iPad with a HomePod speaker and also include a camera for video chat.”

The second-generation HomePod costs Rs. 32,900 in India and is offered in White and a new Midnight colour option.