Apple first launched HomeKit over a decade ago, but the smart home dream has remained a bit of a mess since then. Here’s why I’m hopeful that Apple Home will become what I always wanted this coming year.
Rumors indicate Apple is ready to take the smart home seriously
My history using a smart home setup has brought a lot of frustration over the years.
There are times it’s worked well, but I’ve also experienced plenty of unreliability, and even times when product manufacturers went out of business or otherwise made their products mostly unusable.
Because I’m a heavy Apple user, with an iPhone, iPad, Mac, HomePods, Apple TV, and so on, I’ve always preferred to buy smart home accessories with HomeKit support.
I don’t want to use accessories that require depending on their own separate apps and/or don’t work well with Siri. Unfortunately, it hasn’t always been easy to find good products with good HomeKit support.
My dream for the smart home has long been that Apple would just make its own home accessories.
Apple TV 4K and HomePod are a decent start—and new ones are coming soon—but I want more.
Next year, rumors indicate, I’ll finally get my wish.
Apple is reportedly planning to launch:
- its own home security camera
- possibly a video doorbell
- and the long-rumored HomePod Touch with a screen
I’m excited for HomePod Touch for a lot of reasons, but it’s still ultimately just an extension of the HomePod line.
The existence of Apple-made smart home accessories like a security camera and doorbell, however, could provide a bold new start for Apple Home.
Five new Apple Home products could help lift the overall ecosystem
When it comes to creating new products, Apple has long opted to say “no” to product ideas far more often than it says “yes.”
And that’s overall a great move in my mind. The company can’t do everything.
But rumors indicate Apple has internally said “yes” to a much bigger investment in Apple Home through an expanded lineup of smart home products.
This new Apple Home push is expected to tie in well with the advent of AI and a more powerful Siri coming early next year.
We’re expecting five possible Home product launches in the year ahead—a huge increase from what we normally see from Apple.
And my excitement for these new products is twofold.
I’m thrilled that there will be more Apple-made Home accessories that should integrate seamlessly with HomeKit, the Home app, Siri, and more. All while providing the level of quality and reliability I expect from Apple products.
I’m also hopeful that by building its own smart home accessories, Apple will become better aware of bugs and UX issues with HomeKit that it can improve for all users. Putting more skin in the game will, I imagine, lead Apple Home to get better overall.
Apple may not be able to create every single smart home accessory that I might like. But its 2026 lineup sounds like a great start, and should set up Apple Home to provide a much more satisfying user experience in the years ahead.
Are you looking forward to more Apple-made smart home accessories? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.
Best Apple HomeKit-compatible accessories
- TP-Link Tapo 2K camera with HomeKit Secure Video
- Smart air purifier with Matter
- HomeKit Garage Door Opener
- HomeKit smart plug 2-pack
- ecobee Smart Thermostat Essential
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