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| Apple is developing Apple TV with camera and speakers |
According to the latest report from Bloomberg, Apple is developing a new product that combines Apple TV smart speakers and HomePod and includes a camera for video conferencing through connected TVs and other smart home features.
Apple is lagging behind in smart homes, but the new multifunctional products under development could change the status quo because they will need to be equipped with the necessary hardware to perform the various tasks.
Other product features include standard Apple TV features, such as: Example: In addition to using smart speakers, you can also watch videos and games such as, for example, play music and use Apple's Siri digital assistant.
At launch, the product will be Apple's most ambitious smart home product to date.
The Cupertino, California tech giant is also planning to launch an advanced touch-screen speaker to better compete with market leaders Google and Amazon.
This device combines iPad and HomePod speakers and also includes a video chat camera.
Apple has also explored using a robotic arm to connect the iPad to the speaker, which can be moved to track users across the room, much like the latest Echo show from Amazon.
Both Apple products are still in the development stage, and the company may decide not to release either of them or change the major features.
These new products could help revive Apple's fate in the smart home space, as it holds a 2% share of the radio and television market in 2020 while its share of smart speakers is less than 10%.
Apple discontinued production of the high-end HomePods in March, and the Apple TV has been updated for more than three years.
Last year, the company released the HomePod mini, which is more efficient due to its lower price.
Apple merged the HomePod and Apple TV engineering suites in 2020 and has standardized the basic software that can run on both devices. This is the first indication that hardware product lines can be merged.
While Facebook Portal sells video chatting devices that use televisions as screens, built-in speakers and Apple TV are not among the product categories that have always loved Google and Amazon.
Amazon sells Fire TV Cube with small speakers, and Amazon ranks high in the smart display category, which is the collective term for smart screen speakers.
With the start of the Echo Show, Amazon launched a smart speaker with screen for the first time in 2017.
Google offers 7-inch and 10-inch versions of Nest Hub that can be used to pair the Google Assistant with speakers and displays.
Amazon is also developing a new type of speaker with a user-friendly display wall that can be used as a smart home hub.
Bloomberg reported in March that Apple is investigating new smart speakers with displays and cameras.
Apple HomeKit (which allows you to use iPhone, iPad, and HomePods to control third-party devices through Apps or Siri) supports fewer products than competing products from Amazon and Google.
New Apple devices won't change on their own, but they could provide new reasons for Apple and its potential partners to invest in Apple's larger smart home system.