Apple is likely to release a successor to the original HomePod sometime next year. According to noted analyst Mark Gurman , the new HomePod will feature a new display on top that will support new touch interactions.
In his latest Power On newsletter, the Bloomberg analyst says that Apple's smart speaker will be similar in size and sound quality to the original HomePod . The device will be powered by the upcoming Apple Watch Series 8 chip , the S8 processor.
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Specifically, Gurman says:
“The HomePod, codenamed B620, will run the same chip that powers the watches and will be closer to the original HomePod in terms of size and sound performance than a new HomePod mini. The new HomePod will have a screen on top, and there has even been some talk of multi-touch functionality.“.
According to Gurman, the S8 chip in the new HomePod will have the same specifications as the S7 chip, which was also the same as the S6 used in Apple Watch Series 6. The current HomePod mini uses the S5 chip that was introduced with the Apple Watch Series 5.
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While the HomePod mini is a nice product that users continue to buy and pair with other speakers, the original HomePod offered a better audio that many people are missing.
In 2021, Gurman said that Apple had abandoned plans for a direct successor to the HomePod, which was originally scheduled to launch in 2022. Since then, the analyst has reported that Apple is working on new HomePod models with a display and camera to compete with 's Echo Show Amazon 's Portal Facebook, although it doesn't seem like that will happen now.
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Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuorecently claimed that Apple is working on an updated version of the HomePod that could be released in the fourth quarter of 2022 or the first quarter of 2023. Kuo warned that “there may not be much innovation in the design” compared to the original HomePod.
The original HomePod was announced in 2017 and allowed Apple to enter the competitive smart speaker market in earnest. Apple discontinued the HomePod in March 2021 to focus on the HomePod mini (although low sales were also a factor).
The price for the new HomePod is not known yet.
Source: www.macrumors.com
