Apple unveils ‘HomePod’ speaker, first new device since 2015
Apple SAN JOSE, CALIF. nodded to several up-andcoming technology trends, unveiling a new “smart” home speaker and device features touching on virtual reality, online privacy and a form of artificial intelligence called machine learning.
The speaker unveiled Monday is similar to devices from rivals, some of which have been on the market for years. Like the Amazon Echo and Google Home, Apple’s HomePod speaker will play music while also helping people to manage their lives and homes. Siri will be voice activated to respond to requests for information and other help around the house.
It is Apple’s first new device since the company launched its smartwatch in April 2015.
The speaker will sell for about US$350 in December in the U.S., U.K. and Australia. Amazon sells the main version of the Echo for US$180; Google’s Home speaker goes for US$130.
The Echo, released in 2015, and Google Home, released last year, were the first entrants in a promising market. The research firm eMarketer says than 35 million people in the U.S. are expected to use a voice-activated speaker at least once a month this year, more than double its estimate from last year.
New iMacs unveiled Monday at Apple’s annual conference for software programmers are getting better displays and graphics capabilities. Apple said that makes the Mac a great platform for development of virtual-reality “experiences.”
But Apple is late to the game on VR. Samsung and Google already have VR systems centred on their smartphones. Facebook, HTC and Sony have highend VR systems, too.
Virtual reality has been described as the next big thing for decades. But so far, interest has been strongest among gamers, developers and hardware makers. Apple’s entry into the market could change this. Its entry into digital-music sales with iTunes, and into the smartphone market with the iPhone, upended those industries and gave them mass appeal.
New features coming to iPhones and iPads include messages that sync to servers in the cloud. These devices will only keep the most recent messages in local storage. For photos, Apple is turning to a “high efficiency” format to replace the widely used JPEG standard. Apple is also bringing the ability to send money to friends or others through its payment service, Apple Pay.