Apple Smart Home Display With Square-Shaped Screen, iMac G4-Like Base in Development: Gurman

Apple is reportedly working on a smart display that that is expected to arrive as the company's newest product since the Apple Vision Pro that was unveiled at WWDC 2023. It is expected to function as a smart home device and is said to sport a small display that is held up by a circular base that resembles the company's older iMac computers. Apple will reportedly equip the purported smart display with a new operating system, according to details shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

In the latest edition of his weekly Power On newsletter, Gurman states that Apple continues to work on its next product, which is expected to arrive as a "smart home screen" with a small display. The journalist also says the screen will be the size of two adjacent iPhone units, and it will be square-shaped.

The smart home display will also be equipped with a circular base — allowing it to be positioned at an angle — that might be equipped with speakers, according to Gurman, who adds that it could look like the base of Apple's iMac G4 model that was released in 2002.

While customers can purchase an iPad and a HomePod, this smart display appears to combine the functionality of both devices. Gurman states that Apple will introduce a new operating system that is designed for the smart display which will enable its primary purpose of controlling smart home devices, which will support apps like FaceTime and Notes — which suggests it will also be equipped with a camera.

The first smart home display from Apple is expected to arrive in 2025, but the company is reportedly simultaneously developing a more advanced model that can be moved using a robotic limb. According to the journalist, this device could be unveiled a year in 2025, with a price tag of around $1,000 (roughly Rs. 84,000).