Apple is planning an aggressive new strategy to conquer the smart home market, according to a new report. Despite past struggles in this area, Apple is reportedly developing a new homeOS operating system, a smart display, and a high-end robotic tabletop device., who suggests that Apple's renewed focus on the smart home will be driven by three key components: screens, artificial intelligence, and software.
On the software front, Apple is developing a new operating system called homeOS, which will be based on the tvOS platform used in Apple TV set-top boxes. The company also recently revamped its Home app, indicating its commitment to improving the user experience for smart home devices.Gurman notes that Apple's previous attempts in the smart home market, such as the iPod Hi-Fi and the original HomePod, were not very successful.
I must admit that Gurman's report has sparked my interest in taking a second look at using Apple's Home app for my smart home devices. I moved away from HomeKit devices a long time ago in favor of Google Home due to the lack of support for many of the smart home devices I wanted to use. That, and the fact that I can use Google Home on pretty much any operating system I was using at the time, cemented my decision.