What's real and what's rumor
Apple has confirmed:
- The latest Apple Home needs an Apple TV or HomePod as your home hub. An iPad doesn't count anymore.
- On today's Apple TV 4K, only the Wi-Fi + Ethernet model has Thread and an Ethernet port.
Reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, not confirmed:
- A hub with a roughly 6-inch square screen, in a counter version and a wall version.
- No battery. It stays plugged in over USB-C.
- A new Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini with faster chips and Wi-Fi 7.
Fix your Wi-Fi first
All of this runs on Wi-Fi. If your Wi-Fi drops in the kitchen today, a hub on the kitchen wall is going to feel broken. Walk the house with your phone and run a speed test where you'd use one: the kitchen, the drop zone by the garage, the primary bedroom. Wi-Fi 7 won't fix a weak router or a slow internet plan. Dead spots are the real problem, and we fix those with eero on wired access points. More on whole-home Wi-Fi.
Know where your Thread hub is
Thread is the low-power network a lot of smart locks, sensors, and shades use. A HomePod mini or the Wi-Fi + Ethernet Apple TV already gives you one, and so do many eero models. Apple hasn't said whether the new hub will. Figure out what you've got before you buy more stuff.
Plan the wall spot. Don't cut drywall yet.
The wall version reportedly needs USB-C power right where it hangs, and nobody wants a cord running down a painted wall. Apple hasn't published mounting specs, so we're not cutting a finished wall yet. Building or remodeling? Mark one or two spots on the plans, leave backing and a path for power at framing, and loop in your electrician. Our prewire checklist covers the rest.
Hold off on a new Apple TV
Buying one for the main TV or the theater? Wait a week. Your wiring doesn't change. It's still HDMI to the TV or receiver, and your Sonos soundbar keeps working. If you can't wait, get the Wi-Fi + Ethernet model. In a theater or media room, I want it on a wire back to the rack, every time.
I'll update this page after Apple's announcement.
