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Apple has introduced HomeView, a $299 smart display resembling an oversized Apple Watch mounted on a HomePod Mini base. The device is designed to sit permanently in one spot in the home, staying powered on and unlocked, and supports switching between multiple household users' accounts for controlling Apple Home devices, calendars and music.
Apple told 9to5Mac that the new Siri AI features will be exclusive to the HomePod mini 2 and Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later), not the original HomePod mini. This came after a CNET report mistakenly claimed the S5-powered original HomePod mini would gain Siri AI compatibility via iOS 27.2 later this year; CNET has since corrected that story.
Apple confirmed that its upcoming Siri AI features, part of Apple Intelligence, will extend beyond its new fourth-generation Apple TV 4K and HomePod Mini 2 to older second- and third-generation Apple TV 4K models and existing HomePod Minis. The update is expected later this year via a TVOS 27.2 beta, rolling out first in the US, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and the UK in English.
Apple has released the HomePod mini 2, six years after the original HomePod mini launched. The new speaker introduces Siri AI capabilities—including natural conversation, broader world knowledge and personal context from apps like Messages and email—powered by a new S10 chip, along with a light-up 'Sound Glow' visual feature. The original HomePod mini, which uses an older S5 chip and four microphones versus three in the new model, will not receive Siri AI support.
A leaker named pdfu spotted changes to Apple's HomePod 2 product page, including a glow effect matching the HomePod mini 2's Siri AI visuals and alt text describing a 'multi-colored Siri AI glow on top.' The HomePod mini 2 itself ships with Siri AI support enabled by its S10 chip, while the original HomePod mini lacks this capability.
Apple revealed the second-generation HomePod mini at its Welcome Home event, alongside new Apple TV 4K, a HomeView smart-home hub, and Apple Home smart accessories. The speaker keeps a similar design to its predecessor but adds a new lighting feature called Sound Glow and will later gain an upgraded Siri AI via software update in eight countries including the US and UK. It can function alone or link with up to three other units for multi-room audio, and works with Apple Intelligence-enabled devices to handle simple contextual tasks.
Mini DisplayPort has largely disappeared from new laptops and graphics cards, though older devices using it remain compatible with modern monitors via Mini DP-to-DP cables since they share the same underlying protocol. Full-size DisplayPort continues to be used on high-end monitors and graphics cards, offering up to 80 Gbps of bandwidth with DisplayPort 2.1, compared to 48 Gbps on HDMI 2.1.
Apple unveiled a new line of smart home hardware called the Apple Home Collection at its 'Welcome Home' event in New York. The lineup, built with LG and Schneider Electric, includes indoor and outdoor cameras, a video doorbell, thermostats, and a smart deadbolt lock, alongside a new HomePod mini, Apple TV 4K, and the HomeView smart display and hub.
9to5Mac's daily podcast rounded up its top stories for October 13, 2026, covering reported developments related to HomeView, the Apple TV 4K, and the HomePod mini. The episode was sponsored by Backblaze and is available through Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, and 9to5Mac's RSS feed.
Apple's updated Apple TV 4K adds far-field microphones for hands-free Siri commands and uses AI to pull context from apps like Messages, letting users ask it to play shows mentioned in texts. Siri can also answer trivia about on-screen content, displaying text-only responses in a corner of the screen rather than speaking over audio. The new Siri Remote can also emit a sound to help users locate it, similar to the AirPods 'find' feature.
Apple's new HomePod mini 2 replaces the 2019 model's S5 chip with the more powerful S10, enabling Siri AI capabilities such as natural conversation and more accurate general knowledge answers, though this won't be available at launch. The speaker also gains a visual feature called Sound Glow, which syncs its touch-surface lighting with music and album artwork, and supports multi-speaker surround sound setups with other HomePod units via Apple TV.
Amazon is selling Hisense's 2026 75-inch E7 Mini-LED TV for $675, matching a price first offered during its Prime Day promotion. The set includes Fire TV smart platform integration, 144Hz refresh rate for gaming, and Dolby Atmos audio support.