Apple’s HomeView Smart Display Won’t Come to the E.U.
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Apple is expanding into the smart home, and Europe will have to wait: The company has unveiled HomeView, its first smart home display, along with the “Apple Home Collection,” a whole range of new devices for the connected home. HomeView, however, will not be sold in the European Union. “Apple HomeView will not be offered for sale in the European Union because Siri AI on iOS is currently not available in the E.U.,” the announcement said. The company added that it is “working constructively with the E.U. to find a solution.”
What HomeView Can Do
HomeView is a 7-inch display that Apple positions as a control center for the home. It comes in a countertop version and a wall-mounted version. According to reports from Mac4Ever and other tech outlets, the device runs on an A18 chip and uses facial recognition to identify up to six household members, showing each of them a personalized home screen. HomeView is controlled with Siri AI or through the Home app. It operates lights, thermostats, locks and cameras and can display up to nine camera feeds at once. FaceTime, Messages, Calendar and Reminders are also built in.
HomeView costs $299 (about €266) in the United States. Preorders are open in the United States, Britain, Canada and Australia, with deliveries starting in mid-November.
The New Apple Home Collection
Together with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric, Apple is also launching a range of accessories that can be set up directly on the iPhone and controlled through the Home app:
- Cameras: a video doorbell (from $249.95, about €222), a floodlight camera, and outdoor and indoor cameras from LG, with video of up to 2.5K and detection of people, familiar faces, pets, vehicles and packages.
- Smart lock: The LG Smart Deadbolt Lock (from $349.95, about €311) unlocks automatically when someone approaches with an iPhone or Apple Watch, and it also works without an internet connection.
- Thermostats and sensors: Smart thermostats from LG and Schneider Electric (each from $199.95, about €178) adjust the temperature automatically depending on whether anyone is home.
According to Apple, camera footage is encrypted end to end and cannot be viewed by LG, Schneider Electric or Apple. No separate camera subscription is required, and the event history is stored in iCloud+ for 10 days. The devices support Thread, and the lock, thermostats and sensors also support the smart home standard Matter. “Choosing smart home accessories you can rely on is now really easy,” said Matthew Costello, Apple’s vice president of hardware engineering.
The accessories will not come to Austria or other E.U. countries for now, either: Apple is launching the cameras in December in Britain, Canada and the United States, and the lock and thermostats only in Canada and the United States. Some devices will follow in early 2027.
The Dispute Over Siri AI
The E.U. decision stems from a dispute over the Digital Markets Act (DMA). In the E.U., the new Siri AI does not run on the iPhone and iPad, only on the Mac and the Vision Pro. Apple blames the DMA: Otherwise, the company says, it would have to give any virtual assistant direct access to users’ private data and the ability to control other installed apps.
The European Commission sees it differently. “The decision not to launch Siri AI in the E.U. is Apple’s and Apple’s alone,” said Thomas Regnier, a Commission spokesperson. Instead of a solution, he said, Apple asked for an exemption from its interoperability obligations for at least 18 months. Nothing in the DMA prevents Apple from launching new products in the E.U., the Commission said.
Competition in Smart Displays
With HomeView, Apple is entering a market where Amazon and Google have been present for years. Amazon offers smart displays with Alexa through its Echo Show line, and Google offers the Nest Hub. Apple puts a stronger emphasis on privacy and encrypted camera data, but it needs Siri AI for the full range of features.
