Bloomberg: Apple Working on New Apple TV With Integrated HomePod Speaker and FaceTime Camera

Apple is working on a combined Apple TV with HomePod speaker that has a camera for video calls through a connected television set, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

AppleTV and HomePod Feature
From the report:

The company is working on a product that would combine an Apple TV set-top box with a HomePod speaker and include a camera for video conferencing through a connected TV and other smart-home functions, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing internal matters.

The device's other capabilities would include standard Apple TV box functions like watching video and gaming plus smart speaker uses such as playing music and using Apple's Siri digital assistant.

Following disappointing sales, Apple discontinued its original high-end ‌HomePod‌ in March, leaving many wondering if the company was working on a successor. The HomePod mini, which launched last year, has been much more popular thanks to its lower price.

Apple unified its engineering teams for ‌HomePod‌ and ‌Apple TV‌ last year, suggesting an integrated device offering the best of both worlds could be in the offing.

However, according to today's report, the product's development is still in the early stages, and Apple could choose not to launch the product or change key features.

Apple is known to be working on an updated version of the Apple TV that will allegedly have a gaming focus with an updated remote control, a faster processor, and increased storage capacity, although it seems likely that today's report is referencing another potential future product. Signs of the new ‌Apple TV‌ have been showing up in iOS since January 2020, so we are expecting to see a new ‌Apple TV‌ launch in 2021.

Today's report also mentions that Apple is working on a concept for a future ‌HomePod‌ design that has an iPad connected via a robotic arm, which could follow users around a room during video calls.

Related Roundups: Apple TV, HomePod, HomePod mini

Popular Stories

2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Changes Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website. Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50. We have outlined some examples below: Device New Value Old Value iPhone 15 Pro Max Up to $630 U ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature Single Camera 1 Redux

'iPhone 17 Air' Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Wednesday January 15, 2025 7:16 am PST by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the "ultra-thin" device. Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" is shaping up to be a mixed bag. Due to its thinness, the device is expected to have some limited specifications compared to the iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, only a single speaker, no SIM...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
iPad Pro vs iPhone 17 Air Feature

Here's How Thin the iPhone 17 Air Might Be

Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Horizontal Single Feature

iPhone 17 Rumored to Feature Major Thermal Design Upgrade

Friday January 17, 2025 4:33 am PST by
The iPhone 17 lineup will feature a vapor chamber heatsink to improve thermal performance, according to a new report. The news comes from Chinese tech news site MyDrivers, which claims that the entire iPhone 17 lineup, consisting of the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max, will adopt the improved thermal heat spreader. Vapor chamber technology is already used...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple Expected to Launch 20+ Products This Year: Here's the Full List

Friday January 17, 2025 5:30 am PST by
2025 promises to be quite a big year for Apple, with the company rumored to be planning more than 20 product announcements this year. Apple's rumored smart home hub will be its second all-new product to launch in as many years, following the Apple Vision Pro headset last year. And of course, we will get several new iPhone and Apple Watch models, like every year. Beyond that, Apple could...

Top Rated Comments

wanha Avatar
49 months ago
Granted I've been wrong a couple times in my life (my wife never let's me forget), but this sounds like a weird combination.

1. An Apple TV with a single speaker? Do people not want stereo sound anymore when watching TV?

2. The large HomePods weren't popular because they were considered too expensive. How does throwing in an Apple TV, a screen, and a remote make it any less expensive?

3. Does this combination provide anything unique? We can already do FaceTime calls with our phones, laptops and tablets quite easily. We already have media streamers in all our TVs built in. Many of us already have smart speakers in our homes.

In short, I hope I am wrong again, but I struggle to see the value of this "product".
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EntropyQ3 Avatar
49 months ago
Eh, bundling a bunch of stuff together that we didn't ask to have combined.
I don't think this makes sense. I really can't see the point. Never mind the practical nightmare of having to place the speaker so that the camera is reasonably positioned for picking up your face for video conferencing - all while it has to be physically connected to the TV display for streaming. Ugh.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
blokitud Avatar
49 months ago
But will it have 720p camera with improved AI....
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jamesjingyi Avatar
49 months ago
If they basically make a Sonos Beam with an Apple TV built in that uses ARC so you can use it as a soundbar then take my money! Been wanting a beam for a while but this would completely replace it
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
markfc Avatar
49 months ago
Wow, only about 12 months to late.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ted13 Avatar
49 months ago
What I was imagining is that that a high quality HomePod Sound Bar (with HDMI/TOSlink IN so it can support something besides the AppleTV like the HDTV ARC/Blu-ray/TiVO combined with HomePod (not mini) Stereo or Quad (with HomePods in the front HomePod minis in the back) for Dolby Atmos and 5.0 sound. The result would be pretty much the best home theater sound system at any price.
This is still double Apple, it's not too late!
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)