A new report out of South Korea claims that the next iteration of Apple's HomePod will launch next year with an OLED display and potentially a new foucs.
The leak comes from the Korean publication SE Daily (via Mac Rumors) who say that the Apple will turn to Chinese display manufacturer Tianma to supply OLED panels for the third-generation HomePod.
According to industry insiders, the panels will be 6- to 7-inch LTPS displays. An insider told the outlet (machine translated), "“The previous generation HomePod was not very popular, and the product being introduced this time has a new form factor, so we had no choice but to focus on price competitiveness."
Meant to compete with the Amazon Echo Show 15 or Google Nest Hub, the updated HomePod is expected to launch next year. Many of the reports suggest a shift away from music-listening speakers and more of a smart home controller like the Echo and Nest.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently said that Apple had delayed a new HomePod launch until the third quarter of 2025 — a date that would put the device's release window around the same time we'd expect the new iPhone 17 models. Kuo believes Apple is pushing back the release due to software issues with the device. Presumably this is because Apple reportedly wants to make the new HomePod more of a smart home control center, and less of a music speaker.
In the past few months, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman teased that Apple is working on a variety of HomePod variants including a wall-mounted iPad-like display as well as a $1,000 version on a robotic arm. At least one of these devices is supposedly going to be announced in March of 2025, according to Gurman.
The device discussed by SE Daily appears to be more of the speaker and display variety.
Kuo is a bit more hit and miss with his predictions compared to Gurman, so we're expecting news in March. However, if that does not happen, it looks like we won't see anything until the fall of 2025.
