When Apple announced the HomeKit Secure Routers feature back in 2019 it had a lot of promise. The idea, we were told, was to tie HomeKit into network routers and mesh systems so as to add a new layer of security and privacy. It was supposed to make it easier for people to configure their routers and have everything work as it was intended to, especially when using HomeKit-powered accessories. The whole thing would be managed via the Home app, but router support was slow to arrive. And as you'd expect, it never did come to the budget models your ISP gives you. Now, it looks like it probably never will.
Apple is no stranger to abandoning features and services — Ping, we hardly knew ye — but it looks to be at it again, this time with HomeKit Secure Routers. The feature, not to be confused with the more popular HomeKit Secure Video, requires that Apple give the go-ahead for companies to add support for it. And to do that, those companies have to apply. However, a new report claims that Apple is currently not accepting new routers onto the program with no suggestion of when that could change.
