- Reports suggest Apple is making new devices for your smart home
- One device could borrow a design element from the iMac G4
- A second product may have a screen mounted on a moving “robotic limb”
Rumors have swirled for a few months that Apple is working on a new smart home device that will combine one of the best smart displays with a base containing a speaker. Now, new details have surfaced, and it looks like this device could be very reminiscent of a classic Mac design from over 20 years ago.
That’s because Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman has claimed in his latest Power On newsletter that not only is Apple making progress with this device, but that it will incorporate a design that bears striking similarities to the iMac G4 from 2002.
This computer featured a screen attached to a moveable arm, with the whole setup mounted on a rounded base.
As for the smart home device, Gurman says that its screen is “positioned at an angle on a small base, making it reminiscent of the circular bottom of the iMac G4 from a couple of decades ago.”
A ‘HomePod with a screen’
However, before we get too carried away that Apple is bringing back a cherished design of yesteryear, there are seemingly some notable differences between the two products’ designs.
For one thing, Gurman seems to be describing a screen that is fixed onto its base, rather than being a moveable screen on the end of an articulated arm of the sort that the iMac G4 was famous for. As well as that, Gurman likens the device to a “HomePod with a screen,” which doesn’t sound much like the iMac G4.
That said, Gurman also says that Apple is working on a second, more expensive home device that could be a lot closer in appearance to Apple’s classic Mac. This product, Gurman says, will have a larger screen that is “controlled via a robotic limb,” which sounds very similar to the display found on the iMac G4. But Gurman doesn’t mention a base for this device, which suggests it could be designed more for video conferencing.
Both devices are designed to be used to control smart home accessories, conduct video calls and watch movies and TV shows. The first device – the one with the iMac G4-style base – should launch next year, Gurman says. The second product will come in 2026, meanwhile, and will cost around $1,000 (about £770 / AU$1,500). If they prove to be successful, both could help take Apple in a new direction and gain a stronger foothold in the smart home world.
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alexblake.techradar@gmail.com (Alex Blake)
