Apple's $299 Home Hub Is a HomePod With a Screen, and the Wall Costs Extra

Apple introduced HomeView, a $299 smart home hub with a display and a FaceTime camera, in desk or wall versions. It controls cameras, thermostat, lights and locks through Siri, and recognises up to six people in the house. Mounting it on a wall adds between $60 and $130 for the bracket and power.

Strip the announcement down and what is left is a HomePod with a screen and a camera. That is not an insult, it is a description, and it matters because it sets what the thing should cost. A speaker you already know, plus a panel, plus a camera, priced like a new category.

The wall version is where the number stops making sense. The bracket is sold separately, so the product that is photographed on a wall in every image is not the product in the box. Hanging it where the marketing shows it costs up to $429.

Which raises the obvious question: could you print the bracket? Probably, for the holding part. A 3D printed arm that takes the weight and the angle is well within what a home printer does. What printing will not solve is the power, because the wall version needs a specific supply, so you are still buying something. The saving is real but partial, and worth knowing before you assume the accessory is optional.

So, do I buy it? Not at $299, and not at $429 on a wall. If what you want is voice control and a screen in the kitchen, the cheap tablet you already own, plus whatever speaker is in the house, does this today. Wait for the second generation, or for the price to admit what the product is.