Apple Reportedly Planning Two Launch Waves This Month: Smart Home Hub, Touchscreen MacBook Pro Expected

Apple is lining up two rounds of product launches in October, according to reports. The first, on October 13, is expected to bring its long-awaited smart home hub alongside a new HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K. A second wave, expected in the final week of the month, is likely to be led by Macs, including the long-rumoured 'MacBook Ultra' and M6-powered models. Apple has not confirmed any of this, but a touchscren Macbook is also expected.

Apple to enter smart home category on October 13

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that Apple plans to unveil an all-new home hub, a new HomePod mini and a new Apple TV 4K on Tuesday, October 13. Rounding up the rumours, the hub is an all-new device with Siri AI and a square display of roughly 6 to 7 inches, running an A18 chip or newer. It is expected to handle FaceTime and Apple Intelligence features. It would run a new operating system with clock faces and widgets, which may be called homeOS. Apple is said to be making a tabletop version with a speaker base and a wall-mounted version.

Gurman has also reported that Apple is working on a higher-end hub with a 9-inch display on a robotic arm that swivels 360 degrees, as well as a privacy-focused home security camera and sensor that detects which room a person is in without recording video. A larger HomePod is also expected, but at a later date.

The new HomePod mini is expected to get a newer chip, Siri AI support and better sound. Other reported additions are Apple's N1 chip with Wi-Fi 7, a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip and new colours, including pink and green. The design is not expected to change much.

The Apple TV 4K is tipped to move to the A19 or A19 Pro chip, with 8GB to 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence and Siri AI. It would also get the N1 chip with Wi-Fi 7 and an updated Siri Remote. A leak suggests it will look the same as the current model.

Apple to unveil new Macs in the final week of October

MacRumors says it does not know exactly which products Apple will announce in the last week of October. It considers Macs the most likely candidates: the "MacBook Ultra" models with OLED displays and a thinner, lighter design, a base 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M6 chip, and an iMac with an M6 chip.

Other reports suggest the high-end MacBook Pro could also get touchscreen support and a Dynamic Island-style camera cutout. A 24-inch M6 iMac may arrive in new colours.

Apple has already said it will ship a high-end Mac Studio configuration with the M5 Ultra chip and 512GB of RAM in "late October". An OLED iPad mini is also expected this month, reportedly with an A20 Pro chip, a landscape front camera and a redesigned speaker system. It is not clear which wave it would fall into. Separately, the iPhone Duo goes on sale on October 23.