Rumors and reports seem to indicate that Apple is planning for a very ambitious release year, with several new and gadgets joining the Apple ecosystem.
It’s not every year Apple enters a new product category. Most recently, the company dipped its toes into the mixed reality world with Apple Vision Pro in 2023. However, before that, Apple joined the item tracker field with AirTag in 2021, as well as the wireless earbuds market in 2016 with the AirPods.
Apple is typically very careful about entering a new market and creating a whole ecosystem with new products. While one could also mention the HomePod release in 2018, the truth is that none of these devices (besides AirPods) have been life changing like the iPhone, the iPad, and the Mac.
That said, the company might change that in 2026, as it’s expected to expand into three different categories with four new products. Apple could unveil its long-rumored smart home hub, a smart doorbell, a foldable iPhone, and its first augmented reality glasses to compete with Meta and several other brands. With over 20 products expected to be released this year, it seems 2026 won’t be anything like other years: Apple is going all in with several new products, alongside its ever-growing service offerings, such as the new Apple Creator Studio.Apple’s smart home hub
According to rumors, Apple has delayed the introduction of this upcoming smart home hub, which some reports call it the « HomePad. » This mix of a HomePod-like speaker with an iPad tablet was expected to be released March last year, but the device has been postponed due to its reliance on the all-new Siri, which was also expected to launch with iOS 18.4, but was delayed.
With its new version, powered by Google’s Gemini models, expected to be release this year. More precisely, with iOS 26.4, we could possibly see the launch of the HomePad in the next few weeks. According to DigiTimes, this device will have a 6-inch or 7-inch square display, as well as making use of Apple’s A18 chip.
