Apple Inc.AAPL
Mentioned
Impact on assets 1
Artificial Intelligence
Apple Inc.Apple Inc.Apple is eight days away from the expected October 13 launch of its new smart home device, the HomePad, and has still not confirmed a price. The hardware details are known, including a 6-inch display, an iMac G4-inspired design, and the internal codename J490, while Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has floated a $350 figure. The Apple Store has already posted a "PRE-ORDER 10.16" banner, signaling the hardware is ready for prime time. The competition has taken a different path: Google gates its Home MCP behind a $20-per-month Premium Advanced subscription or bundles it with AI Pro and Ultra tiers ranging from $4.99 to $199.99 per month, Meta's Muse platform offers a free tier with limits, a $20 Power tier, and a $100 Maximum tier, and Amazon keeps Alexa+ free for basic use but locks the full experience behind a Prime membership at $139 per year or a $19.99 monthly standalone fee. Over a three-year total cost of ownership, the rumored $350 one-time cost for the HomePad compares with $720 for Google Home MCP or Meta Muse at the Power tier and roughly $716.64 for Amazon Alexa+, while Microsoft and LG sit at $0 after a free firmware update for existing ThinQ ON users. OpenAI is reportedly working on its own speaker, expected in 2027 with a projected price tag of $300 to $400, designed by Jony Ive's studio.
Apple Inc.