Roger Fingas
Looking to speed up adoption, Apple is partnering with various U.S. home builders to get HomeKit-ready technology installed in some homes from the start, a report said on Wednesday.
"We want to bring home automation to the mainstream," Apple's VP of product marketing, Greg Joswiak, explained to Bloomberg. "The best place to start is at the beginning, when a house is just being created."
Some partners include Lennar, KB Home, and Brookfield, but the companies haven't said when their enhanced homes will go on sale.
The principle however is that it can be easier to sell automation technologies when they're built into a house, especially since it doesn't involve retrofitting anything, and the cost of the hardware can be baked into a mortgage. A KB spokesman noted that the company's basic wireless package is $2,000, which translates into just a few pennies extra in monthly payments.
One of the main obstacles to HomeKit adoption is believed to be the upfront cost. A HomeKit-compatible Schlage deadbolt is about $200, several times the price of a conventional one. Even smartbulbs can be substantially more expensive than their ordinary counterparts.
Apple made HomeKit an important pillar of its iOS 10 upgrades in September, introducing a Home app for centralized control, and expanding the types of supported accessories. The software's improved notifications will even let users see live video feeds, and trigger remote functions — like opening a lock — without having to open an app.
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14 Comments
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So Apple's working with home builders to get non-Apple products built in new homes that work with iPhone? Odd, but intriguing. Perhaps if Apple acquired Netflix and offered a special subscription price for owners of Apple TV they'd get everyone to want one and then they'd get HomeKit products that use ATV as the hub. New content; existing content; secure automated hub, app ecosystem, gaming. Apple also need to step up to the plate and release their own proper gaming controller and not wimp out having third parties cater to that need. They must have about $250B in the bank by now—take 50 of that and snag Netflix and own the living room and perhaps home automation too.
Charge Apple device owners $7 per month and charge other device owners $11 per month—along with lowering ATV4 to $99. People would quickly want an Apple TV front and centre. And importantly, over time with owning streaming they get that 50B back. Sensible investment.
I think it is a great idea to integrate home automation when a house is built, but saying that it only costs pennies per month is very misleading. Even with a 30 year 4% mortgage, the monthly payment for the $2000 loan will be $9.55. Since this technology is new, it will probably be outdated in 5 years, so it should really be amortized in 5 years. The monthly payment would then be be $36.83. That is more than a few pennies.