Apple smart home accessory details leak, Samsung upgrades Matter, and more on HomeKit Insider

By Andrew O'Hara

On this episode of the HomeKit Insider Podcast, we get into the latest rumors about Apple's unannounced smart home accessory, plus Samsung's new update for Matter, and go hands on with some new gear.

HomeKit Insider Podcast

In the news this week we saw two new products come to market. First up is the Anona Holo Wi-Fi Smart Lock which is Matter-enabled and can retrofit existing doors.

There is also the Ambient One air quality monitor, designed for creative spaces. This one is launching as a Kickstarter, but the design looks promising and is expected to support Apple Home.

It has an all-aluminum enclosure with a subtle e-ink display on the front. It's magnetic, so it can stick to your work pieces. Alternatively, it can stand sideways, propped up on its orange handle.

Also this past week, Samsung became the first smart home platform to deliver support for Matter 1.2. That includes fridges, washing machines, and more new device types.

In the podcast, we speculate on what Apple's plans may be with only announcing robotic vacuum support and no other new device types for iOS 18.

We finish the episode by talking about the new leaks surrounding Apple smart home display. It appears to be running an A18 variant chip on the inside and a forked version of tvOS.

With those internals, the device would be capable of supporting Apple Intelligence. Unfortunately, these leaks don't give us any clue as to when this device may launch.

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