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Apple and Amazon have introduced new smart displays that may work better as shared household hubs, with stronger hardware and features for calendars, home controls and family routines. The assessment is based on brief hands-on time, so usability, performance and long-term value have not yet been established.
Apple has launched its $299 HomeView, and Amazon has launched a $499.99 Echo Show 16, two smart displays that may make the category more useful as a shared household screen. A brief hands-on report by The Verge says the devices pair more capable hardware with features for family calendars, smart-home controls and everyday routines, but says fuller testing is still needed.
The Verge’s report describes both products as a response to shortcomings that have held back smart displays: underpowered hardware, limited software and few compelling reasons for a household to use one regularly. Apple’s HomeView uses an A18 chip and Liquid Retina display; Amazon’s Echo Show 16 has a MediaTek processor and a Nanomatte display, which the report says is also used on Amazon’s new Alexa Tablet. The report characterizes both as a substantial hardware step up, though it does not provide comparative performance measurements.
The products also differ in how they handle household information. The report says the Echo Show 16 can work without a phone and includes a household-oriented interface, with calendar options and a meal-planning feature. HomeView is described as an extension of the iPhone: it has built-in apps, while some other functions rely on a connected iPhone. According to the report, its shared features are more limited than those available when a recognized user’s phone is nearby.
The report’s hands-on impressions draw on demonstrations rather than prolonged independent testing. In one Apple demo, Siri used information from text messages to anticipate a visitor’s arrival and prepare a coffee machine. Amazon demonstrated a map showing someone approaching a home, with a tap opening a live view through a Ring camera. These are company demonstrations, not independently verified accounts of how reliably the features work in everyday use.
A dedicated screen in a common area could put household information somewhere everyone can reach, rather than leaving calendars, grocery lists and chores on one person’s phone. The report frames that as a way to reduce the mental load of coordinating a household, while also giving family members a shared place to check a visitor, adjust a thermostat or control lights.
The idea matters because a device meant for everyone has different needs from a personal tablet. It should be easy to approach and use without signing in, and remain available in a fixed location. The report says tablets can fall short because multiuser support is limited and portable devices can be taken away from their shared station. If the new displays deliver on their promise, they could fill a role between a personal phone and a collection of separate smart-home devices. Whether they do so well enough to justify the price is not yet established.
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Why Smart Displays Needed a Reset
The Verge author says that three years earlier they had written an obituary for smart displays, arguing that products from Google and Amazon were trying to do too much with weak hardware and software. The new launches revisit that assessment with higher-end components and a more defined household purpose. The report says the displays are intended not just as ways to access voice assistants, but as always-available shared screens for home information and controls.
Household calendar products such as Skylight Calendar are cited in the report as evidence of demand for a communal screen. The author also points to personal experience with Google’s Pixel Tablet, a tablet that could dock as a smart display: its detachable screen and limited smart-home support proved problematic in their home. The report says Google’s successor was reportedly canceled 18 months later. That history helps explain why a fixed display with household features may appeal, but it does not establish how many consumers will buy Apple’s or Amazon’s products.
Price is a notable change from earlier devices. The report compares the new models with the $85 Echo Show 5 and $99 Nest Hub in 2023. HomeView, the less expensive of the two current models, costs about three times as much as those older products. The report argues the newer devices have a clearer purpose, while leaving open whether their functions and hardware make the higher cost worthwhile.
““These could finally turn the smart display into what it should have been all along: the family computer.””
— The Verge report
How They Perform at Home
The available assessment is preliminary. The author says the products appear to address long-standing problems with smart displays but has not yet completed proper testing. The report does not establish how consistently their interfaces work, whether household members can switch between profiles smoothly, or how reliable the demonstrated AI and connected-home features are outside company demos.
It also remains unclear how much of HomeView’s functionality will be available to people who do not own or carry an iPhone, and how well the Echo Show 16’s household tools will fit homes with different devices and routines. The report gives prices and selected hardware details, but does not establish long-term value, sales, or whether either display will prompt people to replace a tablet, calendar or smart-home controller.
Full Testing Will Settle the Case
The next step is fuller, independent testing of both displays in ordinary household use. That should help clarify whether their shared screens are easy for multiple people to use, how well they handle recurring tasks and whether their smart-home features work as shown in demonstrations. Until that evidence is available, the report’s conclusion remains an early assessment, not a settled verdict on the smart-display category.
For potential buyers, the practical questions are whether the household already uses Apple or Amazon services, which features require a phone, and whether a fixed display would be used often enough to justify the price. The report does not provide a purchase recommendation or a timetable for further testing.
Key Questions
What are the HomeView and Echo Show 16?
They are new smart displays from Apple and Amazon. The report presents them as shared household screens for features such as calendars, meal planning and connected-home controls.
How much do the two devices cost?
The report lists the HomeView at $299 and the Echo Show 16 at $499.99.
How do the devices differ?
The report describes Amazon’s Echo Show 16 as a household-oriented screen that can work without a phone. Apple’s HomeView is more closely tied to the iPhone, with some features relying on a connected phone.
Have the products been fully tested?
No. The assessment is based on brief hands-on time, and the report says more testing is needed to confirm how the devices perform in everyday household use.
Are these devices replacements for a regular computer?
Not as described in the report. “Family computer” refers to a shared household hub for routines and home controls, not a device intended for homework or paying bills.
Source: theverge.com
