Apple may have mistakenly leaked the Second Generation HomePod. A user noticed a small change in their speaker icon after updating to the latest iOS 15 beta.
The user has not hesitated to share a screenshot through Weibo. He comments that the new icon appears when the speaker updates to beta 3 of iOS 15. This version has been recently released for developers, and it is expected that in the next few hours it will reach users who have the public beta. The icon shows a very similar appearance to the HomePod mini, but apparently higher.
It is not the first time that an iOS beta has given clues about a future Apple device. The AirPods Max were seen in the beta of iOS 14.3. The same thing happened with the AirPods Pro, which were displayed in an icon from the iOS 13.2 beta. Both devices were announced months after their mysterious appearance in the operating system..
In this case, the doubts of many users are between whether it is a second generation HomePod or is it simply an iOS 15 glitch, which has incorrectly resized the HomePod mini icon. iOS 15, remember, is in beta. Therefore, it is common to see small errors in the system. However, the icon is too well adapted to be a bug.
Will Apple launch a second-generation HomePod?
Recently, Bloomberg revealed that Apple is working on a new generation of HomePod. However, there is no mention of a second generation of the now-defunct original HomePod.
According to the latest reports, the company could announce coming soon a HomePod with integrated Apple TV and FaceTime camera, a kind of “all-in-one” multimedia for home entertainment. The same source revealed that Apple was developing a HomePod with a screen, a device similar to the Amazon Echo Show. In any case, none of these devices could adapt the shape of a conventional loudspeaker.
The update schedule for Apple’s speakers is also not very clear. The HomePod launched in 2018 lasted on the market for approximately 3 years. The HomePod mini, a more attractive and cheaper option, could have a similar renewal period, since many of the improvements are added via a software update. We will see if those from Cupertino present, finally, a second generation of their most powerful speaker.