Leaked setup screens have provided the first look at Apple’s upcoming smart home hub interface, revealing a photo-based idle display that shares its design with a feature Apple is also building for the iPhone Duo.
The images show a Photo Face that can cycle through pictures from iCloud Photos while the hub isn’t actively being used.
During setup, users can choose from photo collections, Memories, or Shared Albums, effectively turning the device into a digital photo frame when it’s idle.
The same Photo Face is also being developed for the iPhone Duo’s StandBy mode, giving the two devices an unexpected piece of shared interface design.
Apple hasn’t made the Duo’s new StandBy experience available to developers through the Xcode simulator yet.
Photos and clocks will dominate the idle screen
The Photo Face fits with what we’ve already learned about how Apple intends the hub to work around the home.
The device is expected to feature a roughly 6-inch square display mounted on a curved metal arm and half-dome base, giving it a design reminiscent of the iMac G4.
When the screen isn’t being actively used, much of the interface will revolve around clocks and photo slideshows.
The newly revealed setup screens show how the photo side of that experience will work, including an iCloud Photos requirement and the ability to select which parts of a user’s library appear.
The hub becomes more personalized when someone approaches it. The device can detect who’s nearby and surface widgets associated with that household member, including information from Calendar, Weather, Music, Messages, and Reminders.
That lets the same display behave more like a personal device when someone is standing in front of it, and return to photos or clocks when nobody is interacting with it.
Unlike an iPad, the hub isn’t expected to have a traditional App Store. Apple is instead building the software around a smaller collection of apps and widgets designed specifically for a shared screen in the home.
Apple is expected to unveil the smart home hub on October 13 alongside its second-generation HomePod mini and fourth-generation Apple TV 4K.
