More evidence of a HomePod with a display appears with leaked part

There have been rumors upon rumors of a new HomePod being in the works that will include a display for the very first time. We've seen images of what that could look like and we've even heard that Apple is reportedly testing a variety of different options. Now, a new leak may have given us another indication that such a HomePod really is on the way.

The latest information comes via a post on the X social network which appears to show a display mounting for a HomePod that is similar to the one that we have on the current HomePod, but notably different. There are no volume button markings for example, and it's claimed that is because the whole display will be an LCD touchscreen similar to that of an iPad.

The image shared on X shows a large curved glass screen that would cover the entire surface of a HomePod and matches a previously leaked HomePod prototype, 9to5Mac notes.

There have been various leaks suggesting that a HomePod with a touchscreen could be in the offing, including the tvOS 17.4 software update that includes references to a HomePod with a display around the same size as the latest iPad mini. However, previous reports had suggested that a 2024 launch of such a device is unlikely, although this new leak does throw that into some doubt. It seems unlikely that these kinds of components would leak if plans were that far away from coming to fruition.

Apple would be far from the first to put a display into a speaker of course, but a HomePod of that design is something people have been crying out for and now it might finally be on the horizon.

Long before any of that happens however, new iPads are expected to be announced in May. There has long been a suspicion that Apple was working on new OLED iPad Pros with M3 chips for launch soon while there is also an expectation that a newly refreshed iPad Air lineup is on the way. The existing 11-inch iPad Air is set to be joined by a new 12.9-inch iPad Air if the rumors are accurate, giving buyers of larger tablets an additional option that will likely be noticeably cheaper than the iPad Pro. An upgrade from the current M1 chip to the more recent M2 is also expected, but we're still waiting for Apple to confirm that this is going to happen of course.