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Apple unveiled interactive demos of its HomeKit smart home ecosystem in 46 of its stores around the world, including in the US, Taiwan, and Germany, according to TechCrunch.
Customers can use the native Home app from Apple Watch, iPhone, or iPad demo devices to control a virtual home displayed on a TV in the store. And while the demo only includes the HomeKit devices right now, it's likely once the HomePod speaker becomes commercially available this December, it could be included too.
The demos could persuade a new audience to adopt HomeKit compatible smart home devices and the forthcoming HomePod speaker.
- Millions of consumers visit Apple stores every year. CEO Tim Cook said that 370 million people visited Apple Stores in 2012, a figure that likely has grown since then, and these demos could expose the devices to that audience. That's especially notable because Apple Store customers are willing to spend lots of money — Apple averages more sales per square feet in its stores than any other retailer.
- Seeing and trying out the devices in person could make these customers more willing to buy them. Many consumers don't buy smart home devices because they don't see how they'd help them with their daily lives — 22% of non-adopters said they didn't buy smart home devices because they didn't see a device that fit their needs, while 17% said they didn't think they'd use them. But once these millions of Apple customers are able to try out the devices in-person, it's likely they'd be more willing to buy them.
And that's critical because it could help make HomeKit more appealing than competing smart home ecosystems. Right now, Amazon, Google, and Apple are locked in a war to get their voice assistants and compatible devices in as many homes as possible. But Apple's competitors don't have the in-store visibility that these demos will give the HomeKit ecosystem. That could lead future smart home adopters to choose HomeKit over ecosystems from Amazon, Google, and other future entrants to the space. Further, since Apple was later to release a smart speaker than Amazon or Google, these demos could help persuade consumers to opt in to the Apple ecosystem so it can eat into Amazon and Google's market shares.
The US smart home market has still yet to meet the expectations many observers had in the early part of this decade.
The same issues BI Intelligence first identified back in 2015 still plague the space — persistently high prices, technological fragmentation, and consumers' lack of a perceived benefit from the devices.
But the newfound popularity of smart home voice control has revolutionized smart home ecosystems across the country, and convinces more consumers to equip their homes with smart devices on a daily basis. The Amazon Echo, released in 2014, has become immensely popular and capable, awakening users to the utility of both voice control and smart home devices. This has prompted companies to rush to release competing devices and integrate voice control into their smart home ecosystems.
Nicholas Shields, research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on the US smart home market that:
- Analyzes current consumer demand for smart home devices based off results from BI Intelligence's proprietary survey.
- Forecasts future growth in the number of smart home devices installed in American homes.
- Analyzes the factors influencing the proliferation of voice control devices in the homes.
- Identifies and analyzes the market strategies of various companies that have integrated voice control into their smart home ecosystems.
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