Apple Stepping up Plans for Echo-Like Smart Home Device

United States: Apple Inc., an American multinational technology company is striding up plans for developing its own device similar to the Amazon Echo. Like Echo, the Siri device is said to be able to control smart home accessories like lights, locks and curtains all through voice activation.

The device is under the prototype testing in which some technology is included such as facial recognition sensors, etc. In order to differentiate itself from the other firms Apple is using the more advanced microphone and speaker technology in its device.

In addition, the company has also considered integrating mapping information into the speaker which helps the users to notify that it is time to leave their house for an appointment.

TechSci Research depicts that with the help of this device the company would increase its presence in smart homes market across the globe. As well, this would also help the company to gain the competitive edge.

According to a recent report published by TechSci Research, “Global Smart Homes Market By Application, By Technology, By Region, Competition Forecast and Opportunities, 2011 – 2021”, the global smart homes market is projected to cross USD60 billion by 2021. On the basis of application, the market has been segmented into five categories, namely, Energy Management Systems, Security & Access Control Systems, HVAC Control Systems, Entertainment Control Systems and Others. Among these categories, Energy Management Systems dominated the global smart homes market in 2015. With increasing government efforts to optimize energy consumption, the adoption of energy management systems is expected to further increase in the coming years. In 2015, North America dominated the global smart homes market, followed by Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa and South America.