iOS 10 Might Finally Bring An Official Apple HomeKit App
It's been more than a year since Apple introduced its own foray into the budding market of smart appliances and home automation products, what some label as the Internet of Things. Since then, adoption of HomeKit by manufacturers and developers has been steady but somewhat slow. Adoption by consumers, however, was perhaps slower, hampered by the dozens of apps available, one per smart home product. A long requested feature, Apple might have finally listened to its customers and might soon have its own official HomeKit app, available starting iOS 10.
To be fair, the situation is far from being a problem unique to Apple. It is actually one of the problems facing the sudden burst of smart appliances, home sensors, and whatnot in the market. Each device is practically an island of its own. Some do belong to a federated group under this or that smart home platform, but they still mostly come with their own apps. Juggling between such apps, to control lighting in one and air conditioning in another, is definitely not a pleasant consumer experience.
Some platforms, like Logitech Harmony, for example, try to corral these disparate devices into a single app or remote control, but many from Apple's side of the fence have long been clamoring for an all-in-one solution to come from Apple itself. So far, Apple has made only very small moves towards that, only going as far as reserving an icon for such an app.
According an Amazon review attributed to an Apple employee, however, the company might soon actually release its own HomeKit app in the next iOS version. Although it has been known to be used internally, Apple has never made the app public in any manner. Whether such an app will sit will with third party manufacturers is still an open question, but it would probably do good by many Apple users.
That said, iOS 10 isn't due until Fall, and many things might still happen between then. Apple could still yank out the app at the last minute or even delay it, but then it would already be two years without a major development on the HomeKit front.
VIA: MacRumors