Apple's new HomeView includes temperature and humidity sensing, allowing the smart home hub to monitor indoor conditions and supply readings to the new thermostats developed with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric.
Apple's technical specifications confirm that both the tabletop and wall-mounted HomeView have a temperature and humidity sensor. The hardware is listed alongside the ambient light sensor and accelerometer.
There are several limitations for the HomeView's readings. Temperature and humidity sensing is optimized for indoor domestic environments with ambient temperatures around 59°F to 86°F, and relative humidity around 30% to 70%.
Accuracy may decrease when HomeView plays audio at high volume for an extended period. The sensors also require time to calibrate immediately after startup before results appear.
According to Apple, the LG and Schneider Electric thermostats in the "Apple Home Collection" can obtain temperature and humidity readings from multiple rooms using sensors built into HomeView, HomePod, and HomePod mini, as well as dedicated sensors from either manufacturer. The thermostats also support Adaptive Temperature in the Home app, which uses on-device intelligence from iPhone to adjust settings based on whether someone is home, winding down for the night, or away.
LG's Temperature Sensor and the Schneider Home Room Sensor will each start at $39.95 in the United States, while the companies' thermostats will each start at $199.95. Both HomeView models cost $299 in the United States and launch on November 13.
