3 Apple audio and home cinema products we want, but probably won't see, at the iPhone SE 4's anticipated launch

(Image credit: Future)

Apple has confirmed it will be hosting an event on 19th February, where it is expected to launch its hotly anticipated iPhone SE 4 smartphone.

If the rumours are right this could well be a treat for music fans on the hunt for a portable player that can also make calls.

But the team at What Hi-Fi? can’t help but feel a slight twinge of regret that the current industry rumblings suggest the new iPhone SE 4 isn’t going to launch alongside three other key Apple products rumoured to arrive this year.

The Apple HomePod 3

Apple HomePod 2 vs Apple HomePod — (Image credit: What Hi-FI?)

If you have recently read our best wireless speaker guide you’ll know we are fans of Apple’s HomePod 2 speaker. We like it so much, indeed, that, as well as giving it a five-star rating when we got it in for testing, we also made it a What Hi-Fi? Award winner.

Which is why we’re excited to see what Apple has in store for us with its next HomePod, which is rumoured to feature a new design, with a touch-screen element. Sadly, all signs suggest that while the HomePod 3 should launch in 2025, it won’t be at next week’s event. Instead noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes it will launch between July and September – in the same window as the rumoured iPhone 17 line of phones.

A new Apple HomePod Mini

The other product we would like to see get a hardware spruce ASAP is the HomePod Mini. While our hi-fi and audio editor Kashfia Kabir remains a fan of Apple’s original (and five-star) dinky wireless speaker, it is getting a little long in the tooth having launched all the way back in 2021. So a new HomePod Mini 2 is somewhat overdue.

Sadly the only credible rumbling we’ve seen so far, comes from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who suggests that we won't see it at Apple’s February event. Instead, he pegs the HomePod 2 as arriving between September and November at the earliest.

A new Apple TV

4K TV streamer: Apple TV 4K — (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)

The Apple TV 4K (2022) is still the media streamer we recommend to most people. The five-star unit features solid HDR support, a great content library and easy to navigate user interface. But, it’s not perfect, featuring incredibly limited physical connectivity options.

Which is why we were excited when rumours started to surface suggesting a new Apple TV would launch this year with better circuitry, updated wi-fi and Bluetooth connectivity and quality of life improvements, including a web cam for Facetime calls. Sadly, as with the HomePod Mini 2, the latest word suggests it is also set to arrive at the end of the year. So it’s extremely unlikely we will see it at the event next week.

Are there any other Apple home cinema or audio products you would like to see sooner rather than later? Let us know on our forums and social media pages!

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Alastair is What Hi-Fi?’s editor in chief. He has well over a decade’s experience as a journalist working in both B2C and B2B press. During this time he’s covered everything from the launch of the first Amazon Echo to government cyber security policy. Prior to joining What Hi-Fi? he served as Trusted Reviews’ editor-in-chief. Outside of tech, he has a Masters from King’s College London in Ethics and the Philosophy of Religion, is an enthusiastic, but untalented, guitar player and runs a webcomic in his spare time.