TALKING TECH

Live: Apple unveils $349 smart speaker HomePod

USA TODAY

Hey Siri, ready to meet the HomePod?

On Monday, Apple introduced the smart speaker HomePod during its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose. The speaker will ship this December in the U.S. for $349.

Also, Apple revealed the first details of iOS 11, the latest version of its operating system for the iPhone, iPad, and other mobile devices.

For a recap of Apple's WWDC keynote, scroll down below:

3:25 p.m.: Former first lady Michelle Obama will appear at WWDC this week. Cook finishes the keynote. Thanks for joining us!

3:23 p.m.: Cook steps on stage to wrap up. Not surprising, the HomePod costs more than rivals Echo or Google Home. Is the quality worth that price? Siri might help decide that in December.

3:21 p.m.: Schiller says privacy is an important part of HomePod. All communications are encrypted and queries are sent anonymously. HomePod is priced at $349. It will ship this December.

3:19 p.m.: Siri on HomePod will cover other areas like news, reminders, timers, traffic information, or send text messages. The big question: how will this compare to Alexa or Google Assistant?

3:16 p.m.: Schiller says the HomePod works great when paired together. The speaker also includes a musicologist to suggest new tunes. The prompt "hey Siri" works on HomePod, to call up new music.

3:13 p.m.: HomePod features a 4-inch Apple designed woofer, and features an A8 chip, which also powers the iPhone. "It sounds incredible," says Schiller. Music arrives wirelessly, and the speaker appears smaller compared to Echo, but closer to the size of Google Home.

3:11 p.m.: Schiller returns to discuss a "breakthrough home speaker," combining smarts with really good sound. Apple's answer? HomePod, available in black or white.

3:08 p.m.: Time for Apple's "one last thing." Cook starts with iTunes, then the iPod and iPhone. "We have such a great portable experience, but what about our homes?" Speaker time. "We want to reinvent home music," says Cook.

3:06 p.m.: iOS 11 will be available to all developers Monday. It's available as a free upgrade this fall.

3:02 p.m.: Other features on iOS 11: the ability to take screenshots and mark them up, plus the ability to search handwritten text within Notes.

2:58 p.m.: Drag and drop seems to work nicely on iPad. Federighi shows how you can drag one image, then tap on others to add to that drop. Very cool.

2:56 p.m.: Apple is also introducing the app Files, which brings all files on iPads together. It's clear Apple really wants you to use the iPad as a potential replacement for a desktop or laptop computer.

2:54 p.m.: Federighi says iOS 11 will be a big release for iPad, starting with a dock of recommended apps. There's also a new app switcher to remember how you have paired apps organized. The iPad will also include drag-and-drop with iOS 11.

2:52 p.m.: The new iPad Pros will now start with 64 GB of memory. The 10.5-inch model starts at $649, while the 12.9-inch starts at $799.

2:45 p.m.: The new iPads will add ProMotion, which will lead to a much smoother scrolling experience, as well as a better experience with Apple Pencil.

2:42 p.m.: Tim Cook is back, now to talk iPad. There's the iPad Pro, and the recently unveiled, lower cost iPad. Apple will introduce an iPad Pro with 10.5-inch screen. It's 20% larger than the standard iPad, but only weighs 1 pound. It also supports a full-size, on-screen keyboard, as well as a full-size physical keyboard.

2:37 p.m.: Alasdair Coull of Wingnut AR appears to show off a demo of his app. Using the table as a surface, users see a dilapidated building with airships landing. The airships fly back and forth around the table, firing at enemies on the ground. It's really remarkable.

2:33 p.m.: Augmented reality time. Federighi introduces ARKit to let developers add AR elements to their apps. In a demo, Federighi views a table through the iPhone camera, and adds a digital cup and lamp he turns on and off.

2:31 p.m.: Federighi returns to talk about the inclusion of machine learning for iOS. Apple will add new APIs for developers to leverage machine learning in their apps.

2:29 p.m.: On to the Games tab, you can watch game videos, check out the hottest game out that week, or top rankings. The redesign is aiming to make discovery a lot easier, a big win if you're a developer.

2:27 p.m.: The app pages bring up certain elements more prominently, such as review ratings, and App Store rankings. Another interesting feature: how-to guides, such as tips for using the photo app VSCO. There are also App of the Day, Game of the Day, or Daily Lists.

2:25 p.m.: Schiller says phased releases will roll out later this year, letting developers release their apps over a prolonged period. The App Store will also undergo a major redesign, starting with a tab called Today, to discover the latest apps. There's also a new tab called Games, which will include featuring in-app purchases.

2:22 p.m.: Phil Schiller is up next to talk App Store, which turns 9 years old this year. Schiller says users have downloaded 180 billion apps to date. Apple has paid $70 billion to developers to date.

2:20 p.m.: Federighi says Apple Music now has 27 million paid subscribers. Users will be able to see what your friends are listening to, if they opt to share that information. With Nike's app, you can create playlists, while Shazam lets you automatically add songs you select.

2:19 p.m.: HomeKit adds a Speaker feature to allow users to control their smart speakers. Directly from Music, users can send tunes right to the speakers.

2:18 p.m.: An interesting safety feature tied to iPhone: the ability to detect when you're driving and shut down. However, users will be able to still contact you if it's urgent.

2:14 p.m.: Federighi demonstrates Apple Pay via iMessage, and it works seamlessly. Just add a payment as a message and it's set. Apple Maps will also get big upgrades, including lane guidance.

2:10 p.m.: Federighi says Live Photos will also support looping, essentially letting users create their own GIFs. Users can also create their own clips similar to Instagram's Boomerang.

2:08 p.m.: The Photos app will use machine learning to manage images based on events. Users will also have more features to edit videos. Control Center, the menu you access by swiping up on iPhone, now falls onto one page, with the ability to access a lot more controls than before.

2:06 p.m.: Federighi says iOS device owners take 1 trillion photos a year. Videos will switch to HEVC, which means you can capture better videos while taking up less space. No more stressing about storage, hopefully.

2:05 p.m.: Federighi says Siri will understand how you use your device as well as context. He says it will suggest topics of interest in News, or make a calendar appointment based on an event you book on Safari. But Federighi notes it is all completely private.

2:03 p.m.: As for Siri, Federighi says they're using deep learning to give her voice a little more personality. There's also a new visual interface, and Siri will be able to translate languages.

2:02 p.m.: On to Apple Pay, Federighi is opening up the service for person-to-person payments. It'll be integrated into Messages as an iMessage app.

2:00 p.m.: Federighi breaks down iOS 11, starting with Messages. It'll be easier to find apps within Messages to use stickers. Also, all conversations will sync to cloud, which is great if you switch devices.

1:59 p.m.: Cook returns on stage to talk iOS. He says it has a 96% customer satisfaction, noting 86% of iOS device owners are running iOS 10. Cook also takes a swipe at the "horrible fragmentation" on Android.

1:55 p.m.: Apple plans to launch an iMac Pro with up to an 18 core Xeon processor. Basically, it'll be super fast, and super expensive.

1:47 p.m.: John Knoll of Industrial Light and Magic appears to talk about how the new iMacs will better support the creation of virtual reality content. Lauren Ridge of Epic Games steers the VR demo, taking place on the planet Mustafar from the Star Wars universe. Ridge adds new items to the world such as a squadron of TIE Fighters.

1:42 p.m.: Apple is rolling out new iMacs, with displays capable of displaying up to 1 billion colors. They'll also feature seventh-generation Intel Core processors and support for up to twice as much memory. Solid state drives will be 50% faster and up to 2 terabytes or storage.

1:40 p.m.: No surprise here, but High Sierra will also deliver a big uptick in graphics power. The next version will support stuff such as Steam VR and Unreal Engine's VR games. Federighi also hints at hearing more from Apple on this topic. AR news, perhaps? High Sierra will be a free upgrade this fall.

1:36 p.m.: The Mac will also add a more modern file system to keep your data more secure and easier to organize. It's a lot faster to perform basic tasks like duplicating items.

1:34 p.m.: Federighi says it will open up photo projects to third-party printing services such as Shutterfly.

1:33 p.m.: It also features intelligent tracking prevention, which Federighi says will protect your privacy. In Mail, users will be able to use full-screen split view to see your inbox on one side, and the compose screen on the other side.

1:32 p.m.: Federighi says with High Sierra, Safari is the world's fastest desktop browser. He describes the browsing experience as "serene." Among the features: autoplay blocking, which stops videos from automatically playing.

1:30 p.m.: Federighi confirms the name of the next macOS: High Sierra. "They assured us this name is fully baked," Federighi said, because no one can resist a good marijuana joke.

1:28 p.m.: Cook moves on to the Mac, "the heart and soul of Apple" as he describes it. Craig Federighi is up next to discuss macOS.

1:27 p.m.: The Watch will also add a new flashlight serving as a blinking light for safety purposes. The Bluetooth will also improve, allowing the Watch to interact better with other devices such as glucose monitors. The upgrade to WatchOS launches this fall.

1:26 p.m.: The Siri face can add lots of different content, such as news, movie tickets, and HomeKit functions to control smart home technology. On the Workout app, users can pick playlists that start as soon as you begin your workout. Swiping right on the Watch lets users control the music.

1:24 p.m.: The Watch has an upgraded Music app to sync better with AirPods, Apple's wireless ear buds.

1:23 p.m.: Apple pushing the fitness capabilities of the watch pretty hard. Users will be able to do a variety of workouts through their watch, including high-intensity interval training. The next version of WatchOS will allow the two-way exchange of information between the watch and gym equipment.

1:20 p.m.: The watch will add more faces, including a kaleidoscope and characters from the Disney franchise Toy Story.

1:18 p.m.: The Apple Watch will leverage machine learning to push forward important notifications based on the time of day. When you raise your wrist, you'll see updated notifications.

1:17 p.m.: Apple Watch time. Cook says the device has had "incredible growth" this year.

1:16 p.m.: Cook says Amazon is finally coming to Apple TV. It will launch on all Apple TVs later this year. It's about time.

1:14 p.m.: The keynote will focus on four platforms: TV, Apple Watch, Mac and iOS, says Cook. "Apple is doing great," he says, opting to skip all the sales highlights, noting six big announcements during this keynote.

1:13 p.m.: Cook says Apple hosts 16 million registered developers around the world, adding 3 million in the last year alone. Developers hail from 75 countries. One of their youngest developers is 10 years old, and he already has five apps on the App Store. Their oldest developer published her first app at 82 years old.

1:12 p.m.: Cook discusses Apple's commitment to the development community. "This is going to be the best and biggest WWDC ever," Cook says.

1:11 p.m.: Now for the CEO of the hour, Apple's Tim Cook. "I'm so glad that really can't happen," Cook jokes.

1:09 p.m.: The servers in the data center shut down, followed by global panic as apps on Apple devices slowly lose their apps. Dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria. It's an "appocalypse." Sadly, I could see this actually happening.

1:07 p.m. ET: After a late start (looks like someone needed a Siri calendar reminder), Apple finally kicks things off with a video montage, showing Apple's data center in Cupertino. Clearly teasing the new Apple Park campus.

ORIGINAL STORY

A Siri-powered smart speaker would be similar to Amazon's Echo and Google Home, capitalizing on intense consumer interest for talking devices.

Apple's iPhone could make AR tech more of a reality

Apple's Siri speaker to challenge Google, Amazon

Apple will also stream the keynote on its website, but you can only watch on an Apple device running Safari, or a PC running Microsoft Edge on Windows 10.

The speaker will reportedly include virtual surround sound, and deeper integration with Apple services including HomeKit, allowing users to control smart home technology.

As with previous years, Apple will also use the keynote to reveal the first details of iOS 11, the latest version of its mobile operating system launching this fall for the next iPhone, as well as current models of the iPhone, iPad and other mobile devices.

One potential app launching along with iOS 11, as reported by multiple outlets, is Files, although no details have surfaced yet on the app's key features.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.