Apple is aiming to follow Google's footsteps by launching a new smart home feature for the iPhone, reports suggest. The new features could be seen as early as next month's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which has observers excited as to what they can expect.
With the smart house concept becoming ever popular, especially with the latest publicity, albeit negative, of Google's Nest, which was forced to recall 400,000 smoke alarms due to a faulty feature, Apple believes it can integrate existing technology into household uses.
As per Nest, details of the recall still means that "nothing has changed since our initial announcement last month and in fact, we'll be bringing Nest Protect back on the market in a few weeks."
Despite the report, there is little detail to be had on what those features may look like or what they would exactly be.
Many believe the iPhone 6 will have a number of new features that aims to set it apart from other smartphones on the market.
Another idea circulating the forums is that Apple will integrate the iPhone with iBeacon, which allows for pinging and better detection of Apple devices. This could lead to smart products that have Apple designs and iOS into their interface.
But with the WWDC coming and rumors already beginning to make their rounds, it is clear that many are expecting a number of new and innovative ideas from Apple, which has seen its prestige globally drop lately as other wireless tech has caught up with Apple's products and in some cases surpassed.
WWDC, where Apple has historically released new products, most expect the new iPhone 6 and iOS 8 to be announced, which will also include a number of new apps.
"Every year the WWDC audience becomes more diverse, with developers from almost every discipline you can imagine and coming from every corner of the globe. We look forward to sharing with them our latest advances in iOS and OS X so they can create the next generation of great apps," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice-president of worldwide marketing.