UPDATED 23:33 EDT / MAY 14 2015

NEWS

First HomeKit devices go on sale in June, says Apple

Following a media report that the launch of Apple’s highly-anticipated HomeKit will be delayed until early fall, the iPhone maker issued a statement saying that the first HomeKit-enabled smart home devices will hit the market as early as next month.

“HomeKit [hardware certification] has been available for just a few months and we already have dozens of partners who have committed to bringing HomeKit accessories to market and we’re looking forward to the first ones coming next month,” an Apple spokesperson told Fortune.

The statement from Apple served to debunk a claim made by an article in Fortune that reported delays in the launch of HomeKit due to bloated code and difficulty controlling smaller, battery-powered connected devices.

Apple never announced an expected launch date for HomeKit-enabled devices, but in January, GridConnect, the maker of the ConnectSense Smart Outlet, an Internet-connected electrical socket that turns run-of-the-mill household appliances into devices that can be controlled using Siri on the iPhone or iPad, told Re/code that its products will hit the market this spring. This set an expectation that HomeKit would be widely available early this summer.

It has been nearly a year since Apple took the wraps off HomeKit at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2014. HomeKit is intended as a platform to connect smart home devices to a user’s iPhone or iPad, allowing them to control devices like thermostats, door locks, garage doors, power outlets, and more directly from their phone or tablet. Integrated with Siri, Apple’s speech-recognizing digital assistant, HomeKit will allow users to control connected devices with voice commands.

Although HomeKit was included in iOS as off iOS 8’s release in September last year, Apple only launched its Made-for-iPhone/iPad (MFi) licensing program in November last year at the company’s MFi Summit that took place in Shenzhen, China. Home automation accessory makers and app developers started submitting product plans for HomeKit-enabled products on the last day of the summit.

At CES 2015, the consumer electronics show that takes place in Las Vegas in January every year, a host of HomeKit-enable smart home devices were unveiled. HomeKit-enabled devices on show included smart plugs, like the aforementioned Connect Sense; Bluetooth connected smart locks; smart garage openers; smart light bulb adapters to turn existing light bulbs into smart ones, and more.

Screenshot: SiliconANGLE via WWDC14 Keynote

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