Apple Smart Home Cameras: Prices, Specs & Release Date

Overview

Apple has recommended third-party HomeKit cameras for years, but it had never put its name on a coordinated camera lineup. That changed on October 13, 2026, when Apple introduced the Apple Home Collection: a set of smart home accessories designed in collaboration with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric, sold through Apple, and managed entirely in the Apple Home app.

Be clear about what this is — and what it is not. These are LG and Schneider Electric products developed closely with Apple, not cameras built by Apple itself. If you already shop this category, our guide to the best indoor cameras for Apple HomeKit shows the third-party HomeKit Secure Video options these new LG models will sit alongside — and mostly compete with on integration and design rather than on price.

This is announcement coverage based on Apple's published specifications. These products are not on sale yet, and we have not tested them.

What was announced

The Collection covers home monitoring, home access, and home climate. LG supplies the entire camera line, the smart lock, one thermostat, and a temperature sensor. Schneider Electric supplies its own thermostat and room sensor. Every product in the range shares the same pitch:

• Setup starts with a single tap on an iPhone, using NFC pairing, and everything is controlled in the Home app or with Siri — no separate manufacturer app or account is required, according to Apple.
• Every accessory supports Thread, and the devices update their own network credentials if you change your home Wi-Fi.
• Home app data is end-to-end encrypted, so Apple, LG, and Schneider Electric say they cannot read it. Camera footage is processed on your own home hub or in Private Cloud Compute.
• Cameras require a compatible home hub — Apple HomeView, HomePod, HomePod mini, or Apple TV 4K — for their monitoring features.
• Optional professional installation through ADT is offered at Apple Retail in the US for an extra charge.

The camera system leans on HomeKit Secure Video rather than a new LG cloud. Recordings are stored in your iCloud+ plan, and Apple says there is no separate camera subscription on top of that — though, as the table below shows, iCloud+ itself is very much part of the cost.

Prices and release dates

Release timing: Apple says availability for the Collection begins in December 2026 at apple.com/store, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple Store locations, with select accessories following in early 2027. Apple has not published a specific December date for any individual camera, and it has not announced preorders for the Collection. Anyone listing an exact ship day for a single model is guessing.

The running cost: HomeKit Secure Video event history requires iCloud+. Apple gives each camera 10 days of event video history, but the number of cameras you can use depends on your plan: the 50GB plan supports one camera, the 200GB plan supports up to five, and the 2TB plan supports an unlimited number. Apple Intelligence camera features — automatic video summaries and searching footage in natural language — also require an eligible iCloud+ plan, an Apple Intelligence-capable iPhone or iPad for setup, and a home hub.

Prices and availability verified against Apple's October 13, 2026 Newsroom announcement. US prices are starting prices before tax. Apple did not publish UK pricing in that announcement.

Indoor Cam details

The LG Indoor Cam Plug-In is the product most readers of this site will care about, and its headline feature is privacy, not resolution.

Privacy tilt

According to Apple, the Indoor Cam automatically tilts to adjust its view when you check in on the home remotely, and tilts back down to stop monitoring as soon as the first member of the household returns. You can also tilt it manually, or control the tilt in the Home app at any time — for example, as part of a morning scene that points the camera down while you get ready. That is a more visible privacy signal than a software-only recording toggle, though it is a tilt mechanism rather than a physical lens shutter.

Video and detection

Apple describes the four-camera lineup as capturing up to 2.5K video and recognizing people, familiar faces, pets, vehicles, and packages. Treat the 2.5K figure as a lineup maximum until LG publishes full per-model spec sheets — Apple does not break resolution down model by model in its announcement. LG's own announcement for the Indoor Cam lists a wide 160-degree field of view, which would be unusually broad for this category if it holds up in the production unit.

Power, color, and storage

The product name says it plainly: this is a plug-in camera, not a battery model. It comes in Essence White only. Like the rest of the camera line, it has built-in storage so it can keep recording through a Wi-Fi outage, with footage handled through HomeKit Secure Video when a hub and iCloud+ plan are in place.

At $199.95, it is priced far above the mainstream indoor-camera market. For context, the eufy Indoor Cam E30 review covers a 4K indoor camera that sells for a fraction of this, and the Aqara Camera Hub G3 review shows what an established HomeKit-friendly hub camera offers today. The LG Indoor Cam's case rests on Apple Home integration, the privacy tilt, and design — not on winning a spec-per-dollar comparison.

Outdoor Cam, Floodlight Cam, Video Doorbell, and Smart Lock

LG Outdoor Cam Plug-In — $299.95

The Outdoor Cam is the simpler of the two outdoor models: low-light color night vision, a body that can be angled for flexible coverage, and self-installation. Apple positions it as plug-in outdoor monitoring without lights of its own. It comes in Essence Graphite and Essence Silver.

LG Floodlight Cam — $399.95

The Floodlight Cam adds adaptive dual floodlights that switch on automatically when motion is detected, on top of the same low-light color night vision as the Outdoor Cam. At $399.95 it is the most expensive camera in the Collection, and the one most likely to be compared against wired floodlight cameras from Ring and others once independent testing exists.

LG Video Doorbell Wired — $249.95

The doorbell is a dual-camera design. The front camera records at 2.5K for visitors, and a second, bottom-facing Full HD camera watches the ground in front of the door for packages, with a built-in spotlight. Its chime plays through HomeView, HomePod, or HomePod mini rather than through a plug-in chime of its own. As the name says, it is a wired doorbell — budget for doorbell wiring or a professional install.

LG Smart Deadbolt Lock — $349.95

The lock uses Ultra Wideband to judge how close an authorized person is, unlocking automatically as someone carrying a home key on a compatible iPhone or Apple Watch approaches, with no tap needed. Alternatives are tap-to-unlock, an integrated PIN pad, and a hidden backup key slot. It can sense whether the door is open, closed, or has been tampered with, alert you if the door is open while locked, and share guest access through the Home app. In the Home app, the doorbell and lock can work together: see who is at the door and unlock it from the same view, or by asking Siri. The lock is sold only in the US and Canada.

HomeKit-only vs Matter: the nuance that matters

Do not buy these cameras expecting Matter camera support. Apple explicitly describes the lock, the thermostats, and the sensors as Matter compatible. It makes no such claim for any of the four cameras, and launch coverage from Engadget explains why: the cameras and doorbell rely on Apple's own local buffering and encrypted upload flow for HomeKit Secure Video, which Matter does not currently support, so those products work only with Apple devices.

Thread support does not change that conclusion. Thread is the low-power mesh radio every Collection accessory uses to stay connected; it is not cross-platform camera compatibility. In practical terms:

• Cameras and doorbell: Apple Home and HomeKit Secure Video only. No Matter, and no Alexa or Google Home support has been announced.
• Smart Deadbolt Lock: Matter compatible and supports Aliro, so its core access functions keep working locally even without an internet connection.
• Thermostats and sensors: Matter compatible, so they are the part of the Collection that can live in a mixed-platform home.

If your household is split between Apple and other platforms, that split inside the lineup is the single most important detail in this announcement. Our roundup of the best indoor security cameras of 2026 is a better starting point if cross-platform support is a requirement rather than a nice-to-have.

J450: Apple's own camera is a different, rumored product

Confusingly, the LG cameras are not the end of Apple's camera plans. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has reported that Apple is still developing its own first-party home camera, codenamed J450, and he clarified in October 2026 reporting — covered by MacRumors and AppleInsider — that the LG project is completely separate from it, with Apple's own device still planned for 2027.

As reported by Gurman, the J450 concept is radically different from the LG cameras:

• A small metal cylinder, a shape Gurman likened to an oversized metal chapstick, meant to be placed around the home.
• A low-frame-rate sensor that does not record video at all.
• On-board AI analysis that produces text descriptions instead of footage — the kind of update that tells you a specific person just walked into a room, or that a pet is somewhere in the house.
• Facial recognition, so those descriptions can name household members, plus the ability to tell which room someone is in and trigger Apple Home automations.

None of that is an Apple announcement. There is no official name, price, design, or release date for J450, and reporting has not settled basic questions such as where its image processing happens. We are covering it here only so readers do not mistake the December LG cameras for Apple's own camera — if the J450 reporting is accurate, the two product lines will do fundamentally different jobs: one records encrypted video, the other deliberately never does.

Strengths and limits

Strengths

• One-tap iPhone setup and a single app — no LG account or second app needed to run the cameras, per Apple
• End-to-end encrypted video through HomeKit Secure Video, with footage processed on your hub or in Private Cloud Compute
• No separate camera subscription: event history rides on the iCloud+ plan many households already pay for
• The Indoor Cam's privacy tilt is a visible, physical answer to the "is it watching me" problem
• Dual-lens doorbell covers both visitors and packages, and pairs with the lock in one Home app view
• Built-in storage keeps cameras recording during Wi-Fi outages; every accessory supports Thread

Limits

• Premium pricing across the board — $199.95 is a lot for a plug-in indoor camera with an up-to-2.5K lineup claim
• Cameras are Apple-only: no Matter camera support and no announced Alexa or Google Home path
• iCloud+ is still a subscription, and multi-camera households will need the 200GB or 2TB tier
• No per-product December dates and no preorders yet; select accessories slip to early 2027
• Full per-model spec sheets (frame rates, weather ratings, individual resolutions) were not published in Apple's announcement
• The lock, thermostats, and sensors do not launch in the UK

Who it's for

The Apple Home Collection cameras are for committed Apple households that value Home app integration, end-to-end encryption, and a coordinated design more than raw value for money — especially anyone already paying for a 200GB or 2TB iCloud+ plan and already running a HomePod, Apple TV 4K, or HomeView as a hub. The Indoor Cam's privacy tilt will appeal most to people who have resisted indoor cameras precisely because a lens pointed at the living room felt like too much.

It is not for mixed-platform homes, renters who cannot wire a doorbell, or anyone shopping on specifications per dollar. If you need a camera this month rather than in December, the existing HomeKit picks in our best indoor cameras for Apple HomeKit guide are buyable now, and several cost far less. Android households should not consider the cameras at all — there is no announced way to use them outside Apple Home.

FAQ

Where to buy

The Apple Home Collection is not on sale yet and preorders are not open as of October 16, 2026. Apple says sales begin in December 2026 through its own channels below. We will update this section when product pages and preorder dates go live.

Apple (sales from December 2026): Apple Home Collection announcement — apple.com

Apple Store: apple.com/store — the Collection will be sold here, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple Store locations starting in December.

LG Electronics: lg.com — LG is the manufacturer of the cameras, doorbell, and lock; check LG's official site for its own product announcements.

Links above are plain manufacturer links with no affiliate tags. Prices are US starting prices announced on October 13, 2026 and may change before launch.