An iPhone 18 Pro clears the hardware side of the new Home features on day one. It ships with iOS 27 in the box, and the A20 Pro puts it on Apple’s Apple Intelligence device list, which is one of the three conditions Apple attaches to the Home camera features.
The other two conditions sit outside the phone: a home hub and an iCloud+ subscription. Apple has not published a step-by-step guide for any of this, so the sequence below follows the requirements Apple lists on its own pages, and the exact menus may differ once iOS 27 ships on Monday, September 14.
What has to be in place before you start
| Requirement | What Apple says |
|---|---|
| iPhone | An Apple Intelligence device; iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max qualify on the A20 Pro |
| Software | iOS 27, free from Monday, September 14; new iPhones ship with it installed |
| Home hub | HomePod (2nd generation), HomePod mini or Apple TV 4K |
| Subscription | iCloud+, which Apple says also includes Apple Intelligence support for compatible Home cameras on most plans |
| Camera | A supported camera for 4K streaming and recording; Apple has not published the list |
| Language | Siri AI is English at launch, with five more languages in October |
The setup sequence, in six steps
- 1. Get on iOS 27. It is free from Monday, September 14 for iPhone 11 and later, plus iPhone SE (2nd generation and later). If the iPhone 18 Pro arrives on Friday, September 18, it already has it.
- 2. Confirm Apple Intelligence is turned on for the iPhone. The Home descriptions and clip search are Apple Intelligence features, and Apple lists an Apple Intelligence device as a requirement.
- 3. Check the hub. Apple names HomePod (2nd generation), HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K. An iPhone is not one of them, however new it is.
- 4. Check the iCloud+ plan. Apple lists iCloud+ alongside the hub for the Home camera features, and says most plans include Apple Intelligence support for compatible Home cameras.
- 5. Check the camera. The descriptions and the clip search work on HomeKit Secure Video footage, and 4K streaming and recording applies to supported cameras only.
- 6. Open the Home app after the update. Apple describes combined activity notifications, a description of what happened in a clip before you watch it, and search by what happened. It has not published which screen each control sits on.
There is no shortcut through steps 3 and 4. They are the two most likely reasons a household with a new iPhone sees none of this on Monday.
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What changes if you are coming from an older iPhone
| Part of the setup | iPhone 18 Pro buyer on September 18 | Existing iPhone owner on September 14 |
|---|---|---|
| iOS 27 | Preinstalled in the box | Free update, iPhone 11 and later plus iPhone SE (2nd generation and later) |
| Apple Intelligence | Yes, on the A20 Pro | Only on all iPhone 16 models and later, plus iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max |
| Home hub | Still a separate device | Still a separate device |
| iCloud+ | Still a separate subscription | Still a separate subscription |
| Supported camera | Not published by Apple | Not published by Apple |
The split matters most for anyone on an iPhone 14 or older. That phone runs iOS 27 and gets the general improvements, but it is not on Apple’s Apple Intelligence list, so the AI parts of Home are not available to it whatever the hub situation is. Whether you buy the 6.3-inch Pro or the Pro Max makes no difference here, since both use the same chip.
If it does not work
Start with the three requirements rather than the app. Apple lists the hub, iCloud+ and an Apple Intelligence device together, so a missing piece in any of them explains a missing feature.
After that, remember the conditions Apple puts on Apple Intelligence generally. Server-backed features carry daily usage limits that vary by feature, request complexity and system demand. Siri AI is a beta, English first, and is not initially available in the EU on iOS, and Apple has not published whether that EU position touches the Home camera features specifically.
What Apple has not said
- Any support article or settings path for the four Home features
- Which cameras support 4K streaming and recording
- What a combined activity notification looks like in practice
- Whether the Home AI features are available on the same terms in the EU and China
- Whether any part of this needs a specific hub generation beyond the three Apple names
iOS 27 lands Monday, September 14, and the iPhones announced on September 9 reach stores Friday, September 18. If Apple posts real steps for the Home features, expect them after the update ships rather than before.