I would LOVE to stop using Alexa voice control for smart home devices, but it's ubiquitous while support for Siri remains very poor. If Apple does release a HomeOS, I hope it does a MUCH better job of getting smart home device manufacturers on board to support it. Lacking that improved support, I'm not sure what the point of this exercise would be.
What devices can't you control with Siri/Home? I can't think of a type of device that doesn't have somebody with HomeKit support.
There’s going to have to be a major improvement in how all the iDevices interact with each other if this is going to work. I have an iPhone, two iPads, Apple Watch, Apple TV, original HomePod and a Mini, plus AirPod Max and AirPod Pro 2, plus a new car with AirPlay. Yes, lucky me. However, they do not interact well with both HomePods playing different music, though they are in different rooms with rooms in between and even if I speak softly inches away from one HomePod. My iPhone won’t Airplay to my HomePods without dropping the connection after a couple of minutes, neither HomePod will play as a radio, and using more than one app in the car causes the connection to collapse. I can have Apple Maps and most of the time Apple Music playing but add a phone call and it all drops out.
My view is Apple needs to sort out how it wants its devices to operate and interact with one another (it should be faultless, particularly in an home with all the devices on the same WiFi network) and sort out the basics. There is too much updating all the time. Quite often nothing works with anything else. I appreciate as I use public betas they are not infallible but it is all too frequent that the basics just don’t work.
Why do you need to AirPlay from an iPhone to a HomePod? Just ask the HomePod to play whatever you want. The phone will still show the details, but you no longer need to worry about yet another link. Don't know what you mean by "neither HomePod will play as a radio". Do you subscribe to any streaming service? Apple Music, SiriusXM etc.?
I wonder if it will be smart enough to access the various iCloud-linked data like calendars, reminders and iMessage without the owner's iPhone connected to the network. At the moment, HomePods complain that they can't access the iPhone. There is no reason HomePod and Apple Watch Siri can't forward requests to ChatGPT either, rather than "i found some results on the web" for anything but the most basic queries.
HomeKit needs more power as well - Home Assistant has the power but usability is poor. The automations in HomeKit are too basic; I have lights that are on low at night and when activity is detected they raise to be brighter. But there is no option to return to previous brightness/scene, they can either stay on at max, or turn off. You can sort of do it with shortcuts, but it's a faff.
That's a security measure rather than a 'not smart enough' thing. The HomePod's ability to use voice recognition to identify the user is pretty good, but requiring your iPhone to be connected to the same network makes it far less likely that someone without authorization could use your HomePod to access your personal data and communications while you're out of the house.
If it's about security, why does it not use my phone's most recent location as long as it was updated at most a few minutes ago? Security may be a desirable (or not) side effect, but it's definitely not the primary reason it doesn't work. In fact, I'd wager that it would work just fine if my phone was connected over a VPN to the home network, giving a false sense of security.
I’m not sure if I understand your question, but a routine that asks ‘does the voice making a request to a HomePod have a matching user’s iPhone on the same network’ seems both more secure and faster than one that asks instead for the iPhone’s location within the last few minutes. Also, I don’t have a home-linked VPN for testing, but I’d be willing to bet that wouldn’t work.
There’s going to have to be a major improvement in how all the iDevices interact with each other if this is going to work. I have an iPhone, two iPads, Apple Watch, Apple TV, original HomePod and a Mini, plus AirPod Max and AirPod Pro 2, plus a new car with AirPlay. Yes, lucky me. However, they do not interact well with both HomePods playing different music, though they are in different rooms with rooms in between and even if I speak softly inches away from one HomePod. My iPhone won’t Airplay to my HomePods without dropping the connection after a couple of minutes, neither HomePod will play as a radio, and using more than one app in the car causes the connection to collapse. I can have Apple Maps and most of the time Apple Music playing but add a phone call and it all drops out.
My view is Apple needs to sort out how it wants its devices to operate and interact with one another (it should be faultless, particularly in an home with all the devices on the same WiFi network) and sort out the basics. There is too much updating all the time. Quite often nothing works with anything else. I appreciate as I use public betas they are not infallible but it is all too frequent that the basics just don’t work.
Most of that sounds like network problems. In a stable network, I am continually surprised at how well the statement does at determining which HomePod is the nearest in order to respond to voice requests. AirPlay connections don’t drop.
I’ve never experienced the issues you’re describing with AirPlay. Your last comment about using public betas may be key. Betas exist literally for the purpose of finding bugs and errors. You shouldn’t be surprised when you find them, even with “the basics.” Software changes don’t just cause esoteric bugs. They can affect anything. If you’re reporting those to Apple as a beta user, then great. If you’re just using betas to get new features sooner, that’s not their purpose. Either way, you need to accept that you are choosing to use unstable software, and not complain that Apple isn’t meeting your expectations.
I would LOVE to stop using Alexa voice control for smart home devices, but it's ubiquitous while support for Siri remains very poor. If Apple does release a HomeOS, I hope it does a MUCH better job of getting smart home device manufacturers on board to support it. Lacking that improved support, I'm not sure what the point of this exercise would be.
What devices can't you control with Siri/Home? I can't think of a type of device that doesn't have somebody with HomeKit support.
very little HomeKit support for electronic blinds, and not much for reasonably priced ceiling fans.
I would like the next AppleTV to have Apple Intelligence in a way that allows my original HomePods to access it for a better version of Siri.
Sounds good.
i wish Apple TV had a quicker way to connect AirPods and other devices that didn’t involve drilling down into the Settings app.
How about a dedicated button with a menu of devices on the Home Screen? Or click the home button on the remote to trigger an on screen menu of devices?
I would like the next AppleTV to have Apple Intelligence in a way that allows my original HomePods to access it for a better version of Siri.
Sounds good.
i wish Apple TV had a quicker way to connect AirPods and other devices that didn’t involve drilling down into the Settings app.
How about a dedicated button with a menu of devices on the Home Screen? Or click the home button on the remote to trigger an on screen menu of devices?
there’s gotta be a better way…
As it turns out, there already is a better way.
If you have an AppleTV on and put some AirPods in your ears, a notice will appear on the upper right of the screen inviting you to press the TV/Home button on your remote in order to connect. No drilling required.
Likewise, you can press and hold the same home button to bring up quick controls on the upper right of your screen. You can then quickly select the exact onscreen menu of devices you're looking for.
I would like the next AppleTV to have Apple Intelligence in a way that allows my original HomePods to access it for a better version of Siri.
Sounds good.
i wish Apple TV had a quicker way to connect AirPods and other devices that didn’t involve drilling down into the Settings app.
How about a dedicated button with a menu of devices on the Home Screen? Or click the home button on the remote to trigger an on screen menu of devices?
there’s gotta be a better way…
As it turns out, there already is a better way.
If you have an AppleTV on and put some AirPods in your ears, a notice will appear on the upper right of the screen inviting you to press the TV/Home button on your remote in order to connect. No drilling required.
Likewise, you can press and hold the same home button to bring up quick controls on the upper right of your screen. You can then quickly select the exact onscreen menu of devices you're looking for.
As it turns out, autocnnect only works sometimes. Sometimes they connect automatically. Sometimes that icon pops up in the upper righthand corner of the TV.
MOST of the time, i have to dig into the System Settings to connect the AirPods Pro.
I'll try the Apple remote trick, though. Thanks for that one!
Comments
What devices can't you control with Siri/Home? I can't think of a type of device that doesn't have somebody with HomeKit support.
i wish Apple TV had a quicker way to connect AirPods and other devices that didn’t involve drilling down into the Settings app.
Or click the home button on the remote to trigger an on screen menu of devices?
there’s gotta be a better way…
As it turns out, there already is a better way.
If you have an AppleTV on and put some AirPods in your ears, a notice will appear on the upper right of the screen inviting you to press the TV/Home button on your remote in order to connect. No drilling required.
Likewise, you can press and hold the same home button to bring up quick controls on the upper right of your screen. You can then quickly select the exact onscreen menu of devices you're looking for.
Sometimes they connect automatically.
Sometimes that icon pops up in the upper righthand corner of the TV.
MOST of the time, i have to dig into the System Settings to connect the AirPods Pro.
I'll try the Apple remote trick, though. Thanks for that one!