Apple turns on HomePod's smoke alarm recognition

AppleInsider · April 18, 2023 4:46PM

Both the HomePod and HomePod mini can now recognize the sound of smoke alarms, and automatically send a notification alert to a user's iPhone.

Apple announced what it calls Sound Recognition in January, alongside the release of the revised HomePod. However, it required the use of the revamped HomeKit architecture, which it released in November 2022, then pulled in December.

Now the new HomeKit architecture has been released again with macOS Ventura 13.3 and iOS 16.4. It's not clear why Sound Recognition was not enabled when those OSes were released -- or in fact whether it was -- but the feature is now available.

It's intended to alert users when there is a fire, or at least smoke at home while they are away. The HomePod or HomePod mini are able to recognize the sound of a smoke or a carbon monoxide alarm, and this can then trigger sending the alert.

"Sound Recognition may detect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm sounds and send you notifications when recognized," says Apple in the specifications for the HomePod. "Sound Recognition should not be relied upon in circumstances where you may be harmed or injured, or in high-risk or emergency situations."

Neither the HomePod nor HomePod mini contain a smoke detector, so this is entirely based on sound -- which means users have to have a smoke alarm for this to work. However, both models do have a built-in temperature sensor.

So in a fully-equipped smart home setting, a HomePod could hear the sound of an alarm and also register a rising temperature.

For the new Sound Recognition to work, not only must a user have a smoke alarm, but all of their Apple devices must be updated to the latest software.

Read on AppleInsider

dewme · April 18, 2023 5:50PM

This is a great feature but also one that you hope you'll never have to use for an actual emergency.

This isn't the first listening device that can recognize the sound from smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms going off. The universal challenge with all of these devices is what do you do when the thing goes off? If the only indication is a notification to your phone and you don't have your phone or Apple Watch on you, the outcome could be pretty bad. In the case of CO alarms that are triggered while you are at home you may not have any detectable indications that something is wrong. You may be incapacitated before you can respond to a notification on your phone.

Some listeners like the one Ring sells automatically call the fire department when the listener device hears the smoke/CO alarm go off. These automated calls, unlike security alarms, are non-revokable. So if you overdo the microwave popcorn and the smoke alarm triggers, be prepared to greet the fire squad in a few minutes. Maybe make an extra unburned batch of popcorn to share with them. The Ring listener has the added "feature" of being active all of the time in every mode, with no bypass switch. Better keep that in mind if you want to test your smoke/CO detector, say after changing the main batteries or backup batteries.

Of course having first responders show up for false alarms is 1000% better than not having the extra protection that these listening devices can offer. But be prepared ahead of time. You have to at least do a mental walkthrough about how you are going to deal with the limitations of these devices, how you are going to respond when they go off while you are home, and how you are going to respond when they go off and you are away from home. You don't want to be trying to figure out this stuff the very first time the device gets triggered. For example, if you're away from home calling 911 from where you are is probably going to create a lot of confusion. You may want to have the phone numbers for the first responders in your home location very handy. Similar advanced preparation is required for security alarms, freeze/water leak detectors, etc.

daalseth · April 18, 2023 7:14PM

~Alarm goes off~
Siri: Here’s what I found on the web for TWEEEEEEE……

Kidding!

chasm · April 18, 2023 7:20PM

JP234 said:

Now you tell me! After I spent $200 on Nest connected smoke & CO detectors! I could have just bought a cheapo set and used the HomePod to notify me if I'm not home. Oh well, live and learn.

Nest = Google, so I expect they’ll call the fire department for you and let them know where you live, whether you’re home, and what you were cooking that started the fire.

daalseth · April 18, 2023 7:43PM

chasm said:

JP234 said:

Now you tell me! After I spent $200 on Nest connected smoke & CO detectors! I could have just bought a cheapo set and used the HomePod to notify me if I'm not home. Oh well, live and learn.

Nest = Google, so I expect they’ll call the fire department for you and let them know where you live, whether you’re home, and what you were cooking that started the fire.

And then bombard you with ads for home remodellers.

jeromec · April 18, 2023 7:44PM

"Apple turns on HomePod's smoke alarm recognition"...has anyone actually been able to turn it on?
Does it work with iOS16.4.1 or does it require iOS16.5, currently in beta?
There is not even a source for the info in the article!

applezulu · April 18, 2023 8:04PM

dewme said:

This is a great feature but also one that you hope you'll never have to use for an actual emergency.

This isn't the first listening device that can recognize the sound from smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms going off. The universal challenge with all of these devices is what do you do when the thing goes off? If the only indication is a notification to your phone and you don't have your phone or Apple Watch on you, the outcome could be pretty bad. In the case of CO alarms that are triggered while you are at home you may not have any detectable indications that something is wrong. You may be incapacitated before you can respond to a notification on your phone.

Some listeners like the one Ring sells automatically call the fire department when the listener device hears the smoke/CO alarm go off. These automated calls, unlike security alarms, are non-revokable. So if you overdo the microwave popcorn and the smoke alarm triggers, be prepared to greet the fire squad in a few minutes. Maybe make an extra unburned batch of popcorn to share with them. The Ring listener has the added "feature" of being active all of the time in every mode, with no bypass switch. Better keep that in mind if you want to test your smoke/CO detector, say after changing the main batteries or backup batteries.

Of course having first responders show up for false alarms is 1000% better than not having the extra protection that these listening devices can offer. But be prepared ahead of time. You have to at least do a mental walkthrough about how you are going to deal with the limitations of these devices, how you are going to respond when they go off while you are home, and how you are going to respond when they go off and you are away from home. You don't want to be trying to figure out this stuff the very first time the device gets triggered. For example, if you're away from home calling 911 from where you are is probably going to create a lot of confusion. You may want to have the phone numbers for the first responders in your home location very handy. Similar advanced preparation is required for security alarms, freeze/water leak detectors, etc.

Presumably when you're at home, the alert coming in on your phone will be redundant, because if your HomePods can hear the alarm, so can you. While you're at home, it should never be the case that "the only indication is a notification to your phone." Also, CO alarms are designed to trigger an alert before the concentration renders you unconscious, because, you know, they've already thought of that. The one exception to you hearing the alarms along with your HomePods hearing them when you're at home would be if you are hearing impaired and can't hear the smoke or CO alarms going off. Of course, that also shouldn't be an issue, because you would already have been aware that you can't hear and should have purchased smoke alarms that include a strobe light to alert you that it's going off.

It seems like it should be obvious that the real point of this feature is to let you know there's a problem when you're not at home.

lkrupp · April 18, 2023 8:18PM

jeromec said:

"Apple turns on HomePod's smoke alarm recognition"...has anyone actually been able to turn it on?
Does it work with iOS16.4.1 or does it require iOS16.5, currently in beta?
There is not even a source for the info in the article!

After upgrading to the new HomeKit architecture an option in Home Settings appeared labeled “Safety and Security” but it’s greyed out on my Home app. I assume this is the smoke alarm detection but I don’t know or why it’s greyed out.

Note: After restarting both my HomePod and my iPhone the “Safety and Security” option disappeared. The Home App reports “This home and all accessories are up to date”. Go figure.

Let’s see what tomorrow brings

edited April 2023

itinj24 · April 18, 2023 10:01PM

It’s a pop up at the top of the Home app when you open it, like when there’s an update available. I just got it on mine.

dewme · April 18, 2023 10:02PM

AppleZulu said:

dewme said:

This is a great feature but also one that you hope you'll never have to use for an actual emergency.

This isn't the first listening device that can recognize the sound from smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms going off. The universal challenge with all of these devices is what do you do when the thing goes off? If the only indication is a notification to your phone and you don't have your phone or Apple Watch on you, the outcome could be pretty bad. In the case of CO alarms that are triggered while you are at home you may not have any detectable indications that something is wrong. You may be incapacitated before you can respond to a notification on your phone.

Some listeners like the one Ring sells automatically call the fire department when the listener device hears the smoke/CO alarm go off. These automated calls, unlike security alarms, are non-revokable. So if you overdo the microwave popcorn and the smoke alarm triggers, be prepared to greet the fire squad in a few minutes. Maybe make an extra unburned batch of popcorn to share with them. The Ring listener has the added "feature" of being active all of the time in every mode, with no bypass switch. Better keep that in mind if you want to test your smoke/CO detector, say after changing the main batteries or backup batteries.

Of course having first responders show up for false alarms is 1000% better than not having the extra protection that these listening devices can offer. But be prepared ahead of time. You have to at least do a mental walkthrough about how you are going to deal with the limitations of these devices, how you are going to respond when they go off while you are home, and how you are going to respond when they go off and you are away from home. You don't want to be trying to figure out this stuff the very first time the device gets triggered. For example, if you're away from home calling 911 from where you are is probably going to create a lot of confusion. You may want to have the phone numbers for the first responders in your home location very handy. Similar advanced preparation is required for security alarms, freeze/water leak detectors, etc.

Presumably when you're at home, the alert coming in on your phone will be redundant, because if your HomePods can hear the alarm, so can you. While you're at home, it should never be the case that "the only indication is a notification to your phone." Also, CO alarms are designed to trigger an alert before the concentration renders you unconscious, because, you know, they've already thought of that. The one exception to you hearing the alarms along with your HomePods hearing them when you're at home would be if you are hearing impaired and can't hear the smoke or CO alarms going off. Of course, that also shouldn't be an issue, because you would already have been aware that you can't hear and should have purchased smoke alarms that include a strobe light to alert you that it's going off.

It seems like it should be obvious that the real point of this feature is to let you know there's a problem when you're not at home.

Yes, you are probably correct that the CO detectors should give sufficient warning to get out in the case of in-home alarms.

The default assumption here is the away case. It just seems a little strange that Apple hasn't provided the option to automatically notify designated first responders in this case when they do so for other safety features like crash detection and fall detection. In those cases they can assume your location and call 911, so perhaps they didn't want to add another layer of complexity. With the smoke/CO notification if you're away and don't have your phone or watch on you, you're kind of SOL. These limitations could be mitigated if these features allowed you to specify a contact list containing other people to notify. Perhaps it will be possible to build a shortcut to fill in the missing pieces for people who want more than just a notification.

Apple's caveats about the feature probably reflect their understanding that it's not a complete solution. Amazon's similar Guard features including smoke/CO listening and glass breakage detection has been working on most Echo devices for a couple of years. Their features are very similar in that they only provide a piece of functionality and do not call first responders to your property. They only send you a notification and you have to decide what to do next. Amazon's inability to automatically close the loop is more puzzling because they have all of the required pieces in their Ring security product line to connect these sensors to first responders being called.

In my opinion both Apple's and Amazon's implementations of these features were obvious low hanging fruit since their devices already contained the required hardware and software to make these features work. Apple's inclusion of temperature and humidity sensors in HomePod is still a bit of a head scratcher. In any case, I suppose having a partial implementation is still better than having nothing at all. I just hope these features are never needed and that most people have a more fully implemented solution as a primary solution.

edited April 2023

itinj24 · April 18, 2023 10:23PM

Just did the update and oddly, only three of my 14 total HomePods (mix of Minis and OGs) are showing in the “Safety and Security” section. One OG and a stereo pair of OG’s. I did the update remotely and hope it didn’t screw it up for the rest of the HomePods.

gatorguy · April 19, 2023 10:52AM

JP234 said:

Now you tell me! After I spent $200 on Nest connected smoke & CO detectors! I could have just bought a cheapo set and used the HomePod to notify me if I'm not home. Oh well, live and learn.

Do you have Nest thermostats or any Nest cameras? They all work together. If the Nest Protect detects a potential fire the thermostats will be triggered off to avoid feeding the flames, and camera's will activate to show you what's happening—kind of a neat integrated system.

edited April 2023

applezulu · April 19, 2023 12:46PM

dewme said:

AppleZulu said:

dewme said:

This is a great feature but also one that you hope you'll never have to use for an actual emergency.

This isn't the first listening device that can recognize the sound from smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms going off. The universal challenge with all of these devices is what do you do when the thing goes off? If the only indication is a notification to your phone and you don't have your phone or Apple Watch on you, the outcome could be pretty bad. In the case of CO alarms that are triggered while you are at home you may not have any detectable indications that something is wrong. You may be incapacitated before you can respond to a notification on your phone.

Some listeners like the one Ring sells automatically call the fire department when the listener device hears the smoke/CO alarm go off. These automated calls, unlike security alarms, are non-revokable. So if you overdo the microwave popcorn and the smoke alarm triggers, be prepared to greet the fire squad in a few minutes. Maybe make an extra unburned batch of popcorn to share with them. The Ring listener has the added "feature" of being active all of the time in every mode, with no bypass switch. Better keep that in mind if you want to test your smoke/CO detector, say after changing the main batteries or backup batteries.

Of course having first responders show up for false alarms is 1000% better than not having the extra protection that these listening devices can offer. But be prepared ahead of time. You have to at least do a mental walkthrough about how you are going to deal with the limitations of these devices, how you are going to respond when they go off while you are home, and how you are going to respond when they go off and you are away from home. You don't want to be trying to figure out this stuff the very first time the device gets triggered. For example, if you're away from home calling 911 from where you are is probably going to create a lot of confusion. You may want to have the phone numbers for the first responders in your home location very handy. Similar advanced preparation is required for security alarms, freeze/water leak detectors, etc.

Presumably when you're at home, the alert coming in on your phone will be redundant, because if your HomePods can hear the alarm, so can you. While you're at home, it should never be the case that "the only indication is a notification to your phone." Also, CO alarms are designed to trigger an alert before the concentration renders you unconscious, because, you know, they've already thought of that. The one exception to you hearing the alarms along with your HomePods hearing them when you're at home would be if you are hearing impaired and can't hear the smoke or CO alarms going off. Of course, that also shouldn't be an issue, because you would already have been aware that you can't hear and should have purchased smoke alarms that include a strobe light to alert you that it's going off.

It seems like it should be obvious that the real point of this feature is to let you know there's a problem when you're not at home.

Yes, you are probably correct that the CO detectors should give sufficient warning to get out in the case of in-home alarms.

The default assumption here is the away case. It just seems a little strange that Apple hasn't provided the option to automatically notify designated first responders in this case when they do so for other safety features like crash detection and fall detection. In those cases they can assume your location and call 911, so perhaps they didn't want to add another layer of complexity. With the smoke/CO notification if you're away and don't have your phone or watch on you, you're kind of SOL. These limitations could be mitigated if these features allowed you to specify a contact list containing other people to notify. Perhaps it will be possible to build a shortcut to fill in the missing pieces for people who want more than just a notification.

Apple's caveats about the feature probably reflect their understanding that it's not a complete solution. Amazon's similar Guard features including smoke/CO listening and glass breakage detection has been working on most Echo devices for a couple of years. Their features are very similar in that they only provide a piece of functionality and do not call first responders to your property. They only send you a notification and you have to decide what to do next. Amazon's inability to automatically close the loop is more puzzling because they have all of the required pieces in their Ring security product line to connect these sensors to first responders being called.

In my opinion both Apple's and Amazon's implementations of these features were obvious low hanging fruit since their devices already contained the required hardware and software to make these features work. Apple's inclusion of temperature and humidity sensors in HomePod is still a bit of a head scratcher. In any case, I suppose having a partial implementation is still better than having nothing at all. I just hope these features are never needed and that most people have a more fully implemented solution as a primary solution.

Apple isn’t going to assume liability for calling the Fire Dept. based on a feature that can’t reliably tell the difference between your smoke alarm going off and one going off in a commercial on your TV, or your smoke alarm going off because your toast is overdone.

It’s absolutely low-hanging fruit to allow you to choose to use gear you already have to let you know the alarm has gone off and let you decide what to do with that information. They have no reason to get further involved with what happens after that.

lkrupp · April 19, 2023 1:23PM

Update: This morning all is well. A popup appeared asking me if I wanted to turn on the smoke and alarm detection feature. The ‘safety and security’ option in Home->Settings reappeared after disappearing yesterday.

gatorguy · April 22, 2023 8:02PM

JP234 said:

gatorguy said:

JP234 said:

Now you tell me! After I spent $200 on Nest connected smoke & CO detectors! I could have just bought a cheapo set and used the HomePod to notify me if I'm not home. Oh well, live and learn.

Do you have Nest thermostats or any Nest cameras? They all work together. If the Nest Protect detects a potential fire the thermostats will be triggered off to avoid feeding the flames, and camera's will activate to show you what's happening—kind of a neat integrated system.

Yep, I have both. And had all kinds of trouble with them dropping connections and losing our account info. I'd get them working, and a day or a week later, they'd stop working again. Google had the standard, "check your wifi connection" garbage that never works for anything. After days and days of futility, I finally came upon the solution on the 4th page of a Google search on the topic. Nest products are not fully compatible with the 5GHz band. Once I disabled it on our router, everything worked perfectly. I suppose I could just assign them to the 2.4 SSID, but so far, I haven't noticed any degradation from not having a 5GHz band on any other devices. Not that we're heavy users.

I've not had any problem with the two Nest thermostats or 6 cameras connected to the 3 Nest Protects, but perhaps they aren't using the 5G channel? I know I didn't go to any special effort to do so. Anyway, no dropouts at all. They've been perfect, and for a long time.

Now if you were talking the range of Nest/Google speakers I have, yup they have been known to fail me at times. Probably the best thing would be using all Nest speakers instead of mix and match, but I'm not sure that would be the solution either, and with close to a dozen it would get expensive.

edited April 2023

Apple turns on HomePod's smoke alarm recognition

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