Apple's HomePod & other smart speakers help people feel less alone, more empowered
A new study has discovered that most people enjoy smart speakers like Apple's HomePod and see them as having a net-positive impact on their lives.
A new study has discovered that most people enjoy smart speakers like Apple's HomePod and see them as having a net-positive impact on their lives.
Apple doesn't promote this and it wasn't available when HomePod first launched, but since iOS 12 you've been able to ignore your iPhone and make or receive all your calls through the company's smart speaker.
Multi-room audio may be the biggest feature of AirPlay 2, but it is far from the only new tricks AirPlay 2 has up its sleeve.
Though AirPlay 2 with support for multiple HomePods won't ship until later this year, there are ways to use multiple HomePods with your iPhone and Mac right now. AppleInsider shows you how to do it.
Apple's HomePod is out and users are impressed by the smart speaker's premium sound quality, but some have yet to take full advantage of its voice control functionality. To help users get started, AppleInsider collected a few useful phrases and commands that highlight Siri's capabilities.
There are two different ways to lock your HomePod from outside access — restricting access to AirPlay only, disabling messages, reminders and notes. AppleInsider shows you how to access and control both of these.
HomePod services like sending text messages or creating reminders can only be accomplished with the Apple ID used to initially set up the device. If you want to change the Apple ID affiliated with your HomePod, you'll need to redo the setup process.
Apple's HomePod may be limited in connectivity, but thanks to its support for the legacy AirPlay standard, it's possible to connect basically anything you want to it over Wi-Fi. One of the best ways to do this is with the Airfoil app, available from longtime Mac developer Rogue Amoeba.
Apple, in its "infinite wisdom," compacted the Control Center in iOS 11, and gave AirPlay even less of a starring role on it. With HomePod now available and able to have audio streamed via AirPlay, AppleInsider shows you where the AirPlay button is, and two slightly different ways to turn it on.
From multi-array microphones for far-field listening to beamforming tweeters and dynamic audio processing powered by a beefy A8 processor, HomePod is a compact marvel of technology. Despite its smarts, users are unable to access audio output settings as they would a traditional speaker or even Bluetooth devices marketed by companies like Sonos.
With HomePod, accessing Apple's Siri technology is more convenient than ever. But users might want trigger the virtual assistant on an iPhone rather than a speaker that blasts answers to anyone within earshot. Here's how to do it.
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