Mike Peterson
Apple is bringing Siri to third-party devices and platforms for the first time, allowing HomeKit-supporting companies to integrate the assistant into their devices.
The Apple digital assistant will arrive on third-party devices later in 2021. With the support, HomeKit accessory makers will be able to integrate Siri into their own devices.
With third-party support, users will be able to access Siri and give voice commands to third-party products. Apple demoed this on stage by querying Siri on an Ecobee Smart Learning Thermostat.
Apple says Siri on third-party devices will support "Personal Requests, Intercom, timers, and alarms."
Hardware developers must be a part of Apple's MFi program for HomeKit accessories, and users will still need to have a HomePod or HomePod mini in their home. Unlike speakers from other manufacturers that fully bake in Amazon Alexa, these Siri-enabled devices will be merely relaying the query to a HomePod or HomePod mini in your home.
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4 Comments
I can't see a reason to upgrade my Ecobee3's (and I've said I'd never own an Ecobee4 due to Alexa) but if there's a Ecobee5 with Siri, I might just be interested after all...
So.. kinda sorta.
You can have a house embedded in the Apple ecosystem with a myriad of Apple devices, but if you don’t have one of these homepods you are out of luck?
Yeah. Nup.
I don’t know how I feel about this. I feel like if Apple had 1st party home devices that took off they wouldn’t share Siri.
Apple saw this market before Amazon and Google. They could have made cheap acquisitions (ring, Nest, Ecobee) back then.