HomePod Software 17.4 lets Siri learn preferred media apps

Rather than having to assign a default, HomePod will now automatically launch the user's preferred app for music, podcasts, and audiobooks for the relevant Siri command with the incoming 17.4 update.

HomePod owners have been able to log into apps like Pandora within the Home app and give specific commands to HomePod to start playback. That manual process is going away for a more streamlined version similar to what is available on iPhone.

According to a Threads post from user @mahmoudzitani, the HomePod Software 17.4 RC removes the default service menu from the Home app in favor of a more automatic solution. Apple says Siri will learn your preferred media service for music, audiobooks, and podcasts.

Users have been able to sign into apps like Pandora and set them as the default destination for music commands. Or, if the app is signed in, the user could give a command that ends with "on Pandora."

That changes with the new update. Now, users sign in to services within the Home app, and Siri learns which app is used for different media and automatically plays from there.

Apple's solution seems to be an attempt to take some of the manual setup out of users' hands. However, the ambiguity of the feature and lack of menus for manual control of defaults may frustrate users.

HomePod Software 17.4 is expected to launch sometime before March 7 since it coincides with the other releases that comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act deadline. Media not connected in the Home app can still be played via AirPlay.

4 Comments

mpw_amherst 358 comments · 23 Years

About 8 months ago

Will this include BBC Sounds? I know it is not currently supported as an app on HomePods but I had hoped I might be able to instruct Siri or use a shortcut to play live radio from it rather than always having to airplay from my iPhone. I assume this was an issue of the BBC wanting to retain user data/audience information but they allow it to work with Amazon and Google smart speakers.

mobird 758 comments · 20 Years

I have a couple of the original HomePods and still have not seen any 17.4 updates yet.

Anyone else see the updates yet?

dewme 5737 comments · 10 Years

mobird said:

I have a couple of the original HomePods and still have not seen any 17.4 updates yet.
Anyone else see the updates yet?

Not yet. This article’s title had me thinking that it was already available. If the headline said “… will let Siri …” instead of “… lets Siri …” I would not have been poking around in the Home app. I really wish Apple would come up with an app that consolidates the updates for all of the devices shown in the Home app to be managed from one place, especially HomePods and Apple TVs. It should not be so convoluted and mysterious for obsessive users. I know Apple wants everything to be automagical, but some of us still want more control over everything, including the ability to defer or even skip specific updates on a schedule that we define.