Apple's second-generation HomePod is as good of a smart home controller as it is a speaker, and users can quickly create smart home automations with their voice using Siri. The original HomePod was released back in 2018 with a starting price of $349, and after falling short of sales expectations, was discontinued in March 2021, a few months after the HomePod Mini was released as a smaller, cheaper alternative. In the years since, Apple has completely changed its smart home ecosystem. Though still backed by HomeKit, the smart home ecosystem also supports Matter and Thread devices.

Although the HomePod is a formidable smart home controller, creating smart home automations can be tricky. With a second-generation HomePod updated to the latest software, it's possible to create automations with just a user's voice. Instead of navigating to the Home or Shortcuts apps, a simple phrase can be used to create an automation. These verbal cues can affect a variety of aspects of a smart home, from now playing media to accessory control. Thanks to the added support for Matter and Thread devices, users can take full advantage of verbal automations throughout their smart home.

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Create Automations With Your Voice On HomePod

Apple's Home App icon against an orange and yellow gradient background.

Previously, users had to take a trip into the Home app to set up a recurring automation. Now, that same process can be enabled with a few words communicated through Siri. For example, saying "Hey Siri, close the shades every night at dusk" will add that automation to the user's smart home. After Siri hears that command, connected blinds will automatically be closed at dusk each night, without the need to manually ask Siri each time. The new automation will then be added to the Home app allowing users to edit or remove the automation if they choose.

Aside from routine accessory control, Siri on the HomePod can also help with short-term automations. If music is playing, telling Siri "turn off the music in two hours" will perform that task at the pre-set time. Additionally, saying "turn the patio lights off in an hour" will control accessories on a one-time basis. Since these are largely short-term, one-off requests, they will not show up as recurring automations in the Home app.

As useful as the feature is, there are some limitations. Automations with a lot of dependencies will be difficult to communicate by voice, so setting the automation up manually in the Home app will be most effective. Also, while Siri can be used to create automations, it can't be used to modify or delete them. This could create a situation when a user accidentally creates an automation and has no idea how to remove or modify it. With that in mind, creating automations by voice using Siri on HomePod brings the feature to more users, providing more control over their smart home.

More: How Does The HomePod's Temperature Sensor Work? Here's What We Know

Source: Apple