Adam Kos HomeKit, and also Home in our country, is a platform from Apple that allows users to control smart devices using an iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch or Apple TV. The company introduced it in 2014, and even though it is constantly improving, it can be said that it is still a bit faltering in this segment. Read the latest news that arrived on this platform, especially with the autumn set of operating system updates.
Controlling Apple TV via Siri on HomePod mini
Apple TV already fully understands the HomePod mini, so you can tell it through Siri to turn it on or off, start a specific show or movie, pause playback, etc. With pairing Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant smart speakers with Fire TV devices or Chromecast, it's already a common thing and Apple actually just caught up with the competition here.
HomePod as a speaker for Apple TV
You can also use one or even two HomePod minis as the default speaker for Apple TV 4K. This feature was previously only available for the discontinued HomePod, but now the mini generation also supports it. Then if your TV has ARC/eARC inputs, the HomePod can be the output in this case as well.
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Security cameras and shipment detection
Security cameras connected to Apple HomeKit Secure Video via Apple TV 4K or HomePod Mini can also tell when they simply see a package delivered to your door. This is an expanded feature of people, animals and vehicles detection from iOS 14 and enhances the usefulness of HomeKit Secure Video compatible doorbells such as Logitech View and Netatmo Smart Video Doorbell.
HomePod and visitor announcements
When someone presses a button on a doorbell with a camera that recognizes the visitor's face, HomePod can let you know who's at your door. HomeKit Secure Video integration is a requirement, otherwise the HomePod will just emit a basic “ring”.
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More cameras on Apple TV
Apple TV can now stream multiple channels from your HomeKit cameras instead of just one, so you can control your entire home and surroundings at once and on the big screen. It will also offer control of nearby accessories, such as porch lighting, so you can turn on the lights with a remote control without having to pull your phone out of your pocket.
Unlimited number of HomeKit Secure Video cameras
By updating to iOS15 on your iPhone and iPadOS 15 on your iPad, you can now add an unlimited number of cameras to HomeKit Secure Video if you sign up for the new iCloud+ plan. So far the maximum number has been 5.
Later action
Siri is getting smarter when it comes to controlling the home (even if she's still dumber than the competition), so she's added a request option where you tell her to do something later or based on an event. This means that you will be able to use commands like "Hey Siri, turn off the lights when I leave the house" or "Hey Siri, turn off the TV at 18:00." Of course, you have to say that in a supported language, because Czech is still not supported.
Apple Watch and app redesign
With WatchOS 8, the home application received the necessary redesign and functions, so you can watch transmissions from a camera, a doorbell on your wrist, or quickly communicate with your entire home, individual rooms or personal devices with the help of an intercom.
iOS 14 and apps
Already in iOS 14, accessory pairing has been redesigned to make it easier, faster and more intuitive – tips for automation and different scenes have been added, for example. However, the application itself was also redesigned, which now included circular icons for used accessories. Here, too, Apple has redesigned the Home menu in the Control Center, where you can find popular and most used scenes, etc. Incidentally, iPads with iPadOS 14 and Mac computers with the Big Sur operating system also received these news.
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Adaptive lighting
You can set the color temperature of smart bulbs and other light panels to create an automatic schedule that changes colors throughout the day when you turn them on. When enabled, HomeKit adjusts colors to cooler whites during the day and shifts them to warmer yellow tones during the evening, just like Night Shift does.
I have been choosing a doorbell for Homekit for some time, so I would just like to mention that the Netatmo Smart Video Doorbell does not do secure video and the Logitech Circle View Doorbell is not sold in the Czech Republic. So bad luck for us so far. Controlling Apple TV via homepod does not work for me and according to what I found on the net it is not available in the Czech Republic. It's great that Apple is adding new features, but they could really speed it up. However, I also tried Alexa and Homekit still wins for me. But I still don't understand why we can't enable siri on Apple TV when it works on all other devices.