Apple's HomePod 12.1 Software Missing for Most HomePod Users [Update: Fixed]

Apple has been updating the HomePod software alongside major iOS updates, so it was something of a surprise when iOS 12.1 was released yesterday with no accompanying HomePod 12.1 software to go along with it.

As it turns out, though, there is a HomePod 12.1 update, it just appears to be bugged for those who updated their HomePod to the version 12 software after updating to iOS 12.

homepod duo
On Reddit, a user who purchased a brand new HomePod running HomePod software version 11 was able to update to the 12.1 software, which apparently includes stability updates and bug fixes.

On Twitter, developer Khaos Tian said that Apple is offering up the HomePod update with an internal URL that prevents people from downloading it.


Apple may be able to fix this HomePod software issue relatively easily, so we could see the HomePod 12.1 software become available for download shortly.

Update: Just after this article was posted, Apple made the HomePod 12.1 software available. It can be downloaded from the Home app on the iPhone and the iPad by tapping on the house-shaped icon in the upper left, tapping on "Home Settings," selecting your home, and choosing the "Software Update" option.

Related Roundup: HomePod
Buyer's Guide: HomePod (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iphone 17 air iphone 16 pro

iPhone 17 Air USB-C Port May Have This Unusual Design Quirk

Wednesday April 30, 2025 3:59 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to launch a dramatically thinner iPhone this September, and if recent leaks are anything to go by, the so-called iPhone 17 Air could boast one of the most radical design shifts in recent years. iPhone 17 Air dummy model alongside iPhone 16 Pro (credit: AppleTrack) At just 5.5mm thick (excluding a slightly raised camera bump), the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air is expected to become ...
iphone 16 display

iPhone 17's Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Display Coating Canceled

Monday April 28, 2025 12:48 pm PDT by
Apple may have canceled the super scratch resistant anti-reflective display coating that it planned to use for the iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a source with reliable information that spoke to MacRumors. Last spring, Weibo leaker Instant Digital suggested Apple was working on a new anti-reflective display layer that was more scratch resistant than the Ceramic Shield. We haven't heard...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Tuesday April 29, 2025 1:30 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Ahead of Mass Production

Monday April 28, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple has completed Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for at least one iPhone 17 model, according to a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based on rumored design The EVT stage involves Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to ensure the hardware works as expected. There are still DVT (Design Validation Test) and PVT (Production Validation Test) stages to...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Feature

All iPhone 17 Models Again Rumored to Feature 12GB of RAM

Tuesday April 29, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
All upcoming iPhone 17 models will come equipped with 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, according to the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The claim from the Chinese leaker, who has sources within Apple's supply chain, comes a few days after industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will all be equipped with 12GB of RAM. ...
iOS App Store General Feature JoeBlue

Epic Games Wins Major Victory as Apple is Ordered to Comply With App Store Anti-Steering Injunction [Updated]

Wednesday April 30, 2025 4:01 pm PDT by
In a victory for Epic Games, Apple was today found to be in violation of a 2021 injunction that required it to allow developers to direct customers to third-party purchase options on the web using in-app links. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who has been handling the Apple vs. Epic Games dispute for the last five years, said that Apple is in "willful violation" of the injunction she issued to ...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

iPhone 18 to Use High Performance Six-Channel Memory, Claims Leaker

Tuesday April 29, 2025 7:00 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 18 lineup will introduce a major leap in memory performance, according to new information shared today by Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. Apple is reportedly planning to equip the 2026 models with a high-capacity six-channel LPDDR5X memory configuration, significantly upping the memory bandwidth for future AI features and multitasking. Expanding the memory bandwidth...

Top Rated Comments

Return Zero Avatar
85 months ago
Manually checking and installing these updates on my living room HomePods while I'm away at work doesn't seem like it will ever get old.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
85 months ago
Even Apple didn't know it was bugged and we're just now getting the story a day later. Just goes to show how few people have Homepods. If this were any other Apple device people would be all over asking where the update is.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mike MA Avatar
85 months ago
Just thinking, hope that HomePods can’t brick as massively and non repairable as the Apple Watch does.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SantaFeNM Avatar
85 months ago
Mines showing no update to 12.1. I’m running 12.0. Rebooted phone and HomePod no go.

Strange.
Mine was doing the same. Had to swipe down on the Software Update page and then it showed up.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bbednarz Avatar
85 months ago
Manually checking and installing these updates on my living room HomePods while I'm away at work doesn't seem like it will ever get old.
Wish the Apple TVs could do this too!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MrGimper Avatar
85 months ago
- Hey, Tim, it looks like we’ve never uploaded the update for the HomePod.
- for home what?!
- you know that speaker that we released at the beginning of the year
- oh...
“But we announced it soooo long before the launch, it’s officially obsolete now and that’s why I forgot about it”
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)