Apple Releases Updated HomePod Software With Bug Fixes

Alongside the release of iOS 12.1.3, the latest update to the iOS 12 operating system, Apple has released new 12.1.3 software that's designed for the HomePod.

The new ‌HomePod‌ software will be installed automatically on the ‌HomePod‌ after you update to iOS 12.1.3, but you can also manually update and check your software version by following the instructions in our HomePod software how to.

homepod duo
As Apple outlined in its iOS 12.1.3 release notes, today's ‌HomePod‌ update addresses a few HomePod-related bugs.

It fixes an issue that could cause the ‌HomePod‌ to restart and it addresses an issue that could result in Siri ceasing to listen to a command.

‌HomePod‌ is currently available in the United States, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Mexico, China, and Hong Kong.

For more details on ‌HomePod‌ and the ‌HomePod‌ software, make sure to check out our dedicated HomePod roundup.

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

Popular Stories

iPhone Air

Report: 'Virtually No Demand' for iPhone Air

Wednesday October 22, 2025 3:22 am PDT by
Apple is "drastically" cutting production of the iPhone Air and shifting focus toward the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro models, Nikkei Asia reports. The business publication claims to have learned of a major cut to iPhone Air production motivated by weaker-than-expected consumer interest, nearly to "end of production levels." Despite early reports of the iPhone Air selling out within hours of...
sam sung auction

Former Apple Employee Sam Sung Changed His Name to Avoid Attention

Wednesday October 22, 2025 4:44 pm PDT by
Back in 2012, an Apple retail employee named Sam Sung went viral because his name is similar to Samsung, one of Apple's main competitors. In a recent interview with Business Insider, he detailed that period in his life, how Apple responded, and he explained why he ultimately changed his name. Someone posted an image of Sung's Apple business card on Reddit in 2012, and it spread rapidly....
cadillac lyric infotainment

GM to Remove CarPlay from All Future Vehicles, Including Gas Cars

Wednesday October 22, 2025 11:34 am PDT by
General Motors began phasing out support for CarPlay in its electric vehicles back in 2023, leading to complaints from iPhone users, but the company has no plans to back down. In fact, GM is going further and plans to remove CarPlay from all future gas vehicles, too. In an interview with The Verge, GM CEO Mary Barra said that the company opted to prioritize its platform for EVs, but the...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features for Your iPhone

Wednesday October 22, 2025 6:15 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. iOS 26.1 is currently in beta testing. The update will likely be released in the first half of November, and it is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer, but some...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

Apple's Plan to Launch Three New iPhone Designs Allegedly Revealed

Wednesday October 22, 2025 6:24 am PDT by
Apple plans to launch a new type of iPhone every year for the foreseeable future, according to an Asia-based source. The detailed information was shared by the account "yeux1122" in a blog post on the Korean platform Naver, citing domestic trend and component research companies. Corroborating other reports, Apple will apparently launch its first foldable iPhone in 2026, featuring a...
ios 26 1 liquid glass opaque

iOS 26.1 Beta 4 Lets Users Control Liquid Glass Transparency with New Toggle

Monday October 20, 2025 10:57 am PDT by
With the fourth betas of iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS 26.1, Apple has introduced a new setting that's designed to allow users to customize the look of Liquid Glass. The toggle lets users select from a clear look for Liquid Glass, or a tinted look. Clear is the current Liquid Glass design, which is more transparent and shows the background underneath buttons, bars, and menus, while tinted ...
maxresdefault

Apple's iPhone Air Experiment Fails as Supply Chain Cuts Production by 80%

Wednesday October 22, 2025 10:48 am PDT by
iPhone Air demand failed to meet Apple's expectations and the company's supply chain is scaling back shipments and production, reports Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Suppliers are expected to reduce capacity by more than 80 percent between now and the first quarter of 2026, and some components with longer lead times will be discontinued ...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

Report: Apple to Skip 'iPhone 19' Name for 'iPhone 20'

Thursday October 23, 2025 4:28 am PDT by
Apple's new iPhone lineup launched in the fall of 2027 will be called the "iPhone 20" models, rather than the "iPhone 19," according to research firm Omdia. Speaking at a conference in Seoul (via ETNews), Omdia Chief Researcher Heo Moo-yeol corroborated rumors that Apple plans to move the launch of its standard iPhone to the first half of the year and provided some additional clarity about...
iOS 26

What's New in iOS 26.1 Beta 4

Monday October 20, 2025 1:02 pm PDT by
Even though we're at the fourth beta of iOS 26.1, Apple is continuing to add new features. In fact, the fourth beta has some of the biggest changes that we'll get when iOS 26.1 releases to the public later this month. We've rounded up what's new below. Liquid Glass Transparency Toggle Apple added a toggle for customizing the look of Liquid Glass. In Settings > Display and Brightness,...

Top Rated Comments

WilliamG Avatar
88 months ago
Really happy the Siri not responding/reboot issue is solved. Absolutely have had both of these problems on all three of my HomePods.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mattster16 Avatar
88 months ago
Finally! Siri has randomly stopped listening to me until I reboot the HomePod for weeks now!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mrow Avatar
88 months ago
I'm having a hard time picturing how you have this setup. How do you connect a subwoofer to AirPort? Can you sketch it out and upload a diagram and what subwoofer you are using? Thanks
How do you do it? Ok the Mac/iTunes I know it works this way. I’m less sure if it is possible to do that on iOS, though. Thanks
It’s really easy. Go from the audio out port on the AirPort Express to the sub. I am using a 3.5mm cable from the AirPort to a 3.5mm to RCA adapter, which plugs into the RCA port on the sub. Then I just select both the HomePods and the subwoofer as the playback devices with AirPlay 2, whether that’s in my phone or my Apple TV or whatever.

The sub is only capable of outputting low frequencies so there isn’t much adjustment that needs to be made. I manually adjusted the low-pass filter on my sub to my liking but that was all the tweaking I did.

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tywebb13 Avatar
88 months ago
I like this update.

Airplay seems to connect from iphone to homepods much quicker than before.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thadoggfather Avatar
88 months ago
Really wonder if there actually was a change in the sound signature. Never realized one, yet you can provoke a different sound with every recalibration inside your rooms.

Besides, everybody not having paired his HomePods will be blown away once hearing the difference.
It was immediate for me, I would be able to hear it in a blind A-B test: the bass was more anemic (the most disappointing), the soundstage less holographic, mid-range a little cleaner as a plus, but electronic (my preferred genre) less syrup-y and energetic in general.

Not sure if any of my descriptors make sense, but it does to me and my ears :D

If you pair them, I'm sure the effect is diminished.. maybe they tuned it to be more for pairing? Who knows. I only wanted one HomePod for my apt.

Enough people take issue with it, that I suspect its not just me. But not every one can hear or tell the difference. Or even have the original fw as a reference point.

The 'loud' spectacle-filled sound is what drew me to HomePod in the first place! Almost a physics-defying sound signature.

Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mike MA Avatar
88 months ago
It was immediate for me, I would be able to hear it in a blind A-B test: the bass was more anemic (the most disappointing), the soundstage less holographic, mid-range a little cleaner as a plus, but electronic (my preferred genre) less syrup-y and energetic in general.

Not sure if any of my descriptors make sense, but it does to me and my ears :D

If you pair them, I'm sure the effect is diminished.. maybe they tuned it to be more for pairing? Who knows. I only wanted one HomePod for my apt.

Enough people take issue with it, that I suspect its not just me. But not every one can hear or tell the difference. Or even have the original fw as a reference point.

The 'loud' spectacle-filled sound is what drew me to HomePod in the first place! Almost a physics-defying sound signature.
Get yourself a second one, especially with the current discounts. Do the update, pair them and enjoy. The sound will be better, else you waste nearly all sound potential in terms of surround sound. Ended up with 5 of them, meaning nearly every room now has two of them, all also are combined to a big zone. Love it, for me the HomePod and HomeKit is Apple’s biggest rollout since the iPhone, saying that coming from a PowerPC era.

Just shared my experience, yet I got your description and purpose of acquisition.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)