How Tos - Page 91

Apple's new $349 HomePod sounds incredible and is the ultimate speaker for Apple Music subscribers, but it's also an excellent way to manage your HomeKit-compatible devices through Siri voice commands. Controlling HomeKit accessories with Siri on HomePod isn't radically different from controlling them via an iOS device, but there are some extra HomePod benefits to be aware of. Subscribe to ...

HomePod has built-in Siri functionality, which means it can be used to do a lot of the same things that can be done with an iPhone or an iPod, like setting an alarm or a timer. If your HomePod is in the kitchen, setting a timer while cooking can be useful, and it's as simple as using a single Siri command. All you need to say is "Hey Siri, set a timer for [x amount of time]." You can...

The HomePod offers great sound, and with AirPlay connectivity, you can set the ‌HomePod‌ up to function as a speaker for your Apple TV, routing ‌Apple TV‌ sound through the ‌HomePod‌. You can use ‌Apple TV‌ and ‌HomePod‌ together as long as you have a third, fourth, or fifth-generation ‌Apple TV‌ Pairing ‌Apple TV‌ and ‌HomePod‌ Open the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Scroll down to the Video and...

There are many commands that Siri can understand on the HomePod that make it super simple to take quick notes and set up reminders for later, which all sync to any iOS device connected to the smart speaker. As long as you allowed the ‌HomePod‌ access to Contacts, Messages, Reminders, and Notes in the initial pairing process, you'll be able to ask ‌Siri‌ to do the commands in this guide. First,...

Apple's new HomePod smart speaker is designed primarily for Apple devices, and it's heavily tied to the Apple ecosystem. Natively, you can only stream music on the HomePod through an Apple Music subscription, iTunes purchases, or iTunes Match content uploaded to iCloud Music Library. It might sound like you're out of luck if you subscribe to a third-party music service like Spotify, Pandora,...

As a smart speaker, HomePod comes with built-in Siri support, so you can use it without ever touching it, but Apple did include a touch panel at the top of the device that supports several gestures. ‌HomePod‌ gestures can activate ‌Siri‌, control the volume of what's playing, skip to the next song, pause/play and more. All of the touch gestures you can use with the ‌HomePod‌ are below. Volume V...

If you're new to HomePod and don't regularly use the "Home" app for HomeKit devices, you might be wondering how you get to the ‌HomePod‌'s settings, because it's not immediately obvious. ‌HomePod‌ is controlled entirely through Apple's Home app, much like any other HomeKit-compatible accessory. Accessing ‌HomePod‌ settings is simple once you know where to go, so here's how: Open the Home app. ...

Apple's HomePod speaker is best enjoyed when linked to an Apple Music subscription, since this allows you to make the most of Siri's enhanced music smarts and its DJ-like role as a personal music curator, or "mixologist", as Apple calls it. As ‌Apple Music‌ subscribers will know, the streaming service learns your music preferences based on what you say and play, which helps it populate the...

You can use Siri on your HomePod to access your messages, notes, and reminders, all of which are what Apple calls Personal Requests. As a rule, these only work when the device that was used to set up ‌HomePod‌ is connected to the same local network, which ‌Siri‌ interprets to mean that you're home. If the option is enabled, ‌Siri‌ can also recognize your voice so it knows that it's you if a...

Apple's HomePod smart speaker is primarily geared towards playing songs from the Apple Music catalog and listening to music and podcasts in your iTunes library, but it also features a handy speakerphone function that's ready to use out of the box. The speakerphone feature is available on both the HomePod mini and larger ‌HomePod‌, but it works best with the latter device since it has a...

Before you can start using your new Apple HomePod, you'll need to set it up using an iPhone or iPad that's synced to an iCloud account. During the setup process, ‌HomePod‌ will link the ‌iCloud‌ account to personal request features accessed through the speaker via Siri voice commands, such as the ability to send messages, set up reminders, and get calendar notifications. It will also link...

iCloud Keychain is a feature of your Apple account that you can use to keep your website login credentials, personal details, credit card details, and wireless network information up to date and available across all your Apple devices. With so many usernames and passwords to remember these days, iCloud Keychain provides a convenient way of always having this information at hand. And with its...

Apple's Live Photos, introduced in 2015, are photos that capture 1.5 seconds of video before and after you take a picture, with the aim of adding a little bit of life and movement to still images. When you take a photo with an iPhone, not every shot comes out crisp and clear, but with Live Photos, if you get a blurry image, you can open it up and see if other frames you captured are clearer. ...

Apple introduced two-factor authentication (2FA) in 2015 to provide an enhanced level of security when accessing Apple ID accounts. With 2FA enabled, you'll be the only person who can access your account, regardless of whether someone learns your password – as the result of a hack or a phishing scam, for example – so it's well worth taking the time to enable the feature. In this article,...

If you're looking to cut down on the amount of time you spend performing certain actions on your iPhone, there's usually a solution hidden in Apple's mobile operating system. Here are five quick iOS tips that once you start using will make you a lot more time-efficient in the long run. This article assumes you're using an iPhone running iOS 11 or later, but some of these tips will work on...

On iOS devices, there's a feature that lets you save any webpage as a PDF, so you can add edits, annotate it, read it offline, share it with friends, and more. Saving a webpage as a PDF is simple enough to do, but if you haven't done it before, you might not know the feature exists. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Here's how to do it: Open up Safari. Navigat...

In iOS 11, Apple introduced a new feature that lets you add a quick drawing or sketch to an email message right within the Mail app. It's a simple, easy-to-access feature, but it's a little bit hidden, so you might not know that it exists. Here's how you can get to the built-in drawing tools in the Mail app on an iPhone or iPad: Open up the Mail app. Compose a new email or reply to...

Accidentally close a browser tab in Safari on iOS and want to open it back up? There's a simple gesture for that, which you may not know about. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. All you have to do is open up the tab view in Safari and long press on the "+" icon to get a look at all of the tabs that you've recently closed. Even if you're aware of the gesture, it's...

There are some iOS gestures and tricks that have been around forever, but remain relatively hidden because they're hard to find unless you know about them. Closing all of the tabs in your Safari browser on an iOS device is one such trick -- it's simple if you know how to do it, but it's a gesture you might not know exists. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Here's...

If you got a new iPhone or iPad for Christmas, you may have an old one that you're ready to sell or trade in to get a bit of extra cash. You'll want to make sure to adequately erase everything on it to get it ready for its next owner. There are only a few steps to follow so it take you just a few minutes to clean up an old iOS device. Here's what to do: Unpair Your Apple Watch If you're...