HomePods Software 17.4 Adds New Default Media Service Feature
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Instead of assigning a default, HomePod now automatically launches the user's preferred app for music, podcasts, and audiobooks when prompted by Siri with the release of Update 17.4.
HomePod owners can log into apps like Pandora in the Home app and give the HomePod specific commands to start playing. This manual process will no longer be used in a more simplified version similar to the one available on the iPhone.
According to a Threads post by @mahmoudzitani, HomePod Software 17.4 RC removes the default service menu from the Home app in favor of a more automatic solution. Apple says Siri will learn your preferred media service for music, audiobooks and podcasts.
Users now have the ability to log into apps like Pandora and set them as the default destination for music commands. Or, if the application is running, the user can give a command ending in “on Pandora”.
This will change with the new update. Users now sign into services in the Home app, and Siri learns which app is used for various media and automatically plays from there.
Apple's decision seems like an attempt to deprive users of some of the manual configuration. However, the ambiguity of the feature and the lack of a menu to manually control the default settings may frustrate users.
HomePod Software 17.4 is expected to be released sometime before March 7, as it coincides with other releases that meet the EU Digital Markets Act deadline. Media not connected in the Home app can still be played via AirPlay.
