HomePod Will Finally Let You Pick a Default App for Music Playback, Podcasts & Audiobooks

• The newest HomePod beta software provides an option to set a default app for music playback, podcasts, and audiobooks.
• It means that HomePod owners won’t have to specify a music streaming service when issuing voice commands to Siri.
• Apple’s HomePod has come a long way since its launch in 2018, being improved in every possible way with each new iOS release.

Many of you are well-acquainted with Apple’s rigorous ecosystem, and the best example of this is the company’s smart speaker. Called HomePod, this is one of the higher-end smart speakers, often praised for its audio reproduction quality. However, the HomePod works best with Apple’s services only – such as Apple Music. If you want to use some other music streaming service, you have to jump through some hoops. Well, we’ve got some good news for you, as your HomePod will soon support other services, which could be set as default.

Right now, Apple is testing HomePod software by distributing its betas to a selection of AppleSeed testers. And considering that second betas of Apple’s upcoming versions of mobile and desktop operating systems were released yesterday, the second HomePod software beta is also out. And as it turns out, it comes with an option to select a new default service for music playback, podcasts, and audiobooks.

https://twitter.com/ttam110/status/1280556287730888704

Many of you are probably using streaming services like Spotify, for example. It means that you’ll now get to set your primary service to be Spotify, eliminating the need to ask Siri to use that specific music streaming service each time you want to play something. As you know, saying “Hey Siri, play my workout playlist” will prompt Siri to dive into Apple Music – which is a possibility if you’re a subscriber to this service. However, if you’re using Spotify, you need to say: “Hey Siri, play my workout playlist on Spotify” – which, as you can see, can be tedious to do in the long-run. Once you set a new primary service, you won’t have to specify which service to use, as Siri will automatically turn to your settings.

We’d also like to note that Apple has done plenty of work on its HomePod speaker during the last two years. The smart speaker came out in early 2018 and faced plenty of criticism related to its (high) price, limited Siri functionality, and more. However, Apple’s HomePod is now available in more countries, plenty of new features were added in the meantime, and Siri has been immensely improved. And there are talks about a smaller HomePod, which could allow Apple to compete against Google’s and Amazon’s smart speakers, known for their affordable prices.

Lastly, we’d like to remind you that Apple has been facing plenty of criticism related to its anticompetitive behavior. This is one of the reasons why Apple CEO will testify in an antitrust investigation in the USA later this month. However, it looks like the Cupertino-based company is finally ready to tear down some of its carefully constructed walls.

READ MORE:

• Apple HomePod to Launch in Canada, France, and Germany in June
• Apple HomePod OS 12 Gets Phone Call, Multi-Timer Support and More Features
• Apple’s HomePod Gets New Siri Languages And Additional New Features
• Apple Is Supposedly Working On A $199 Version Of HomePod