Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Smart Home
  3. How tos

How to update your HomePod or HomePod mini

Add as a preferred source on Google
Apple HomePod 2023
Zeke Jones / Digital Trends

The HomePod and HomePod mini are two of the best smart speakers compatible with Apple HomeKit. Offering impressive sound quality, eye-catching designs, and access to the Siri voice assistant, the two gadgets are a perfect centerpiece for any smart home. Best of all, Apple is continuously improving their performance through software updates – and most of the time these are installed automatically.

Recommended Videos

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

10 minutes

What You Need

  • HomePod or HomePod mini

  • iOS device

  • Home app

However, if you want to manually check for updates and make sure you’re running the latest software, there are a few easy steps you can take. Here’s how to update your HomePod or HomePod mini.

Apple HomePod 2023
Zeke Jones / Digital Trends

How to update your HomePod or HomePod mini

Regardless of whether you’re using a HomePod or HomePod mini, the updating process is the same. Simply open up the Home app on your iOS device (after verifying that it’s running the latest software), and follow these steps.

Step 1: In the Home app, select the More button.

Step 2: Next, go to the Settings menu and select Software Update.

Step 3: If Apple has released an update that’s yet to be installed on your device, you’ll be able to select the Update button.

Step 4: You can also toggle the settings for Automatic Updates. It’s recommended that you leave this turned on, as it’ll ensure you’re always running the latest software. The Software Update menu will also tell you which version your HomePod is running.

Step 5: Keep in mind that software updates might take a bit of time to complete, and your HomePod might not be fully responsive while the update is happening. You’ll know an update is in progress by the spinning white light on your HomePod — while this is active, be sure to keep your HomePod plugged in.

Jon Bitner
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Jon Bitner is a writer covering consumer electronics, technology, and gaming. His work has been published on various websites…
Google Home’s Interactive Storytime feature has me wondering who actually asked for this
Google Home gets interactive AI storytime, smarter alarms, and broader camera support.
Computer, Electronics, Tablet Computer

Google Home's latest update introduces several new features, including Gemini-powered Interactive Storytime. While I’m not sure who asked for the feature, it lets families build original stories about specific topics on the fly, instead of just listening to a known story. 

So what's the big new feature here?

Read more
Proxima wants to move blood tests into the home, and it has cleared an important early hurdle
The portable analyzer delivers blood-count results in about 20 minutes, but its promise depends on transparent clinical data
Furniture, Table, Desk

Algocyte’s Proxima is designed to run blood-count tests from a small finger-prick sample and send the results to a clinician in about 20 minutes. For patients who need frequent monitoring, that could mean fewer trips to a clinic or laboratory.

The device has also moved beyond the concept stage. Proxima carries UK conformity credentials, while Algocyte operates under a certified medical-device quality system. Those steps give the project more weight than a prototype shown at a launch event.

Read more
Remember Samsung’s Ballie home robot? It may finally be inching closer to reality
Leaked app wireframes give the strongest hint yet that Samsung's Ballie home robot, first shown at CES 2020, might still be headed toward an actual release.
Samsung Ballie robot in a room next to a dog feeder.

Samsung's rolling home robot has been the industry's longest-running "will it ever actually ship" joke, and I'll admit I'd mostly given up on it. Now, there's finally a glimmer of hope.

Samsung first unveiled Ballie as a concept at CES 2020. Then, it showed it as a significantly upgraded version four years later. However, the company never confirmed a release date or committed to releasing it at all. 

Read more