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Itinj24

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Nov 8, 2017
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I have 5 HomePods. I have a similar issue. 3 minis and 1 OG no issues. 1 of my OG still says installing for 3 days already. Funny thing is that it functions perfect if I tell Siri to do anything so it's not a connection issue. I'm just leaving it and hoping for a patch soon.
I know you’re not supposed to remove it from power while it’s “installing” but I’d be so tempted to at least try a soft reboot in the app. What do I know though lol. That would drive me nuts.
 

curdy

macrumors 6502
Jul 5, 2009
365
410
BC, Canada
Ran into this yesterday with the beta update. After hours of it saying installing and the wheel spinning, I finally rebooted my router and all of my HomePods and then force closed the Home App and then reopened it once the router rebooted and hit "update all" and it finally installed on 7 HomePods and 2 minis.
 
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jdevitajr

macrumors newbie
Mar 12, 2010
3
1
I know you’re not supposed to remove it from power while it’s “installing” but I’d be so tempted to at least try a soft reboot in the app. What do I know though lol. That would drive me nuts.
Yesterday I turned it on and off a few times. It will go no response in home and when it comes back online it goes right back to installing. It's a no win. Since it still works I'm not interested in factory resetting it right now.
 
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Itinj24

Contributor
Original poster
Nov 8, 2017
4,471
2,560
New York
Yesterday I turned it on and off a few times. It will go no response in home and when it comes back online it goes right back to installing. It's a no win. Since it still works I'm not interested in factory resetting it right now.
Ah Gotchya. OS 16 as a whole has been a disaster
 

Itinj24

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Original poster
Nov 8, 2017
4,471
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New York
I had the same thing with my OG HomePod pair. Could only get one to update to 16.6. For me, ungrouping them and restarting did the trick.
I tried everything imaginable ad nauseam. Think restarted and factory reset this thing 5 times each. I even tried connecting to my guest network under a separate home and no dice. Just gonna leave it be for now and hopefully it eventually takes in due time.
 

beanbaguk

macrumors 65816
Mar 19, 2014
1,356
2,374
Europe
Another one with the same problem. To be fair, I am getting to the end of my tether with my OG HomePods and regret not buying a pair of Sonos speakers.

I have two OG HP's in a stereo pair. Only one of them has updated to 16.6. The other briefly shows it's downloading and then, after a few seconds, gives up and "Searching for updates..." just spins endlessly and never finds anything.

But that's not all my woes. Over the past week or so, both speakers refuse to sync properly. One will work, the other won't. One will control the volume, the other won't. One will disconnect from WiFi, the other won't. It's completely unpredictable, and I've tried all sorts to try and make it work.

So I've done all the usual troubleshooting.
  • Unpair HomePods
  • Restart
  • Power cycle
  • Restart router
  • Restart AP
  • Factory reset
Absolutely nothing seems to work

I have a Unifi WiFi network with a WiFi 6 Lite (U6-AP-Lite) AP in the room where the HP OG's are located, and I've had this AP for over a year without any issues.

So aside from being unable to upgrade to 16.6 on one of the HP's, I can't get the things to work properly anyway.

What other options do I have other than throwing them out of the window?

Screenshot 2023-07-27 at 10.15.11.png
Screenshot 2023-07-27 at 10.14.08.png
 

zapmymac

macrumors 6502a
Aug 24, 2016
840
1,010
SoCal ☀️
I 98% of the time wait a week or 2 before updating my OG HomePods. Sorry to hear you’re having issues.

1. How about turning off/unplugging all other HomePods before updating the one?
2. Use a different router for the update, if feasible.
3. Put the HomePod on a Battery backup (ups) then try updating it.

goodluck…
 

beanbaguk

macrumors 65816
Mar 19, 2014
1,356
2,374
Europe
I've gone quite drastic now. I've removed every homepod I have in my home and factory reset all of them. I've also replaced my WiFi 6 AP with an older WiFi 5 AP (rather annoying, but still), and I'm going to see if adding the single one that needs upgrading will work. So tired of this....
 

myhaksown

macrumors member
Feb 6, 2012
55
85
Yeah I removed them as default audio and ungrouped them a couple hours ago. Then restarted just that one HomePod and it’s still not taking. I’m on the verge of a factory reset… It starts to download in Home Setting>Software Update but then just stops.

I have 14 total HomePods and eight of them are stereo paired and default audio to AppleTV’s. This is the only sucker causing me grief lol.
I am so jealous that you have 14 of them. I have three and a mini I haven’t had problems updating them, but I have found that much like iPhones sometimes you gotta wipe them entirely.

I used to work at a phone repair store and I had a woman who we could log into her email in Safari but not in the Mail app. We ended up having to restore the IPSW of whichever iOS we were on, then I think 10.


That being said, I’m having my own problem with one of my HomePods I had to change my password, because a bunch of my login credentials got exposed and now no matter what I do. I cannot get one HomePod to stop saying I need to login but I can still listen to music do everything else it’s just constantly giving me an error through my iPhone.
 

perezr10

macrumors 68000
Jan 12, 2014
1,990
1,458
Monroe, Louisiana
*** Reply to BeanbagUK ***

Yeah, my original HomePods had the same problem lately of one not working. That seems to be a quirk of the latest software release. I had to unpair my HomePods multiple times to get them working right over the past couple of months.

If it makes you feel better, that problem hasn’t occurred in 16.6 yet. But it’s early days yet.
 

Itinj24

Contributor
Original poster
Nov 8, 2017
4,471
2,560
New York
I am so jealous that you have 14 of them. I have three and a mini I haven’t had problems updating them, but I have found that much like iPhones sometimes you gotta wipe them entirely.

I used to work at a phone repair store and I had a woman who we could log into her email in Safari but not in the Mail app. We ended up having to restore the IPSW of whichever iOS we were on, then I think 10.


That being said, I’m having my own problem with one of my HomePods I had to change my password, because a bunch of my login credentials got exposed and now no matter what I do. I cannot get one HomePod to stop saying I need to login but I can still listen to music do everything else it’s just constantly giving me an error through my iPhone.
I think I paid full price for only one of them. That was the day Apple announced the discontinuation of them and one Best Buy within 50 miles had one left. I snagged a bunch of them them when Best Buy had those ridiculous $199 sales on them and Apple gives me a 10% Veteran discount. It adds up….

I had the same problem as you in the early stages of OS 16. I called Support on it and they said they’ve had a very busy week there. Big shocker. OS 16 had just been an absolute atrocity all around and especially for HomeKit. I just kept putting in my password till it eventually stuck. Sometimes it said it was incorrect and sometimes it would take but then the issue would come back. Funny as I had this exact issue with an AppleTV last night after updating. It’s a little easier to fix on the ATV because you’re doing it through the ATV settings on the TV screen and not the Home app. The Home app has been nothing short of a disaster for me with iOS 16. Toggles don’t stick. Settings don’t stick. Takes multiple tries to move a device from one room to another… the list goes on.
 

Itinj24

Contributor
Original poster
Nov 8, 2017
4,471
2,560
New York
In all fairness, my HomePods have been behaving for the most part, other than this update issue and also, as of a couple weeks ago, future Siri requests yield a result of Siri not recognizing my voice (this is a widespread issue from what I understand). Siri knows who I am, everything works for voice recognition except if I ask Siri to turn off a light in 20 minutes. The response is that Siri doesn’t recognize my voice.

I’m just going to leave it be and hopefully it grabs the update one of these days. If not, OS 17 is right around the corner. This is not a network issue. This is an Apple/HomePod issue. This one is sitting in a direct line of sight about 10’ away from a hardwired eero Pro 6 that’s it’s connected to. It’s closer than the other one it stereo pairs with that had no problem updating.

I’ve tried everything short of selling my soul to the devil. This is a consumer grade product. It’s supposed to just work. Apple needs to get their heads out of their arses, put down that stupid little toy they call Vision Pro for a minute, that seems to be taking up all their time and resources, and fix everything else that’s broken.

OS 16 has been a nightmare for me all around, but especially for HomeKit and the Home app. More so the early stages of 16.
 

Kenny99

macrumors 6502
Jan 28, 2018
264
96
ST. Louis, Mo.
In all fairness, my HomePods have been behaving for the most part, other than this update issue and also, as of a couple weeks ago, future Siri requests yield a result of Siri not recognizing my voice (this is a widespread issue from what I understand). Siri knows who I am, everything works for voice recognition except if I ask Siri to turn off a light in 20 minutes. The response is that Siri doesn’t recognize my voice.

I’m just going to leave it be and hopefully it grabs the update one of these days. If not, OS 17 is right around the corner. This is not a network issue. This is an Apple/HomePod issue. This one is sitting in a direct line of sight about 10’ away from a hardwired eero Pro 6 that’s it’s connected to. It’s closer than the other one it stereo pairs with that had no problem updating.

I’ve tried everything short of selling my soul to the devil. This is a consumer grade product. It’s supposed to just work. Apple needs to get their heads out of their arses, put down that stupid little toy they call Vision Pro for a minute, that seems to be taking up all their time and resources, and fix everything else that’s broken.

OS 16 has been a nightmare for me all around, but especially for HomeKit and the Home app. More so the early stages of 16.
Yes! A $3500.00 new toy (Vision Pro) would be fun to play with but just not very practical for the eveyday user. I too hope that OS 17 and 14 fixes the current problems. Seems strange that there are lots of articles about what is "NEW" but nothing about Home app. or HomePods.
 

Itinj24

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Nov 8, 2017
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Holy Podman!!!!!!! lol

I say the same thing lol

okay, the OG's were a godsend to me. I wish I had 2 more now lol
What can I say?… I’m deep in the Apple eco system and nothing else made as much sense for my HomeKit whole home audio. Just wish they worked as advertised all the time. They’re hovering right around the 80% of the time mark lol.

Plus I really took advantage of those $199 Best Buy sales.

I’m eventually gonna upgrade them but they’re working fine for now (hardware wise). Had a couple come back from the dead after the blinking + and - lights, and some violent farting. That was a couple years ago and no issues since. It was very brief.

The last three I bought were last in stock (Space Gray) at local stores right after the discontinuation announcement. Was afraid that would be the last time we saw a full sized HomePod. They’re still sealed. Could’ve probably made a killing selling them before Gen 2 came out but that wasn’t why I bought them. Still trying to figure out what works best around the house with regards to my Minis and OG’s. Stereo pairs and solos.
 

ignatius345

macrumors 604
Aug 20, 2015
6,941
11,369
What can I say?… I’m deep in the Apple eco system and nothing else made as much sense for my HomeKit whole home audio. Just wish they worked as advertised all the time. They’re hovering right around the 80% of the time mark lol.
I have a much simpler setup (2 first-gen HomePods in a stereo pair, and 1 Mini in another room) -- but even at that I find myself wishing for two things:

1. A full-featured, dedicated app for controlling them on iOS. That shrimpy little "Control Other Speakers & TVs" menu doesn't at all cut it. And I can't imagine managing over a dozen HomePods with that.

2. A way to control playback from my Mac. I'm really shocked there's just nothing there at all -- except, I guess, the Home app?
 
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Itinj24

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Nov 8, 2017
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You are a good human:)
I do what I can do, when I can do it 😁




Now, with regards to this thread, over a week later and this HomePod still refuses to download the update lol. Just sitting there, fat, dumb and happy beside my TV while I rip my hairs out. I hate you, HomePod.
 
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StumpyBloke

macrumors 603
Apr 21, 2012
5,397
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England
I do what I can do, when I can do it




Now, with regards to this thread, over a week later and this HomePod still refuses to download the update lol. Just sitting there, fat, dumb and happy beside my TV while I rip my hairs out. I hate you, HomePod.

Have you thought about seeing if the latest 17 beta software will install? I know if it does work, you will be out of sync with regard to software, just wanting to make sure it will actually take another update…
 
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Itinj24

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Nov 8, 2017
4,471
2,560
New York
Have you thought about seeing if the latest 17 beta software will install? I know if it does work, you will be out of sync with regard to software, just wanting to make sure it will actually take another update…
This has definitely been occupying the back of my mind. Just connected an OG HomePod that I set aside in the midst of a renovation and it downloaded and installed to 16.6 without issue. Was hoping this would wake up the HomePod in question but it didn’t.

I tend to stay away from beta software because, admittedly, I don’t know much about it. How to obtain a beta profile and how to revert back to public release when available. I do know something about needing an invitation for HomePod beta software. Possibly a thing of the past? I just go with the regular flow.

That said, what do I do to download and install beta software? Is this even advisable when everything else is on 16.6?
 

StumpyBloke

macrumors 603
Apr 21, 2012
5,397
5,982
England
There are definitely issues with my HomePods running the latest 17 betas. Things like personal requests do not work. But these are known Siri and beta issues. Music is fine. In fact they seem to have fixed the occasional pausing and popping of music finally. What you also have to remember is that the software cannot be rolled back in any way shape or form on any HomePod.

I think I was suggesting it merely just to see if your HomePod was was not in some kind of locked state regarding updating software.

Within the Home app on the software update page, you can enroll individual HomePods into beta programs. You can also download the Apple developer HomePod (audio OS) profile from certain websites which are not allowed to list here.

If you weren’t thousands of miles away, I’d love to have a look at your set up and see if we could work out what is going on.
 
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Itinj24

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Original poster
Nov 8, 2017
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There are definitely issues with my HomePods running the latest 17 betas. Things like personal requests do not work. But these are known Siri and beta issues. Music is fine. In fact they seem to have fixed the occasional pausing and popping of music finally. What you also have to remember is that the software cannot be rolled back in any way shape or form on any HomePod.

I think I was suggesting it merely just to see if your HomePod was was not in some kind of locked state regarding updating software.

Within the Home app on the software update page, you can enroll individual HomePods into beta programs. You can also download the Apple developer HomePod (audio OS) profile from certain websites which are not allowed to list here.

If you weren’t thousands of miles away, I’d love to have a look at your set up and see if we could work out what is going on.
Would be more than welcoming but seriously I tried everything under the Sun. Ungroup, remove from AppleTV, factory reset, hard reboot, soft reboot, add to a different network under a different home, etc. Strangely, it works perfectly fine otherwise. No internet drops or anything like that.

I even spoke too soon with the other HomePod. Shows updated to 16.6 in the Home app but remains on 16.5 in iCloud settings. I’m pretty sure the iCloud setting takes precedence. Had this issue with advanced data protection back on 16.2. Showed updated in Home but couldn’t enable advanced data protection because iCloud still showed them on 16.1. That was a mess I remember.

Apple is something else, eh?
 

Kenny99

macrumors 6502
Jan 28, 2018
264
96
ST. Louis, Mo.
Gonna try factory resetting and not transferring over the settings…
Just a shot in the dark. Move the HP that your having trouble with next to you MAC or your Home Hub and then do the Factory reset and update. The problem may be with interference from other equipment or STUFF. :)

KenK
 
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