HomePod OG HomePod Not Taking The 16.6 Update

[Itinj24]

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

I’ll give it a shot. I’ll try anything at this point. Apparently the devil didn’t like my belly hula dance.

I’d be surprised if this was the issue but I won’t rule anything out. Something like 150 HomeKit devices besides personal devices and just this one is being a $hithead lol. Never had this issue before and it hasn’t moved and it works fine otherwise… however… I am testing an Aqara G4 doorbell and an Aqara G3 camera. So I initially had the G3 next to the G4’s chime box and that G3 dropped connection a lot til I moved it. Coincidentally, that HomePod is currently the closest device to that G4 chime box 🤔.

Thanks in advance if it works 🤞

 

[Kenny99]

I’ll give it a shot. I’ll try anything at this point. Apparently the devil didn’t like my belly hula dance.

I’d be surprised if this was the issue but I won’t rule anything out. Something like 150 HomeKit devices besides personal devices and just this one is being a $hithead lol. Never had this issue before and it hasn’t moved and it works fine otherwise… however… I am testing an Aqara G4 doorbell and an Aqara G3 camera. So I initially had the G3 next to the G4’s chime box and that G3 dropped connection a lot til I moved it. Coincidentally, that HomePod is currently the closest device to that G4 chime box 🤔.

Thanks in advance if it works 🤞

If it was easy anyone could do it.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

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?

View attachment 2237971 View attachment 2237973

I have been having the exact same problem! Just finally gave in and reset the non-updating homepod after unjoining the pair. Then the reset and reconnection. Now it has been ‘configuring’ for over 30 minutes. I am not hopeful that this process will complete.

These Homepods have been a nightmare from start to finish. From the various updates that have broken them, reduced their capabilities (Siri definitely became more stupid!), and now makes them unable to even update properly!

Ugh. Another ****** Apple experiment which has been poorly supported. Really makes me mad. I could have invested $600-800+ in something that would still be working properly 5 years later. Rather than in 2 HPs that are only good for the garbage bin.

 

[beanbaguk]

I'm done. I literally cannot stand how unreliable my HomePod OG's are. When they work, they sound phenomenal, but their reliability and the number of connection issues I have is just beyond stupid.

One will work one day. The next day, it won't. One will update. The other won't. One will connect, then cut out, then the other one will suddenly start playing. Volume is erratic at best, and rarely do they respond well to the top volume controls.

I've sold each one for 200eur to a sucker who is also paying for postage and packaging, and I've just ordered a pair of Sonos Era 100's for an extra 100eur....what a let down...

 

[AL2TEACH]

I just can't wrap my head around Apple being so incompetent at times unless it's on purpose. Then, it might be some people have broken HomePods. I'm just thinking out loud because these HomePod problems should not be.

 

[Itinj24]

I just can't wrap my head around Apple being so incompetent at times unless it's on purpose. Then, it might be some people have broken HomePods. I'm just thinking out loud because these HomePod problems should not be.

In the grand scheme of Apple things, this is a very basic device. It’s a basic display and a speaker that has Siri and Wi-Fi built in. None of this is new stuff. Speaker technology has been around for ages and Siri has been around for over a decade. The iPhone itself has all these features and much much more.

I attribute this to their choice of chip. I have an Apple Watch Ultra, Apple’s latest and greatest. I don’t expect it to be a main computing device but it’s still painfully slow with Siri requests, getting web results, syncing, etc… The HomePod is expected to also act as a Home Hub? It’s God awful in that capacity. I see similarities between the HomePod and Apple Watch. I know the OG HomePod is based off an iPhone chip that’s severely outdated. I knew the Gen 2 HomePod was doomed when they announced it will have the AppleWatch chip in it. This same chip is expected to be replaced with the new Apple Watch coming next month.

Or possibly just a lazy software team.

But, what do I know…

 

[AL2TEACH]

Or possibly just a lazy software team.

My main beef with the OG HomePod. Apple made a really good device but the software just kills it. I also had that updating scenario a couple of times but got lucky and the ever lovin something is wrong with the wifi. Sad, Apple was/is so eh with the software. I have two and I just luv em but I dare not stress them out with anything more than music for fear of getting the overheated pod or wondering if the next update will brick it or the won't turn on anymore. But they sound so good and I understand how lucky I am that they still work like day one.

 

[TonyC28]

I’ve just about had it with these OGs. I just got a Sonos Arc to replace them on my main tv and I’m very happy with it so far. For the heck of it I connected the OGs to another Apple TV 4K and the volume bug is still there. I think it’s time for eBay and I’ll officially be a Sonos guy.

 

[Itinj24]

I’ve just about had it with these OGs. I just got a Sonos Arc to replace them on my main tv and I’m very happy with it so far. For the heck of it I connected the OGs to another Apple TV 4K and the volume bug is still there. I think it’s time for eBay and I’ll officially be a Sonos guy.

I just got the Sonos Ultimate Immersive Set and added a second Sub for my home theater. Sounds amazing. I’ll be damned if I’m gonna use some buggy neglected goat dung for my theater audio.

The only things I didn’t know going in is even though you can control the volume of the Sonos with the AppleTV Remote app, you can’t with the Apple Watch (recommend an app called “Lyd” if you need this function) and also the tiles in HomeKit for the Sonos speakers are dead. They don’t do anything.

 

[TonyC28]

I just got the Sonos Ultimate Immersive Set and added a second Sub for my home theater. Sounds amazing. I’ll be damned if I’m gonna use some buggy neglected goat dung for my theater audio.

The only things I didn’t know going in is even though you can control the volume of the Sonos with the AppleTV Remote app, you can’t with the Apple Watch (recommend an app called “Lyd” if you need this function) and also the tiles in HomeKit for the Sonos speakers are dead. They don’t do anything.

I haven’t tried the watch yet but I typically don’t use it for that anyway. My only annoyance, if it’s even that, is that when I adjust the volume with the Apple TV remote there is no indicator on the screen.
Otherwise the sound is awesome and I feel pretty confident Sonos won’t constantly jack things up with updates.

 

[Itinj24]

I haven’t tried the watch yet but I typically don’t use it for that anyway. My only annoyance, if it’s even that, is that when I adjust the volume with the Apple TV remote there is no indicator on the screen.
Otherwise the sound is awesome and I feel pretty confident Sonos won’t constantly jack things up with updates.

I had that issue where the volume indicator just stopped popping up one day. Forgot what I did to get it back. Rebooted something and it came back lol. Was either TV, ATV or the Sonos.

 

[TooTightMike]

Hey! Hope you got your stuff fixed… I’ve been doomed with the same trouble. Unable to update my left OHP of my stereo pair. right updated to 16.6 fine, the other was stuck at 16.5. I uninstalled both and did JUST the left, and got the message for it downloading, but then it disappeared. Just the same as you.

I restarted from scratch again, BUT DID SOMETHING DIFFERENT. When it asked me what “room” this HomePod was In I selected a different room.

Then it updated for me.

Hope this helps.

 

[Itinj24]

Hey! Hope you got your stuff fixed… I’ve been doomed with the same trouble. Unable to update my left OHP of my stereo pair. right updated to 16.6 fine, the other was stuck at 16.5. I uninstalled both and did JUST the left, and got the message for it downloading, but then it disappeared. Just the same as you.

I restarted from scratch again, BUT DID SOMETHING DIFFERENT. When it asked me what “room” this HomePod was In I selected a different room.

Then it updated for me.

Hope this helps.

Nice finding! I’ll give that a shot. Thank you much.

Edit* was at work all day but it looks like the troubled HomePod downloaded OS 17. We’ll see what happens when I try to install though.

 

[TooTightMike]

Nice finding! I’ll give that a shot. Thank you much.

Edit* was at work all day but it looks like the troubled HomePod downloaded OS 17. We’ll see what happens when I try to install though.

Let me know how you make out. Mine also went to 17.0. It happened right as I tried the workaround, so it was either going live at the very moment or it did the trick.
Either way volumes are in-sync.

 

[Itinj24]

Let me know how you make out. Mine also went to 17.0. It happened right as I tried the workaround, so it was either going live at the very moment or it did the trick.
Either way volumes are in-sync.

Sounds good

 

[chrisduketv]

I have 4 HomePod Minis and only 1 of them has updated to 17.0. Makes no sense. From past experience, I think all you can do is wait. Home Settings > Software Update only showed that one yesterday, and now it shows none. Toggling HomePod automatic updates off/on does nothing, nor does restarting a HomePod (unplugging the little brat). Apple really needs to dial this in better. I can't imagine having 14 of them lol

Update 1: Someone in another thread suggested that you force-quit the Home app, then restart your iPhone. I guess this triggered the update for a few people. For me, it did nothing.

Update 2: If you have a USB-C HomePod, someone else suggested plugging into your MacBook to force the update. I'm trying this now and other than the expected flashing orange light, nothing has happened yet after 25 minutes. I stopped after an hour; it did not update.

Update 3: Finally broke down and called Apple support. The only way to get 17 on these guys was to hook it up to my MacBook Pro, go to Finder, and do a restore and update. I did this for the 3 that wouldn't update and now they're all on 17.

 

[beanbaguk]

So my HP OG sale fell through, and I was left trying to flog my pair on second hand marketplaces with people wasting my time.

I noticed the AudioOS 17 release, so I decided to pull the HP OG's back out and give the update a go. I just set them up, plugged them in and left them to their own devices overnight. Lo and behold, both updated automatically and they have been working almost impeccably since!!!

WiFi connectivity is vastly improved on my Unifu network. (I have a rather high-end network in my home as I work remotely, so I use a Unifi DreamMachine Pro, and a combination of AP-U6-Lite and Pro AP's around my home. (Pro is downstairs to allow WiFi reach in the garden, and the rooms have U6-Lite AP's.

HP OG's hate Unifi network AP's. Google is full of issues with them. It's the only device I have problems with, and the only way to resolve this is to create a dedicated SSID for the HP OG's.

On 16.x, I had no option but to use this dedicated SSID. It was a royal pain to set-up, but at least it worked....sort of.

Upon updating to 17.0, I've tested and tried connecting the HP OG's to my regular SSID and it works perfectly! No blips or errors. I now found the following works:

• Stereo pairing now works reliably.
  • The old OS would often "break" and only one HP would work. The only "fix" would be to power cycle and pray, and often that wouldn't work.
• WiFi connectivity works!
  • Before it was garbage!
• AppleTV pairing now works again properly
  • The volume control would regularly stop working and occasionally, my ATV (4K 2nd gen), would often just give up and just not be able to connect.
• AirPlay now works again!
  • It was useless before. It would often cut out, in most cases it would never even connect and my iPhone would spin and spin and spin and then throw a wobbly.

But it's not all great news so far. I vastly prefer Apple Music quality but getting the HP OGs to play anything on my Apple Music account is still near impossible. It often fails and then just silently skips along the playlist tracks until it "latches" onto a track it can play. It's rubbish. And strange because if I access it directly on my ATV, it works just fine. If I try to access it by Siri, my iPhone (14 Pro), or MacBook (Pro M1), it fails more often than not.

The upside is I have Spotify still, so I can airplay without any issues, but the quality is noticeably not as good.

Hopefully, AudioOS 17.1 will fix this. Come on Apple. You almost have this....

Now the next question is where to place my Sonos Era 100, now this works. I'm thinking an ARC and sub for the telly and these on the rears. The wife is going to love me! 🤣

 

[Itinj24]

So my HP OG sale fell through, and I was left trying to flog my pair on second hand marketplaces with people wasting my time.

I noticed the AudioOS 17 release, so I decided to pull the HP OG's back out and give the update a go. I just set them up, plugged them in and left them to their own devices overnight. Lo and behold, both updated automatically and they have been working almost impeccably since!!!

WiFi connectivity is vastly improved on my Unify network. (I have a rather high-end network in my home as I work remotely, so I use a Unify DreamMachine Pro, and a combination of AP-U6-Lite and Pro AP's around my home. (Pro is downstairs to allow WiFi reach in the garden, and the rooms have U6-Lite AP's.

HP OG's hate Unify network AP's. Google is full of issues with them. It's the only device I have problems with, and the only way to resolve this is to create a dedicated SSID for the HP OG's.

On 16.x, I had no option but to use this dedicated SSID. It was a royal pain to set-up, but at least it worked....sort of.

Upon updating to 17.0, I've tested and tried connecting the HP OG's to my regular SSID and it works perfectly! No blips or errors. I now found the following works:

• Stereo pairing now works reliably.
  • The old OS would often "break" and only one HP would work. The only "fix" would be to power cycle and pray, and often that wouldn't work.
• WiFi connectivity works!
  • Before it was garbage!
• AppleTV pairing now works again properly
  • The volume control would regularly stop working and occasionally, my ATV (4K 2nd gen), would often just give up and just not be able to connect.
• AirPlay now works again!
  • It was useless before. It would often cut out, in most cases it would never even connect and my iPhone would spin and spin and spin and then throw a wobbly.

But it's not all great news so far. I vastly prefer Apple Music quality but getting the HP OGs to play anything on my Apple Music account is still near impossible. It often fails and then just silently skips along the playlist tracks until it "latches" onto a track it can play. It's rubbish. And strange because if I access it directly on my ATV, it works just fine. If I try to access it by Siri, my iPhone (14 Pro), or MacBook (Pro M1), it fails more often than not.

The upside is I have Spotify still, so I can airplay without any issues, but the quality is noticeably not as good.

Hopefully, AudioOS 17.1 will fix this. Come on Apple. You almost have this....

Now the next question is where to place my Sonos Era 100, now this works. I'm thinking an ARC and sub for the telly and these on the rears. The wife is going to love me! 🤣

That sounds promising!

Yes, get an Arc and a Sub (or two). Just made a home theater using Sonos and it’s phenomenal.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

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.

Not laughin AT you, but WITH you~as I am having the same nightmare of one HP updating, and the second one not updating—despite a factory reset, unpairing, forgetting of network, then reestablishing connection and so forth.
But finally today, after I walked away from the problem back in August, the troublesome HP updated to 17!!!!

The non-problematic HP updated to 17.1. Now…I’m waiting for the troublemaker HP to update to 17.1. Looks like it may take a while.

So frustrating, because I love the sound and the simplicity. Until recently, they were flawless. But I was likewise wanting to tear my hair out with frustration over this problem! And so unnecessary! How does a #$1TRILLION company not have the resources to release software that doesn’t brick some hardware!? Not feeling that Apple cares about our HomePod experience.

 

[Itinj24]

Not laughin AT you, but WITH you~as I am having the same nightmare of one HP updating, and the second one not updating—despite a factory reset, unpairing, forgetting of network, then reestablishing connection and so forth.
But finally today, after I walked away from the problem back in August, the troublesome HP updated to 17!!!!

The non-problematic HP updated to 17.1. Now…I’m waiting for the troublemaker HP to update to 17.1. Looks like it may take a while.

So frustrating, because I love the sound and the simplicity. Until recently, they were flawless. But I was likewise wanting to tear my hair out with frustration over this problem! And so unnecessary! How does a #$1TRILLION company not have the resources to release software that doesn’t brick some hardware!? Not feeling that Apple cares about our HomePod experience.

My troubled HomePod took TVOS 17 no problem. We’ll see what happens now with 17.1.

HomePods are a dumpster fire, software wise. Definitely do not work as advertised and if I hear someone tell me it’s my network, I think I’m going to legit lose my mind lol.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

Yeah, too many of us have had these same problems—no way is it ‘user error’ or network frailty, or whatever excuse someone could offer. I think it’s a confluence of factors (all based on what others have observed) that result in these problems: from the OLD weak processor, perhaps manufacturing flaws or digressions, some potential parts failures in a certain percentage of HPs, to the later software being too complex for the processor (or just poorly written?). I’m just glad that mine didn’t outright DIE like some people suffered. I did have the sudden ‘hot flashes’ appear after OS15(maybe 16), where the HP got REALLY hot just while playing music for a while. I turned off all higher functionality, which seemed to improve/lessen the overheating. Overall, I’m leery of even considering replacing these OG HomePods with newer versions if I can expect the same problems and short lifespan. But I love the sound and form factor (for a general use home system). Ah, well.

 

[Itinj24]

Yeah, too many of us have had these same problems—no way is it ‘user error’ or network frailty, or whatever excuse someone could offer. I think it’s a confluence of factors (all based on what others have observed) that result in these problems: from the OLD weak processor, perhaps manufacturing flaws or digressions, some potential parts failures in a certain percentage of HPs, to the later software being too complex for the processor (or just poorly written?). I’m just glad that mine didn’t outright DIE like some people suffered. I did have the sudden ‘hot flashes’ appear after OS15(maybe 16), where the HP got REALLY hot just while playing music for a while. I turned off all higher functionality, which seemed to improve/lessen the overheating. Overall, I’m leery of even considering replacing these OG HomePods with newer versions if I can expect the same problems and short lifespan. But I love the sound and form factor (for a general use home system). Ah, well.

If a networking degree from MIT is required to figure these things out, then that's a fail on Apple's part. once I heard they were using the same chip from the Apple Watch, I had a feeling it was going to be a rough ride. The Apple Watch is notorious for having an awful Siri.

 

[beanbaguk]

I want to share that my OG HP's upgraded to 17.1 without a hitch. I was very impressed. Even more so that the update was done completely remotely. I'm at my other home so while the HPs have updated to 17.1, I've not even tried them, but all signs (response and network), show they are working just fine. I'll find out on Monday....

 

[beanbaguk]

So I'm back at my other place and long story short, my OG HP's are working flawlessly.

• Full-strength signal to my Unifi WiFi 6 AP, with no connectivity issues unlike before.
• AirPlay works perfectly. I would struggle to stream from my MBP M1, iPhone works great, as does the iPad.
• Apple TV connects with no issues (and also seamlessly while I AirPlay from my MBP). I've not tried the voice enhancement yet, but I'll give it a go later.
• No stereo pairing issues.
• No lag. Really, this part is quite impressive. There would always be a 1-3 second delay when making a change such as playing, pausing, skipping, etc....from another device. There is about a 0.5 sec delay now. It's noticeably much faster.

This is what the HP OG's should have been from the start.

Well done Apple. Just don't break it in 17.2!!!!

 

[beanbaguk]

Oh, and I still think they are on par with my Sonos Era 300's. Not as loud, that's for sure, but there is a "warmth" I get from the HP's that I don't quite get from the Era 300's. I still prefer them for my desk speakers.

Having said that, I'm really getting into the Sonos Ecosystem, and I have to say is seriously good, and I'm currently renovating my new home and the plan is to have Sonos speakers in every room.

I'm also twiddling my thumbs on a Sonos amp to power my B&W 683 floor standers and using those as overkill surrounds for a Sonos Arc. 😅. The only thing stopping me is the fact that Sonos only offers 4.1 and no centre speaker support, which I find disappointing.