AirPlay 2 is here
iOS 11.4 delivers delayed HomePod features.
Apple previewed the forthcoming iOS 12 at its Worldwide Developers’ Conference in June (see this month’s lead feature for details), meanwhile iOS 11 updates continue to roll out, and 11.4 includes AirPlay 2, which delivers multi-room audio and support for HomePod stereo pairing.
Apple faced criticism for shipping its new smart speaker in February without these key features but promised to implement them in a free update, and iOS 11.4 is it. You can now play music in any room from any room, move music from one room to another, or play the same song everywhere using an iOS device, HomePod, or Apple TV, or by asking Siri.
While you’re listening to music, Control Center provides a quick view of what’s playing in every room and simple controls to adjust the volume, select or unselect where the music is playing, and more. You can ask Siri to play music in any room, a group of rooms, or everywhere in your home. With an Apple Music subscription, you can also get Siri to play different songs in different rooms or the same song everywhere, without ever leaving the room.
If you have two HomePods in the same room, you’ll now automatically be asked if you want to set them up as a stereo pair. Each speaker will then detect its location in the room and adjust its sound, using an Appledesigned wireless peer-to-peer direct link to communicate with the other HomePod to synchronize playback and generate a wider soundstage, “delivering room-filling sound that is more spacious than a traditional stereo pair.”
As Apple describes it, “with an A8 chip in each speaker, each HomePod is able to play its own audio channel — left or right — while separating out both the ambient and direct energy. This innovative stereo sound provides a wide, almost threedimensional soundstage for an incredible listening experience anywhere in the room. A HomePod stereo pair creates room-filling sound with greater bass extension, resulting in a deeper, more accurate reproduction of low frequencies.”
Free iOS update delivers multi-room audio and other promised features
Because the two HomePods are communicating with each other, too, only one of them will respond to your Siri requests.
iOS 11.4 is a free update available via Settings > General > Software Update; your HomePods should automatically update to support stereo pairs unless auto update is disabled in the Home app.
Although the stereo pairing magic requires HomePods, multi-room audio won’t, because other leading speaker manufacturers will also be incorporating support for AirPlay 2 in their speakers, including Bang & Olufsen, Bose, Bowers & Wilkins, Denon, Libratone and Sonos.
You can find out more about AirPlay 2 at www.apple.com/airplay