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Apple released the second preview of iOS 16 & Co. for developers on Wednesday evening. The update brings various improvements to the entire iPhone system and, interestingly, also adds a new menu for managing the HomePod beta software in the Home app.
The menu is hidden by default and only appears if the user has a HomePod Beta profile installed. This allows users to easily choose which of their HomePods should receive beta software updates. Previously, you had to manually set up the beta profile for each speaker in your home. To choose which HomePods should receive the beta software, all you have to do is turn on the switch for each individual speaker and it should then receive the beta update. If you turn off the switch, the HomePod will no longer receive beta updates.
HomePod Software Beta currently only available through the AppleSeed program
The new menu comes ahead of new betas being added to the Apple Beta Software Program next month, which will include the HomePod software beta for the first time. At the moment, the only way to install beta software on HomePod is by inviting it through the AppleSeed program. This means that even registered developers cannot install the HomePod Software 16 beta at the moment. Interestingly, only HomePod mini devices appear in the new beta menu. Perhaps this is because the original HomePod cannot be restored on a Mac if there are issues with the update. This suggests that the public beta of the HomePod software will not be available for the original HomePod.
HomePod rumors at a glance
According to recent rumors, Apple is working on a new HomePod model that will be released sometime between late 2022 and early 2023. In fact, references to an unreleased HomePod model have already been found hidden in the code of iOS 16. However, details about the new HomePod are not known. If Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is to be believed, the new model is an incremental upgrade of the current HomePod mini. (Photo by Unsplash / Ivan Bandura)
