Apple Activates Temperature & Humidity Sensors In Existing HomePod Minis

Along with the reintroduction of the HomePod, Apple has recently enabled the temperature and humidity sensors on existing HomePod Minis, allowing users to create their own automation, such as turning the fan or air-conditioner on when the room reaches a set level of warmth. 

As MacRumors notes, instead of offering both features on a new version of the HomePod Mini, the technology giant has chosen to retroactively activate the once-dormant features, with the sensors having already existed in all models since the device first launched in 2020.

While not everyone may have known that the HomePod Mini initially came with these features, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported in 2021 that the two sensors were lying unused in the gadget, a finding that was later confirmed by iFixit. 

Now, with a 16.3 software update, it seems the components are finally being activated, and can be used in indoor, domestic settings where ambient temperatures range from 15ºC (59ºF) to 30ºC (86ºF), and humidity hovers between 30% and 70%. 

Apple cautions that the accuracy of the device’s sensors may decrease in situations where audio is playing for an extended period of time at high volumes, and will take time to calibrate the components to the surroundings after starting up. 

[via MacRumors and Macworld, cover image via Konrad Josef Leitner | Dreamstime.com]