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Apple Announces New HomeKit-Enabled 'Home' App in iOS 10

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Apple today revealed an all-new HomeKit-centric app called "Home," which will make its debut in iOS 10 this fall. The app will act as a hub for a user's HomeKit-enabled devices, regardless of their manufacturer, letting users control everything from smart light bulbs to garage door openers from one app. HomeKit will be built into Control Center now as well, letting users tap through their smart home devices without unlocking their iPhone.

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Support for HomeKit(TM) continues to expand globally with nearly 100 home automation products adopting HomeKit this year, bringing support for thermostats, lights, window shades, door locks, video cameras and more to the Home app. Later this year, leading home builders, including Brookfield Residential, KB Home, Lennar Homes and R&F Properties, will begin integrating many of these HomeKit devices into new homes.
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Users can group accessories into "scenes," or control them individually, and each device will be able to react to Siri voice commands. Apple confirmed that each device can be controlled remotely or even set up for home automation on Apple TV, "and can respond with automatic triggers set by time of day, location or action."

Check out our iOS 10 WWDC keynote recap for more information on HomeKit, Messages, Apple Music, and more.

Article Link: Apple Announces New HomeKit-Enabled 'Home' App in iOS 10
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/06/13/apple-announces-new-homekit/
The smart thing to do would be to have it ask the user if it should install Home if HomeKit devices are broadcasting, especially on a 16Gb iPhone.
 
I have to imagine "Home" won't require much, if any, space, since it's just a UI to existing frameworks.

But as I only have one HomeKit-compatible device, having this app is redundant. Please, Apple, for the love of all that is holy, let us hide first-party apps we don't care about. My "Junk" folder now contains ten items.
 
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Really looking forward to toss the Philips Hue app completely. Even though their new app is much improved compared to the old one, this just seems so much more natural and intuitive to me.

I'm more sceptic about whether I would actually be able to set the same automatic scenes according to time, wake-up lights and everything without having to relay on the Hue app.
 
Mac Fly (film) said:
You can always switch to Android and tell us how it's so much better for you. And visit your favourite Android forums so they can hear your unique brand of negativity.
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Actually I do have an Android phone. It's better in some ways and worse in other.

This app is useless for the majority of people who don't own a Home Kit device. It looks great but many don't need it. You don't think it would be better for it to be an optional download?
 
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I've been looking forward to this. I'm cautiously optimistic that I'll be able to get rid of all the device specific apps and just use the Home app to control everything. Device manufacturers should only have to focus on the hardware, not have to develop apps, which most are terrible at and result in a mishmash of design language and control methods.

I've mounted my iPad Air to the wall as a central console for my home and this app is coming at just the right time to become the interface.
 
I saw the garage door open in the HomeKit demo video. Does that mean that Chamberlain will update they're MyQ garage door openers to work with HomeKit now...as promised over a year ago?
 
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this is going to be great...one day when i have money to change all the stuff over to smart things.
 
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chrismail627 said:
Actually I do have an Android phone. It's better in some ways and worse in other.

This app is useless for the majority of people who don't own a Home Kit device. It looks great but many don't need it. You don't think it would be better for it to be an optional download?
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There is a reason these apps can't be deleted. Their presence makes users aware of the feature instead of becoming one of the hundreds of features they add every year that people don't even realize they have. Only geeks watch WWDC.
 
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Will they open up homekit so this will actually work with more than the small number of "homekit" devices? Or hopefully Homebridge will still work. It is a pretty seamless integration of SmartThings hub and Siri.
 
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ayale99 said:
I saw the garage door open in the HomeKit demo video. Does that mean that Chamberlain will update they're MyQ garage door openers to work with HomeKit now...as promised over a year ago?
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I posted this in the chamberlain forum a few weeks ago, that myq opener actually has the HomeKit chip in it. Before Apple had chosen it, a year before that chamberlain had chosen it for their Myq, which is amazing foresight. So I think he problem they're having is horrible project management and spending rnd on app development and enabling the HomeKit ability, and my thought was they would debut it with iOS 10 in the fall as a key company working with Apple, since the home app would come out. If you look at their app, it's such a piece of crap, super dated so my guess is they're are a great hardware but horrible software company.

The good news is, get the Wink app, it does a way better job of handling the Myq than heir own app does till iOS 10 comes out.
[doublepost=1465851196][/doublepost]The problem I have with geofences opening things like my garage, that are secure areas, if it mistakenly thinks I entered the area and suddenly opens my garage I'm open to theft.

I couldnt tell but I hope, really hope there is a geo feature in the home app that only opens the garage when I'm in the area AND my phone is connected to my car's Bluetooth, then I will activate said feature.
 
I look forward to use this one and get rid of all other apps.
In case anyone in the forum knows and can elaborate on these questions:
1) Are the HomeKit compatible hardware possible to set up without the manufacturer bridge and instead use the AppleTV?
2) Will this mean we can circumvent manufacturer limitations in their software apps, e.g Arlo limits the quantity of cameras to a maximum of 5, therefore they want to force you to subscribe for a monthly fee if you want more cameras. I hope this app will help us sty on control of things if they are HomeKit compatible.
 
ayale99 said:
I saw the garage door open in the HomeKit demo video. Does that mean that Chamberlain will update they're MyQ garage door openers to work with HomeKit now...as promised over a year ago?
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Replying to this, but also the other one above. Our garage door went out and we decided to go with the MyQ, mostly because I vied for the HomeKit integration. I agree that the project must be mired in some sort of red tape. A quick search on the Liftmaster site shows that they are worried about if this is really the way of the future.
 
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