HomePod The "Hey Siri" command needs to be device specific

[russell_314]

Well Apple is trying to do the useless action of removing Hey from Hey Siri but what they need to be working on is a way to specifically address a device. It's supposed to be smart but it's not smart at all.

I just asked Siri while holding my iPhone in my hand looking at it to open Overcast. Can you guess what Siri said? My HomePod responded saying I cannot find this app on your Apple TV 🤦‍♂️

Do you know what happens when I ask Siri to turn on or off the light while holding my phone? My iPhone responds asking what room to turn off the lights in?... How about the same one me and the HomePod are in?

That is a very simple scenario where the devices should be smart enough to figure out what I'm asking but they're not. There needs to be a way to manually summon a specific device with Siri at least till Apple can figure out how to make Siri smarter. Even if they made it something like Hey HomePod or Hey iPhone.

 

[TonyC28]

Yea this needs some work. I have a HomePod Mini in my kitchen and about 30’ away a pair of OGs in my family room. Standing right next to the one in my kitchen I tried getting Siri to start a timer. The OGs in the family room responded even though the one in the kitchen lit up like it was listening. I tried again talking quieter and the same thing happened.

 

[chabig]

It helps to understand how Siri works. Here is how Siri decides which device to respond with. Certainly it should improve over time. As to your last example about turning off the lights, I think it's too much to assume you want to turn off the lights in the room you're presently occupying. It would more likely you'd want to turn the lights off in a room that you're not in, wouldn't it? Nevertheless, specificity can help with those requests.

How Siri works with multiple devices - Apple Support

Learn how Siri responds when there are multiple devices.

support.apple.com

 

[subjonas]

Yes, I wish in addition to the cross-device trigger word, we could also address specific devices. And I wish we could customize all trigger words. But I think for brand recognition’s sake, Apple won’t allow us to customize the trigger word, and Apple probably won’t allow us to address a specific device because their goal is for Siri to know exactly what we want and deliver it without any handholding on our part. Maybe it will get there in 50 years.

 

[russell_314]

I think it's too much to assume you want to turn off the lights in the room you're presently occupying. It would more likely you'd want to turn the lights off in a room that you're not in, wouldn't it? Nevertheless, specificity can help with those requests.

No, that doesn’t even make sense. If I say hey, Siri turn off the Bathroom light then that would make sense but if I said hey Siri turn off the light without any qualifiers. It should mean the light where I’m at. It would be no different than if I told someone in the room I’m in, Hey Susan turn off the light. She’s not going to think oh, he means the kitchen light.

It does this if the HomePod answers. Because the HomePod knows what room is in. The problem is with my iPhone answers. It’s not smart enough to realize what room it’s in which is understandable.

I will definitely check out that link though

 

[StumpyBloke]

It helps to understand how Siri works. Here is how Siri decides which device to respond with. Certainly it should improve over time. As to your last example about turning off the lights, I think it's too much to assume you want to turn off the lights in the room you're presently occupying. It would more likely you'd want to turn the lights off in a room that you're not in, wouldn't it? Nevertheless, specificity can help with those requests.

How Siri works with multiple devices - Apple Support

Learn how Siri responds when there are multiple devices.

support.apple.com

Except, in reality, that is most certainly not how it works. I can be standing right by a HomePod and use the hey Siri command and HomePods in other rooms will frequently answer. The system just does not work as it should, for me and many others. Apple have been peddling that nonsense in your link for years and there has been precisely zero improvement over said time.

Edit: to add, I remember Apple saying years ago that you could simply say turn on/off the lights after the usual hey Siri command and because the system was intelligent enough to know where you were (via the HomePod and iPhone location) it would simply turn the lights on/off in the room you were in. I smell ********.

 

[TonyC28]

Except, in reality, that is most certainly not how it works. I can be standing right by a HomePod and use the hey Siri command and HomePods in other rooms will frequently answer. The system just does not work as it should, for me and many others. Apple have been peddling that nonsense in your link for years and there has been precisely zero improvement over said time.

Edit: to add, I remember Apple saying years ago that you could simply say turn on/off the lights after the usual hey Siri command and because the system was intelligent enough to know where you were (via the HomePod and iPhone location) it would simply turn the lights on/off in the room you were in. I smell ********.

I’m not sure we’ve reached that point yet. Imagine if you were relying on human-level intelligence to carry out your request. If you say out loud “turn off the lights” isn’t it reasonable that the human would ask “which one?”

I do agree about the HomePod stuff though.

 

[StumpyBloke]

I’m not sure we’ve reached that point yet. Imagine if you were relying on human-level intelligence to carry out your request. If you say out loud “turn off the lights” isn’t it reasonable that the human would ask “which one?”

I do agree about the HomePod stuff though.

We are already at that point. I've just tried it. This time the correct HomePod, in the room I was sitting, turned off just the lights in the room I was sitting in whilst leaving lights in other rooms on. As I said, this is a feature that Apple were going on about a number of years ago. But it only works if the correct HomePod responds.

 

[TonyC28]

We are already at that point. I've just tried it. This time the correct HomePod, in the room I was sitting, turned off just the lights in the room I was sitting in whilst leaving lights in other rooms on.

Interesting. So just saying “turn off the lights” did the trick?

 

[StumpyBloke]

Interesting. So just saying “turn off the lights” did the trick?

Exactly. I am sitting in the living room with HomePods, I have HomePods in all the rooms with lights on. I said "hey Siri turn off the lights" and because the HomePod in the living room responded it just turned off that room… As intended.

 

[TonyC28]

Exactly. I am sitting in the living room with HomePods, I have HomePods in all the rooms with lights on. I said "hey Siri turn off the lights" and because the HomePod in the living room responded it just turned off that room… As intended.

In that case they do need to improve where Siri chooses to answer from. I’ll have to try this out.

 

[StumpyBloke]

In that case they do need to improve where Siri chooses to answer from. I’ll have to try this out.

Exactly, that's my point!

 

[madeirabhoy]

i feel like there should be the option to either stick with apple's way 'hey siri' and it guesses, or be able to say hey iphone, hey homepod, hey appletv and have it work from that. or hey siri iphone or hey iphone siri.

 

[stocklen]

I very much am with you in sentiment.....
.. but I dont know what the answer is.

I used to have multiple Amazon Echos, and in certain situations where two were just a bit too close and continually the "wrong one" took the request.... I was able to change the wake word solve the problem.

Apple's kit is a WHOLE heap of mess in comparison.

Scenario: I am in my study. I have my iMac, Apple Watch, iPhone, HomePod, and iPad in the same room.
ALL of these devices are listening out for, and can respond to "hey siri" - and NEVER the one I need does. Of course it doesnt - but how on earth would SIRI even begin to know which one you would need.

Personally, I think that SIRI *could* be more intelltgent so if i asked to open an app - it would default to the iMac (if my iPhone was locked). If I asked to play music, then my HomePod would respond..... but it's a minefield. Perhaps I could append "on my iMac/phone" to the command - I havent tried that.

In the OP's scenario I have gotten used to leaving my iPhone face down when in a room with a HomePod to ensure it doesnt take the request - however many times for random reasons a HomePod in the adjacent room can respond when im talking a couple of feet away from the HomePod I wanted to answer.

These things seem very hard to solve to me.