Good news for users of HomeKit, Apple’s home automation suite! Once you upgrade to iOS 18, it will make it easier for you to interact with your HomeKit-connected devices.
This is explained by the ability to choose which device will act as the main “hub” in your home. In other words, you can designate your HomePod or your Apple TV to control the connected equipment in your home.
Simplifying device management
So far, selecting a primary hub was not an option. Instead, the system automatically decided which device would act as the primary hub, based on criteria set by Apple. This system is not optimal and causes certain inconveniences for some HomeKit users. In iOS 18, users are no longer subject to Apple’s criteria and can now choose. User SteveIsTheDude shares his joy on Reddit about this measure:
It’s good ! Before this was implemented, every time I had to restart my network, Apple would always choose the wrong device for the home hub (an older Apple TV or one with a weaker connection). Now I can set my favorite device!
Better late than never
This solution has been requested for several years by HomeKit fans, who are now satisfied and joking about the situation. On Reddit again, we can read:
We did it boys. It only took a few years of constant, incessant complaining.
Or
Now let’s move on to our next feature request. We can only choose one and it will be ready in 2029.
The functionality is already testable in the first beta of iOS 18. As a reminder, the latter is in theory intended for developers only, because it is considered unstable. For the more adventurous, you can install it here, but it is safer to wait for the second public beta in July.
It is also always not recommended to install beta versions, even those which are public, because of the risk of bugs, and this is still the case with the first beta of iOS 18. Concerning the second however, it is It is likely that it benefits from better stability than the previous public betas, because a lot of users seem to have already installed the first one for developers. This therefore increases the chances that bugs will be found and then fixed before the second deployment.
