Smart home ramifications of Apple's Unleashed event on HomeKit Insider

Much of the episode was devoted to use breaking down Apple's event announcements, especially those related to the smart home. That includes the new HomePod mini that, despite any new features, now comes in three new colors. Users can buy HomePod mini in orange, blue, and yellow.

Of course we had to talk about the new voice only plan for Apple Music. With the new $4.99 price point you can listen to Apple Music on any device just using Siri. This is helpful as a low-cost option but also great for smart home users.

Finally, we spent a bit of time talking about Apple's new Mac and AirPods hardware.

Outside of the Apple event, we discussed sleep tracking apps again including Pillow, AutoSleep, and Sleep Watch.

The one listener question we got to this week was how you can use the Shortcuts app to tie a Focus mode into a HomeKit scene. That way when you tell Siri goodnight at the end of the day, it will automatically switch your focus to sleep.

Links from the show

• Start Up I A song made from 45 years of Apple sounds I Apple - YouTube
• Apple's all-new AirPods support Spatial Audio for $179
• Apple introduces $4.99 Voice Plan for Apple Music
• HomePod mini now comes in five colors
• New M1 Pro, M1 Max MacBook Pros support more displays than M1 Macs
• New MacBook Pro driven by M1 Pro & M1 Max processors
• New MacBook Pros chargeable via MagSafe 3 or Thunderbolt 4
• Apple debuts 14-inch MacBook Pro with HDMI, MagSafe, and a notch
• Apple unveils 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro, M1 Max starting at $2499
• Sleep Watch by Bodymatter
• AutoSleep Track Sleep on Watch
• Pillow: Sleep Cycle Tracker
• Bedgear Storm Series New Pillow 2.0
• Simba Hybrid Pillow

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