How to use HomeKit scenes with HomePod

The HomePod appears in the Home app, just like the Apple TV, but nonetheless We cannot use it to include it in any scene, or execute any action triggered by a motion sensor. A pity because the possibilities would be many, but waiting for Apple to provide us with an official solution, which will surely come sooner rather than later, we do have tools to do it our way.

And is that The Shortcuts app Apple released with iOS 12 has huge potential, and we can use it so that a HomeKit scene includes the playback of a certain music list on our HomePod. We explain how to do it step by step so that we can enjoy our home automation and our favorite music at the same time.

The first thing we are going to do is select which list we want to reproduce with the scene that we are going to associate. At the moment this option is not valid for albums or artists, only lists, but at least Yes, we can choose the one that we have created or Apple's own.

1. We open the Shortcuts application and click on the "+" in the upper right corner or on "Create shortcut" at the bottom of the screen.
2. Click on the search box and write «Playlist»
3. We select the option «Get Playlist»
4. Once added, click on the right, on «Select»
5. We choose the list that we want to play every time we launch that scene.

Now let's do what when we execute the scene that list is reproduced that we have selected.

1. On the main screen of the shortcut, in the search box we write «Music» and select the option «Play music»
2. To the right of the action that we have just added we select the options «Songs» and «All»
3. Again, in the search box, we write «Home» and choose the option «Run at home setting». It is important that the scene is already created in the Home app for you to run it.
4. Now we choose which House (if we have several »and which scene we want to be executed.
5. Click on the button on the top right, just below "Done" to configure the last details, such as the name of the shortcut or the icon.
6. Click on «Add to Siri»

Finally what we have left is configure the verbal command with which we will execute that scene and that action of playing our music list on the HomePod.

1. Click on the red button
2. We say the command we want the shortcut to execute (in the example "I'm at home")
3. Every time we say "Hey Siri, I'm home" the HomeKit scene we select will run and the music we choose will play.

How does it play on the HomePod? It is very easy, this shortcut will play the music on the device where we give the order. If I run the shortcut on the iPhone, the music will play on the iPhone. If I give the command on the HomePod, it will play on the Apple speaker. As the shortcuts are synchronized through iCloud, having created the shortcut on our iPhone, it will automatically be on the HomePod, you just have to do the test.