It wasn’t long ago that iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and HomePod 15 arrived, this year’s versions of Apple operating systems for its iPhone, iPad, and HomePod. But the updates do not stop, and there are always new features to add and bugs to fix, as in the HomePod, Apple’s smart speaker, which is updated to version 15.1 to enjoy two new types of audio depending on the version you have: Spatial audio with Dolby Atmos, and support for lossless audio (‘lossless’) in the HomePod mini.
HomePod 15.1
Although lossless audio was rolled out last June for Apple Music subscribers at no additional cost, the company announced that it would not arrive immediately nor standard to HomePod and HomePod mini devices. I would do it through an update that had no specific date. An update that has arrived this week.
As indicated by Apple on its website, spatial audio with Dolby Atmos support will only be available for HomePod devices (standard) with their ‘software’ update 15.1 (matches iOS 15.1), while their mini version will feature only lossless audio playback.
Dolby Atmos, spatial audio and lossless audio
To update your existing HomePod, open the Home app and enter settings, look for the option to update the firmware and hit it. But since each audio is a new special function, it is disconnected, so after installing firmware 15.1 you will have to activate it via Apple Music.
Of course, the upgrade includes the usual “performance and stability improvements”.
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