Apple’s HomePod speaker will be able to recognize who’s speaking to it with iOS 13

The biggest thing that happened to Apple’s HomePod since its launch in February of last year was when Apple cut the price of the Siri-powered smart speaker by $50 just 14 months after its launch. Fortunately, the HomePod hasn’t been completely forgotten because the forthcoming iOS 13 update is going to bring a few new features to the speaker.

Back at the announcement of the iPhone XS and XR, Apple added the ability to search for songs via lyrics, make and take phone calls from the HomePod, and, perhaps most importantly, set more than one timer with it. Now it’s adding the ability to recognize who is speaking to it and tailor its responses accordingly. It can provide personalized music, calendar information, and reminders depending on who is speaking to it.

Additionally, the HomePod will support handoff from iPhones, so you can play music on your phone and bring it near the HomePod to seamlessly transition the music to the speaker. Apple will release iOS 13 to developers this week with a public release later this fall.