It's unbelievable how shitty Apple is once again. The homePod has been on the market for a long time now and I wonder what the reason is for not officially offering and supporting it in Switzerland.
I don't know how it is with you. But my Homepod is currently on version 13.2.1 and the radio function still doesn't work.
Has the function been activated in the meantime and can you start the radio via Siri?
I think this is a very important point and it is a pity that this does not (yet) work in Switzerland. I am otherwise very satisfied with my HomePod, but without radio playback, this device is simply not a full-fledged music system and not a substitute for Sonos and Co.
Is it possible that it still won't work at the end of 2022? Will it get better with an Apple Music subscription? Can I play radio stations from TuneIn directly on the Homepad Mini?
Unfortunately, you still can't listen to radio stations (except Beats 1) directly via Siri / voice command on the HomePod in Switzerland. And I assume that this will not happen until Apple officially offers the HomePod in Switzerland. In all other countries (Germany, France, USA etc.), direct radio listening via TuneIn and other providers has been possible for many months (autumn 2019).
But there is a simple workaround. For me and the whole family, the radio function via voice command was also super important and I really wanted HomePods at home, as all SmartHome devices are controlled via HomeKit, which works best with HomePods. I therefore looked for a possibility and found a very simple one.
No advertising, just a tip for "fellow sufferers". Download the app "Radio - Receiver" from the AppStore to your iPhone. Receiver is like TuneIn, you can find thousands and thousands of radio stations from all over the world, including everything from Switzerland, Germany, etc. The best thing is that as soon as you open Receiver, you can listen to the radio. The best thing is that as soon as you call up a radio station in Receiver, the Siri symbol is also displayed at the bottom. Click on it and adjust the voice command if necessary (tip: never say "Radio", then Apple searches in Apple Music and finds nothing. For example, don't say "Play Radio Energy Zurich", just "Play Energy Zurich"), and a Siri command is automatically created via Apple Shortcuts / short commands, which then also works on the HomePod. It took me about 10 minutes for the 10 or 12 favourite stations of me and my family, but now it works without any problems on all HomePods in the house. "Hey Siri, play Energy Zurich" as well as SRF3, Antenne Bayern, Fun X Amsterdam or Country Hits from the USA, etc.
It's a feature I'm also eagerly awaiting and was one of the reasons I bought my (first) HomePod in the Smart Home Sale. After just two days, I no longer want to do without it. I've been searching the web for a long time and so far I've only been able to find out that Apple will gradually roll out this function. As soon as it is available, a broadcast tab should also appear in the Radio tab of Apple Music, where you can search for available radio stations. Since the HomePod still runs on iOS 12.4, I assume (or at least hope) that the announced features will be activated on the HomePod with iOS 13.
However, there is a workaround via the Shortcuts app if you use TuneIn Radio Pro. TuneIn Radio Pro offers exactly one Siri shortcut to play the last station played. If you select the station you want in the app, you can then simply create a shortcut with any command (e.g. Hey Siri, turn on radio in livingroom). It will work on the HomePod without you having to pick up your phone.
This isn’t an issue with the HomePod or it not being ‘official’ in Switzerland but with the Apple Music service itself in Switzerland. We should be able to play local radio stations through Apple Music on any device but it doesn’t work on anything.
I contacted Apple about this in February and the response was:
“Thanks for writing back with the screen recording of the steps that you’ve tried in order to play your desired radio stations through Apple Music.
After careful review and thorough investigation, we have confirmed that the services have been stopped for Switzerland.
I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience that might have caused you in this case.
Please know that we have received the feedback that you’ve submitted and our Feedback Review Team will definitely work on the comments that you’ve submitted.”
A friend of mine works at Swisscom and he told me it’s most likely to do with the high cost and difficulties of obtaining licenses to broadcast radio and TV channels in Switzerland.
So until this is resolved (if ever!) I play the radio station via my Apple TV and push it to the HomePod by AirPlay.
TuneIn is also installed on Google Home...but not on my Hompepod mini....and if I want to download the TuneIn app, it costs 12.- for a subscription after a month.
I tried the same with Radio reseiver and my Tuner. None of the apps work on the HomePod via voice command. It also does not accept shortcuts for these apps.
Why does this work with Google home and not with the Apple Homepod?
We are the country with the highest Apple user density as far as the iPhone is concerned and for me Apple is way ahead in almost everything. But here they treat Switzerland like a 3rd world country. It makes me want to puke.
