What Can You Ask Siri on HomePod, iPhone, etc?

Hi i’m siri

If you are users of Apple devices, Siri will not need any introduction. You will already know that it is Apple’s intelligent voice assistant and it is available in practically all the company’s products.

You can use Siri on the iPhone and iPad, Apple Watch, Mac, Apple TV and HomePod (both the original and the new mini version). What’s more, even AirPods and CarPlay-compatible devices also allow you to use the voice command that activates it: “Hey Siri.”

In addition to the voice command, there are other ways to activate Siri on the company’s devices, although how to do it will depend on each of them. So, let’s do a quick review of how to launch Siri on Apple devices:

• On the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch you just have to do the following. In the case of the iPhone X or higher, press the power button, in the iPad Pro without a home button press the power button and in the rest of devices with the Home button, keep it pressed
• In AirPods it is done by double tapping or pressing on the right earphone
• In cars with CarPlay system, if they support Siri Eyes Free mode, you just have to hold the voice command button
• On Apple Watch, press and hold the digital crown for a moment
• On Macs, click on the button located in the Dock, Touchbar or the Finder minus bar, although you can also go to the system preferences and assign a custom keyboard shortcut to launch the voice assistant
• On Apple TV, simply touch the dedicated button
• On the HomePod and HomePod mini, touch and hold the top until it starts to sound

As you can see, activating Siri is very simple. It does not matter if you do it through a voice command for convenience or through manual mode. You decide how you prefer to invoke it, so now let’s see what it can do for you.

Another important detail that you have to know is how Intercom works , a feature that was mentioned during the last keynote of the iPhone 12. Basically it is a personal communication system in the purest style of Drop-In or Communications from Alexa or its counterpart in Google Assistant .

The new intercom function allows you to send audio messages to other devices in the home. Just ask Siri and it will automatically be heard throughout the house. So, for example, if you say something on the HomePod mini in the living room, it will be heard where you can have it installed in the bedroom or any other room.

Although not just between speakers, you can also take advantage of the feature with devices like the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and AirPods. The only downside is that even with Siri on Macs, you cannot use this option, which could also be very useful.

Control your devices with Siri

One of the basic and clear functions of Siri is related to the control of your own devices, and we are not referring to those that you have connected in your home but to your iPhone, iPad, Mac, etc. Apple’s voice assistant can perform basic actions such as the following, but it is also very useful to avoid having to do it in a traditional way. For example, you can ask him all this:

• Turn Wi-Fi on or off
• Turn Bluetooth on or off
• Switch to Airplane mode
• Increase or decrease the brightness of the screen
• Turn the volume up or down
• Open the settings
• Take a picture
• Record a slow motion video
• Open [app name]
• Open the web [page address]
• Create an X time timer
• Create an alarm
• How much free space do I have left (this is only compatible with Siri on Mac)

Control home automation

If your connected devices are compatible with HomeKit, you can not only add them to the Home application, but also control it through Siri. So you can order things like:

• Siri turn the lights on or off
• Adjust the brightness level to X percentage
• Close the front door
• Execute the scenes / routines you have created such as Activate cinema mode, Bedtime, etc.

What Siri can do on the HomePod

If you’re going to use Siri on the HomePod or HomePod mini, although many commands will still work the same, others may not. This is because it is not exactly the same Siri that is on an iPhone and a HomePod. At least not yet.

In case of using the voice assistant on the company’s smart speakers, these are the most useful commands:

• Play song X
• Turn the volume up or down
• Pause the song
• Skip to the next song
• Go back to the previous song
• Plays music from (genre, time period, author, group, …)
• Siri who plays guitar in this song
• Siri who is singing
• Siri plays the best songs of (month) (year)
• Don’t play this song anymore (it won’t play again)
• I like this song (this will make me recommend similar topics)
• Play (name) podcasts
• Siri, turn off / disconnect. (This turns off the assistant and to activate it again you will have to touch on the surface of the HomePod for a few seconds)

Know relevant information about your day to day

One of the most popular uses of any voice assistant is to keep you informed with all those data that may be interesting to you, such as the weather, traffic, highlighted news of the day, etc. So, you just have to ask him things like:

• What is the weather today, tomorrow or a certain day. For example, one or all of the next week
• Do I need to bring an umbrella?
• What will the weather be in (city)
• How was the soccer match between (team A) and (team B)
• How is the traffic today
• Where can i go to eat
• Ask him to tell you about a nearby pizzeria, Mexican or other type of restaurant
• Take me Home

Let me do math for you

Siri is not only capable of answering general cultural questions, it also has mathematical abilities. So you can ask yourself to perform various operations, such as:

• Convert 50 dollars into euros
• How many are 150 meters in miles or feet or yards …
• Multiply, divide, add or subtract these amounts
• What is X percent of Y
• Tell me the square root of X

Use Siri as your personal secretary

Apple’s voice assistant can also act as a secretary, you just have to ask him to send a message or make a call to that person and he will. So some things related to calls and messages are:

• Call (contact)
• Call (contact) in hands-free or speakerphone mode
• Text (contact name) and say X
• FaceTime (contact name)
• Control Siri-compatible apps

To use the latter it is necessary that the applications support the Apple assistant. To know if that happens you will have to go to the system settings> Siri and see if it is there or not. Thanks to this you will have a better experience and greater integration like the one offered by Apple apps, through which you can create new reminder lists, etc.

Fun things you can ask Siri

Finally, you can also ask Siri certain things that will make it give you a funny answer to something that, possibly, you already know but you still want to know what the company’s own assistant says.

For example, some of these commands are:

• Why did Apple make you?
• What does Siri mean?
• What are you wearing?
• You eat?
• Are you a woman or a man?
• How much do you cost?
• Believe in God?
• Do you have a boyfriend?
• Have children?
• Do you have brothers or sisters?
• How old are you?
• What’s your favorite app?
• How much money do you earn?
• Can you dance?
• You sleep?
• What is your favorite color?
• Will you marry me?
• Do I need to hide a body?
• Red pill or the blue pill?
• Can pigs fly?
• What did the fox say?
• Can you lend me money?
• Which is the best smart phone?
• Can I change your name?
• Ok google

Siri, what can you do for me

As you can see, Siri is capable of many things. Perhaps more than you could have imagined at first. Still, there are functions that are still unknown by many users and also situations in which it is not as effective as its rivals. But it is clear that if you have or are going to bet on a HomePod or HomePod mini you are interested in knowing what Siri can do for you .

From here, you can ask him anything that comes to mind, or make requests that you doubt if he will know how to interpret or not. You are likely to be pleasantly surprised. And if not, at least you will be clear about how to get the most out of Siri.