Redesigning Apple
iOS 16 introduces a completely redesigned Home app with a stronger focus on reliability and ease of use.
The Apple Home app will get a much-needed overhaul.
"Apple revealed the redesigned Home app at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, with the promise that an update will be coming soon to support the long-awaited, ecosystem-unifying smart home standard Matter.
Apple is giving its Home app a much-needed overhaul in iOS 16, adding rooms to the main Home interface, as well as adding multi-camera views and new navigation options, including climate, lighting and security categories.
The most important change is that you can now see your entire home from a single view.
An overview of your entire home
The overview section at the top of the Home tab has also been redesigned and now includes categories such as "Climate", "Light", "Water", "Speakers & TVs" and "Security". For example, the 'Climate' button shows the temperature range of your home, the 'Lights' button shows how many smart lights are on, and the 'Security' button gives details of how many smart locks are secured.
The new app includes changes to navigation and accessory management, but the most important change is that you can now see your entire home from one view. No more flicking through menus to check things - you can view every connected device, including multi-camera views, on one page.
Unlike the previous version of the app, which had tabs for "Home", "Rooms", "Automation" and more. New categories divide accessories into 'Climate', 'Light', 'Security', 'Water', 'Speakers & TVs' and 'Security', and multi-camera view allows you to view up to four cameras directly at once - with the option to scroll to see even more. For example, the 'Climate' button shows the temperature range of your home's rooms, the 'Lights' button shows how many smart lights are on, and the 'Security' button gives details of how many smart locks are secured. Tapping one of the category buttons will allow you to view all the related devices in your home, broken down by room. You can also scroll through the categories on the Home tab. In addition to rooms and categories, the app's Home appliance tiles have been updated: Apple says the new tiles are "more visually identifiable by shape and colour".
If you want to keep an eye on your home while you're away, the ability to see a live preview without having to touch it or wait for a specific channel to load is a lifesaver. This makes the Home app much more efficient, especially if you are used to using proprietary apps that take a long time to load.
The new Home app for iOS 16 brings devices categories to the overview row, plus a multi-camera-view to the main Home tab.
Display Controller
Finally, the new Home app will take advantage of the new iOS 16 lock screen controls, so you can see an overview of your HomeKit devices right from your lock screen. This redesign makes HomeKit a much more attractive option than before. It does what Apple has long needed: make HomeKit easier to use and more functional. All that's needed now is a more coherent set of accessories that work with HomeKit.
The new Home app takes advantage of iOS 16's new lock screen widgets
Matter smart home standard
Meanwhile, Apple has reaffirmed its support for Matter, the forthcoming (but twice delayed) smart home standard designed to make different smart home platforms such as Alexa, Google Home and HomeKit work well with each other. This means that HomeKit should soon work with a much wider range of devices than before.
"Apple" says support for Matter, which is expected to debut this autumn, will be available in an updated version of iOS 16.
Apple's iOS 16 update is expected to be available this autumn.