.png)
2 hours ago
23
is a senior reviewer with over twenty years of experience. She covers smart home, IoT, and connected tech, and has written previously for Wirecutter, Wired, Dwell, BBC, and US News.
If you haven’t yet updated to the new Apple Home, your smart home devices may no longer work in the Home app on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Watch starting tomorrow. On February 10, 2026, Apple will end support for the original HomeKit architecture.
The biggest impact of the change will be felt by anyone still using an iPad as their Apple Home Hub (which allows you to control devices remotely and create automations).
In the new Apple Home, iPads are no longer supported as hubs. You’ll need a HomePod or Apple TV to serve that role. The new architecture also requires your phone and any devices connected to your Home to be running iOS 16.2 or later (or macOS 13.1/watchOS 9.2 or higher).
To ensure no interruption in your smart home control, you’ll need to update your Apple Home. Go to Settings in the Home app and follow the steps to complete the update. After February 10, Apple says you may be automatically upgraded.
The new Apple Home architecture fully launched with iOS 16.4 in 2023, and was a ground-up rebuild of the platform. It brought increased performance and reliability, according to Apple, along with support for Matter, the new smart home standard Apple helped develop and to which it contributed HomeKit as a foundation.
Upgrading has been optional since the launch of the new platform, but Apple announced last year that it would phase out the old HomeKit architecture by the end of 2025. That deadline was subsequently pushed back, but has now arrived.
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
English (US) ·