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HomeKit Apple TV shows "Playing" in Home app while it's OFF
- Thread starter sparky672
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Something similar: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/254579390
It's very sporadic and wondering if this also has something to do with iCloud or Apple servers.
It's "working" the last couple of days; By "working", I mean:
• The status is toggling between "Playing" and "Paused", which corresponds to my streaming/not streaming, but...
• The Home app must be force-quit and restarted to get current status.
This indicates something has indeed been improved with the 16.4 update, as last Christmas under 16.2 with the new architecture, no amount of force-quitting or resetting could get it unstuck from "Playing" status.
Also, would be great if any of the network experts could chime in and explain the differences in the synonymous status messages, which appear in an "unlit" or dark Home icon.
"Not Playing", "Paused", "Stopped", "Resume", ("Off" button on virtual and physical remotes).
as opposed to "Playing", which AFAIK is the only status associated with a "lit up" or white Home icon.
It's very sporadic and wondering if this also has something to do with iCloud or Apple servers.
It's "working" the last couple of days; By "working", I mean:
• The status is toggling between "Playing" and "Paused", which corresponds to my streaming/not streaming, but...
• The Home app must be force-quit and restarted to get current status.
This indicates something has indeed been improved with the 16.4 update, as last Christmas under 16.2 with the new architecture, no amount of force-quitting or resetting could get it unstuck from "Playing" status.
Also, would be great if any of the network experts could chime in and explain the differences in the synonymous status messages, which appear in an "unlit" or dark Home icon.
"Not Playing", "Paused", "Stopped", "Resume", ("Off" button on virtual and physical remotes).
as opposed to "Playing", which AFAIK is the only status associated with a "lit up" or white Home icon.
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I have not even tried turning it on. 😆 After daily reboots for 2 months, have not rebooted my ATV or router since 16.4 came out... nobody got time for that.
It's just the wrong status as per usual and not affecting anything else can I can see. I'll let it ride to see how it plays out.
You aren't alone. 16.4 messed up HomeKit for me. I get the "updating" and super slow response from smart devices as well as the "playing" when the Apple TV isn't playing bugs. Restarting all devices does nothing and I'm sure Apple would suggest deleting and setting up every thing again as a fix. Unfortunately I've done that quite a few times since the "new" architecture was released in 16.2 and don't care to do it again just to have it fail again after a few weeks
It's not just HomeKit... the 
💩-show continues... 🤣
💩-show continues... 🤣
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I have had this issue arise on more than one occasion. Only way I can resolve on my set up is go into audio settings on Apple TV and default the output to my TV speakers. Then when I go back to using HomePod speakers as default it seems to kick start it into behaving again.
Mine is always set that way. I have no external speakers or HomePods.
Have you had any change in HomeKit? Mine seemed to start working again out of nowhere.. The only thing that seems to linger is the "playing" "paused" which is intermittent for me now. I'm worried about updating my iPhone and iPad to 16.4.1 because I don't want to mess with it while it's working.. Kinda makes me think it has something to do with Apple services acting wonky for some and fine for others. I had the weather bug for quite a while and now that seems to be working better also
My biggest issues with HomeKit lasted for nearly 2 months, during new architecture with 16.3.x my deadbolt lock was rendered temporarily useless from an automation standpoint. As stated in this thread, the ATV Playing/Paused status issue comes and goes. Seems to be better under 16.4 but still happening occasionally.
I updated to iOS 16.4.1 and don't see any new bugs/problems yet. However AFAIK, iOS is only going to affect Home app, not HomeKit, which is facilitated via tvOS and HomePod OS on your Home hub device(s) and Apple iCloud servers. The whole HomeKit ecosystem doesn't seem very robust yet, but I am hoping it gets better and we don't have any more 16.3.x type fiascos.
As a side-note that quickly turns into a rant, I am just learning about how to use "Shortcuts" for Home Automations and it boggles the mind why the Apple marketing geniuses named this tool/app/feature "Shortcuts" given the HomeKit potential. In fact, Shortcuts is a very complex scripting tool that unlocks all kinds of very detailed conditional home automation routines, including nested IF/THEN statements, WHILE loops, etc. Remember AppleScript Applets?
But when first hearing about "Shortcuts", I immediately dismissed it as nothing more than a quicker way to trigger existing scenes/automations like an alias. The name is supposed to say it all. A "shortcut" to what? Well, nothing, or just itself... the complex automation script is called a "shortcut". Um ok... by that logic, nearly everything on your phone is just a shortcut.... click an icon, then an app opens up... shortcut.
Not just the name, but the "Convert to Shortcut" link at the bottom of the Add Automation screen is similarly convoluted when this scripting functionality could have been be built into the Home app instead of a separate app.
I also really like how "regular" Home Automations show up listed in the "Shortcuts" app even when a "standard" Automation is not a Shortcut. Huh? Maybe Apple should have called it the Automation app... nah... that would be too redundant and confusing. Not simple like Automations in the Home app, Shortcuts in the Home app, Personal Automations in the Shortcuts app, Home Automations in the Shortcuts app, which are really just complex Home Automations mixed with standard Automations, and Shortcuts in the Shortcuts app, which are everything. 🤣
HomeKit has potential, but Apple has a long way to go with killing bugs and streamlining its interface.
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Completely agree with this 💯. It’s obvious Apple has the resources to integrate such a powerful automation engine directly into HomeKit. I’m dumbfounded at why they just don’t add this in. They could easily destroy any other home automation platforms just by adding the power of Shortcuts directly into HomeKit without the confusion of having to go into a separate app.
I am still blown away by the fact that I only just learned about this. I must not be alone... most answers to people posting questions in MacRumors about "how do I do this or that with HomeKit" do not talk about Shortcuts.
Like a dumb consumer who likes tinkering with tech, I just became quickly overwhelmed by the stupid-ass "Convert to Shortcut" link and kept putting off the research needed to untangle the jumbled mess of the Shortcuts app. I had the same thought process when I looked at that link... "why would I need an alias to an automation that is going to be in HomeKit?"
A couple YouTube videos later and I am blown away by what it can do. I'll bet 95% of HomeKit users will never take the time to tutor themselves on it, because like me, they just have no idea it can do very complex HomeKit things. It will die like AppleScript unless Apple just builds it into HomeKit where it belongs.
But what about "Personal Automations"? Keep those stupid things in their own app, drop "automations", and rename it something like Shortcuts 🤣 or "iOS Shortcuts", and then confine all HomeKit automations, both basic and scripted in the Home app. If this make any sense Cook's Apple will never do it.
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And the “Convert to Shortcut” feature doesn’t even have half of what the Shortcuts app offers as a whole. It COULD be great.
Check out a YouTuber named Shane Whatley. Guy is a master at this stuff. Very dedicated to the platform.
Really? Now I am pissed that Apple put even less effort into the HomeKit experience than I initially thought.
Those are the videos I am talking about. The few I saw, he never actually opened the Shortcuts app. He just did some blinky light stuff via the "Convert to Shortcut", which were great. However, I FF through a lot of tutorials when they focus too much on colored light bulbs - I don't live in a dorm anymore. 😂 I like seeing more of the old people stuff... locks, sensors, garage doors, motion, security devices, switches, plugs, cameras, etc. And I really like the stuff that retrofits common things instead of needing to buy all new. Like is it really that hard to design/market a device to open/close regular existing roller shades that does not cost $500 per window?
And just when I figure out how HomeBridge can solve a lot of the other integration problems for me, Raspberry Pi boards are selling for 6x what they should. LOL
Thinking about skipping HomeBridge and cooking up some homemade devices with ESP32 boards and Arduino IDE. There is a HomeKit Arduino sketch so I can literally create my own HomeKit device from scratch in all the free time I never have.
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Shane does a lot of stuff with HomeKit and Shortcuts including step by step tutorials. I never cared much for colored light bulbs before but I’m bringing them back. It goes way beyond the dorm room experience. They’re great for a home theater experience using entertainment zones. I also mainly use for alerts. For one small example, I have one in my bathroom that lets me know when the exhaust fan is on. I sometimes forget to turn it on and I wont be able to hear it while the shower is running. I can quickly look up at the fan unit (containing a colored Hue bulb) and if it’s green, I know the fan is running without interrupting my shower. If it’s off, there’s a HomePod in there that can handle the command. I use a simple automation that turns the bulb green when the fan is on and off when the fan is off. I also have a scene that turns my porch lights red in an emergency in case 911 is called so they can quickly identify the house. These are just two examples but I find more value in them than just the disco flashing dorm room scene lol. Plus my kids love ‘em.
BTW, there are aftermarket motor solutions that can roll shades up and down and aren’t too expensive. Granted they aren’t the most elegant but they get the job done. Smart tubes are rolling out now too that slide inside the roller.
BTW, there are aftermarket motor solutions that can roll shades up and down and aren’t too expensive. Granted they aren’t the most elegant but they get the job done. Smart tubes are rolling out now too that slide inside the roller.
That is a clever thing. I may reconsider using a colored bulb or two based on doing something like this.
That sounds really good. 🕺
Another HomeKit idea is regarding my outdoor fish pond. It's so critical the pump never fail because of freezing in the winter and water temp in the summer, that I would like to get this into HK somehow just for uptime monitoring. Maybe an electrical current sensor inside the breaker panel, and an ESP32 w/ Arduino Sketch. If the current draw is zero amps, "pump is not running". If the current is over ___ amps, "pump's bearings are shot or the impeller is clogged".
As far as un-derailing this original topic, I am starting to believe the issue is solely with HomeKit on the iCloud servers, and manifested with new architecture and HK changes.
• Worked fine until new architecture was accepted last December and updated to iOS 16.2
• Then would frequently and routinely get stuck in incorrect status from iOS 16.2 though 16.3.x
• Now with iOS 16.4, it happens less frequently, and when tested, seems to work reliably. Then one day it stays stuck for hours with no way to unstuck until there is a physical interaction with the actual ATV.
I have not seen it happen again since last Tuesday when I posted about it. Maybe it's my network, seriously, or "the" network between me and Apple? A signal is sent from my ATV to HK iCloud at Apple to trigger status change. What if that one packet of data is lost or damaged? It would take turning the ATV on again before another state is triggered. Seems like a solution would be for Apple's HK services to be looking for a status every x-minutes as a backup for when the status change on power on/off is missed or missing. A heartbeat signal. Any network failure would then yield zero false positives.
If no heartbeat seen after x minutes, change state to off. Or maybe also when one interacts with ATV icon in Home app, look for this status or heartbeat and update the status. Of course this should be coupled with simplification of the states... just "on" or "off" instead of "playing", "not playing", "stopped", and "paused".
• Worked fine until new architecture was accepted last December and updated to iOS 16.2
• Then would frequently and routinely get stuck in incorrect status from iOS 16.2 though 16.3.x
• Now with iOS 16.4, it happens less frequently, and when tested, seems to work reliably. Then one day it stays stuck for hours with no way to unstuck until there is a physical interaction with the actual ATV.
I have not seen it happen again since last Tuesday when I posted about it. Maybe it's my network, seriously, or "the" network between me and Apple? A signal is sent from my ATV to HK iCloud at Apple to trigger status change. What if that one packet of data is lost or damaged? It would take turning the ATV on again before another state is triggered. Seems like a solution would be for Apple's HK services to be looking for a status every x-minutes as a backup for when the status change on power on/off is missed or missing. A heartbeat signal. Any network failure would then yield zero false positives.
If no heartbeat seen after x minutes, change state to off. Or maybe also when one interacts with ATV icon in Home app, look for this status or heartbeat and update the status. Of course this should be coupled with simplification of the states... just "on" or "off" instead of "playing", "not playing", "stopped", and "paused".
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Let me share my tvOS 16.4.1 update experience...
The good news is that everything else seems to still be working.
After the ATV updated and rebooted, the Home app icon reported ATV status "Stopped". Then I "turned off" the ATV and status changed to "Not Playing". I mean that's sorta an improvement, right? I still don't know what "Stopped" or "Not Playing" is supposed to convey as opposed to "Paused". No wait, I turned the ATV back on and status still says "Not Playing". 😂
Since these status types are all synonymous, I honestly wouldn't know when it's working correctly. 🤣
The good news is that everything else seems to still be working.
After the ATV updated and rebooted, the Home app icon reported ATV status "Stopped". Then I "turned off" the ATV and status changed to "Not Playing". I mean that's sorta an improvement, right? I still don't know what "Stopped" or "Not Playing" is supposed to convey as opposed to "Paused". No wait, I turned the ATV back on and status still says "Not Playing". 😂
Since these status types are all synonymous, I honestly wouldn't know when it's working correctly. 🤣
Just another update:
I've been using iOS and tvOS 16.4.1 since release.
Both yesterday and today, HomeKit has been showing "Playing" all day while the damn thing has not been in use. I actually thought it would be getting better, but it's getting worse.
It's almost like this issue is tied to something variable and unpredictable like an iCloud server.
I've been using iOS and tvOS 16.4.1 since release.
Both yesterday and today, HomeKit has been showing "Playing" all day while the damn thing has not been in use. I actually thought it would be getting better, but it's getting worse.
It's almost like this issue is tied to something variable and unpredictable like an iCloud server.
Absolutely not.
While this used to sometimes work, it's been completely ineffective the last few times this status has appeared.
EDIT:
I clicked the HomeKit tile to open the remote control on the iPhone. The power button on this remote was unable to turn TV on (Samsung problem I think). However, while attempting to do this, I noticed the status updated itself to "Paused".
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