A redesign of the Home app’s underlying architecture to make it faster and more reliable, which originally appeared in iOS 16.2 in December, but was pulled at the end of that month, is set to reappear in the upcoming iOS 16.4 update.
The feature, as we reported at the time, introduced a new option in the Home app: under Home Settings > Software Update users would find a message reading Home Upgrade Available. However, Apple subsequently released a statement saying it was “aware of an issue that may impact the ability for users to share the Home within the Home app,” removed the upgrade option, and noted its removal in a support document.
Oddly, the removal did not affect users who had already chosen to make the upgrade, perhaps because by that point they had safely avoided the biggest problem: before Apple reported the sharing issue several had complained that their devices were stuck in an updating or configuring status. Others noted that invitations to share their homes with other users had failed, or that HomeKit Secure Video recording had stopped working.
It would appear that Apple is satisfied the issue is no longer a worry. MacRumors says it “can confirm” that the upgrade option will return in iOS 16.4, based on code references discovered by Nicolás Álvarez. We don’t know when iOS 16.4 will launch; Apple hasn’t yet released a beta of the update. But MacRumors speculates that the beta could arrive “as soon as this week.”
For all the latest information on Apple’s upcoming iOS updates, check out our iOS 16 superguide.
Author: David Price, Editor
David has loved the iPhone since covering the original 2007 launch; later his obsession expanded to include iPad and Apple Watch. He offers advice to owners (and prospective owners) of these devices.