HomePod Mini keeps disconnecting

On your iPhones/iPads, try turning the default "Private Wi-Fi Address" feature OFF for your Home[Pod] WiFi SSID(s). The feature as implemented can confuse peer-to-peer connections on many home networks (particularly mesh setups).

Settings --> Wi-Fi --> [Your Home(Pod) Network] > (i) > "Private Wi-Fi Address" = OFF.

NOTE: This will cause a "Privacy warning". You can ignore this. There's no risk; it's your network.

Next, reboot everything (including WiFi infrastructure) and reset your homepods so that they learn you've set Private Wi-Fi Address OFF for the network. This guy reports observing MAC address changes on his HomePod mini until he turned off Private WiFi Addresses and reset his homepod: https://www.reddit.com/r/HomeKit/comments/rxkcqh/homepod_mini_private_address/. HomePods shouldn't use private wifi addrs, but they do get the network details from your iphone.

Background: Starting with iOS 14 (late 2020), Apple made iOS devices use a unique random MAC address by default on every WiFi network you connect to. They did this to prevent nefarious snoopers from tracking your iPhone hardware's WiFi MAC address across WiFi networks. I've never heard of any such snoopers or any exploits/hacks associated with WiFi MAC address tracking (although I've searched for examples). Seems like Apple's best example of a solution looking for a problem.

Please report back if this advice helps bring stability to your Home[Pods]. Or not. Thx.

After changing my WiFi back to a single router/access point, I’ve had no issues at all.

I certainly believe now that has more to do with this than some of the settings recommendations. I tried so many things without success, such as the revered Private Address fix, which never worked for me at all.

Ditching my (admittedly budget level) Mesh system, and reverting to a base WiFi router seems to have been the fix for me. I’d even tried using fixed IP addresses, amongst a few other possible tricks, but that didn’t work either.

I had tried using a second router setup as an addition WiFi access point (using the same SSID and p/word), but that still had the HomePod dropout issues.

I’ve been using just the main router for the WiFi for a few months, and haven’t had a single issue with the HomePods dropping out.

However, as I need a stronger signal in the garden for the summer months, I still need something at the other end of the house. I’ve now setup the spare router using a separate SSID, and it’s still good so far. It needs manually connecting to, but for the occasional time it’s needed, that’s fine.

So, it seems to me that the most likely possibility here is when the HomePods might connect to different WiFi access points. That appears to be the main thing they really don’t like.

Quick update: I appear to have resolve this issue for now by moving a IOT Air Quality sensor from Aqara about 4 feet alway from the speaker. previously it was sitting next to the speaker on my nightstand.

So... if you have any radio frequency based devices near your HomePod, consider spreading them out and see if that resolves your connectivity issues, I made the adjustment 3 days ago and these HomePods connections have not disconnected.

On your iPhones/iPads, try turning the default "Private Wi-Fi Address" feature OFF for your Home[Pod] WiFi SSID(s). The feature as implemented can confuse peer-to-peer connections on many home networks (particularly mesh setups).

Settings --> Wi-Fi --> [Your Home(Pod) Network] > (i) > "Private Wi-Fi Address" = OFF.

NOTE: This will cause a "Privacy warning". You can ignore this. There's no risk; it's your network.

Next, reboot everything (including WiFi infrastructure) and reset your homepods so that they learn you've set Private Wi-Fi Address OFF for the network.

I have been experiencing all of the frustrating glitches and connection problems with my

HomePod mini speakers that are mentioned in this group. Many are the times I

considered trashing them. And then it occurred to me…I have been working with a

modem/router provided by my internet service provider over 5 (possibly 10…)

years ago.

I have invested in an Asus RT-AX86U Pro wifi router. It has received several highly

positive reviews regarding the strength of the signal it distributes through

walls and ceilings. (I live in a two-story house.) The Asus is highly

configurable, allowing me to separate the 2.4 ghz band from the 5.0 ghz band,

giving each a different network name with different passwords. I am working

with only the 2.4 ghz as I am led to believe that the 5.0 ghz band is not as

effective in dealing with barriers like walls and ceilings. With the Asus I am

also able to prioritize media streaming when needed for wifi.

The result: rock solid performance throughout the house, no disconnects and better sound

quality on top of it all.

A relatively weak wifi signal has been my problem all along.

mick2001 wrote:

There is no such setting in WiFi. What do you propose instead of this.

Sorry, I thought the following paragraph was clear about where the setting is (under the 'info' symbol next to your network's name in iPhone Settings):

Settings --> Wi-Fi --> [Your Home(Pod) Network] > (i) > "Private Wi-Fi Address" = OFF.

NOTE: This will cause a "Privacy warning". You can ignore this. There's no risk; it's your network.

You can read more about the Private Wi-Fi Address feature in this Apple Support article: Use private Wi-Fi addresses on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple Watch. The first paragraph tries to justify this so-called feature by vaguely suggesting that a nefarious someone or evil org could potentially see the recurring presence of your phone's hardware address across multiple public wifi networks.

It's silly! It's a classic tech story of a "Solution in Search of a Problem". Every iPhone user running prior to iOS 14 has ignored, or still ignores, this possibilty (I don't accept it's a 'threat'). Likewise Every Android phone, etc, etc, etc! I've searched a bit, and couldn't find any reference to any hack, exploit or even any instance of anyone caring enough to sift through public-access network data about MAC address movement.

Factory reset all HomePods and set them up as if they're new with an iPhone that has had Private Wi-Fi-Address set to OFF for the HomePod's network SSID.

I am happy to report that bgmeek's suggestion has worked for me. My first attempt failed (user error) because I wasn't clear on the difference between "restart" and "reset". After turning off the private wifi address setting, I removed all four homepod mini speakers from the MyHome app and reset them to the original factory settings. I then added them one by one as if setting them up for the first time.

I seems I now have a stable connection.

Many thanks to bgmeek.

Vancouver22 wrote:

I tried this the other day but it made things worse. All sorts of bizarre issues. Mind you I did not reset the HomePods afterwards. I always hesitate to reset them because they can be difficult to set back up again! I’ll try it again when I have a free day to go through this ordeal. I have 9; 4 OG, 2 Gen 2 and 3 minis. The stereo pair with Apple TV 4K is flawless. I’ve had them since they first came out and they were good until around iOS 13. Maybe I have too many of them?

I'm revisiting this a week later because of your statement that turning off the Private Wi-Fi Address feature 'made things worse'. You generally know what you're doing, so people will dismiss the 'Turn OFF PWFA' advice because of this report. Nonetheless, there are many reports of HomePod mini connection issues clearly up after turning the Private Wi-Fi Address feature off and redoing the HomePod setup. This current thread on this forum, for example :-)

Apple's presumably accidental bug here is that the HomePod mini will use a 'private' MAC address based upon the settings on the iPhone that set it up with Private Wi-Fi Address turned ON (Apple's default setting). Unfortunately, the HomePod isn't an iPhone and it doesn't seem to retain this 'private address' forever as long as it remains connected to your home SSID. Reports indicate that it may use a new address with every restart or cold-boot (including every automatic software update - note how people often blame the latest software updates for their problems).

Your brief experiment of turning off the Private Wi-Fi Address feature merely restored your iPhone's hardware WiFi MAC address, which would make your DHCP server assign a different IP address to your phone. Assuming you at least restarted the HomePod minis (without the hard-reset), they probably came up with new addresses as well. Suddenly every device on your Home Kit needs to learn that their hub isn't where it was a few minutes ago.

Cheers.

Update x 2

I've reported this issue to Apple via Feedback Assistant.

Based on feedback throughout this thread I've been monitoring my HomePod's Mac assignment from my router and Home interface. I recently had to reboot one of my HomePods because it lost connection with the internet. Unplug for 5 seconds, plug back in. This was a near daily routine for my HomePod mini's paired in our bedroom. The original pair I have in our living room flawless.

I moved an IOT from Aqara that was near the problematic HomePod mini last week to 3 feet above the speaker an just to the left, avoiding it's line of sight to the router and its pair.

This improved the situation as HomeKit and our Shortcut routines became more reliable, going several days without a hitch. That is until this morning when the same problematic speaker disconnected.

I rebooted then checked my logs on the devices MAC address, as I have private IP set on the iPhone I used to setup the speakers up with, as previous replies suggested this feature could break things as it randomizes the devices MAC address to break tracking and improve security.

I have not changed this setting or reset my devices at this stage, I had previously completed a OS restore via Finder on my iMac, and as others have described changing this feature could wreak havoc elsewhere and I don't have time for that.

Today, following the reboot the MAC address remains the same, however my iPhone Home app says the speaker is "No Response" while my iMac HomeKit App says the speaker is "Paused."

Not sure what the issue is here, but it seems to suggest that my iPhone, connected to the same SSID is not seeing the status of this one HomePod for some reason.

I have long experienced issues with wifi devices on the same router with different active bands not finding other devices on the same network, either wired or wireless, if the other devices isn't on the same frequency it doesn't find it. This has been rare, but it's one of the reasons I avoid fencing my IOT devices off, it's complicated devices you don't want in that group to see what's happening in side it from outside the group.

I'm clearly not a network specialist, just an above average technical user.

I use a wifi 6 router from Amplify, it works well generally. I do not have its HomeKit router security enabled, as doing so limited the functionality of several temp triggers I need.

I'd continue to encourage people to reset their HomePods via USB, this provided some stability, then ensure there are no other radio frequency devices in between your problematic HomePod and your router. If you have a concrete or metal wall between your speakers and their router consider relocating the speakers for a short period to further identify possible disconnect causes. And if you live near a police station, fire station or other entity associated with secure or high powered radio frequency transmissions, you will continue to experience this instability when those devices are activated.

Don't forget to create a Feedback Ticket with apple and provide them with relevant use case details.

[Edited by Moderator]

Was having exactly the same issue. Constant disconnects between my iphone, MacBok and the Homepod. Tried all the usual suggestions - resetting Homepod, changing Wi-fi settings etc....that's when I noticed that the HomePod was connected to a wi-fi extender 'disc' (UK BT Term for them) and my Iphone was connected to the main router.

I'm sure there is a setting for this in the router set up somewhere that allows me to configure the homepod to connect to the main router only....For now, I just tured off the wi-fi extender and everything instantly started connecting again.

MY SUCCESSFUL SOLUTION: I tried some of the ideas on this community, and I tried a support call with Apple. No joy.

Then I had an idea. Since my newish router provides 5GB and 2.4GB wifi, maybe the HomePod mini I have is only capable of the 2.4GB channel. So I went through the tedious reset/reset procedure, re-adding the accessory, sigh, but this time with the 2.4GB. And it works. So far, since this change, it has not dropped the connection once. I have two iPhones and just one HomePod mini.

I have a stereo pair on HomePod Minis and I was experiencing drop outs continually on one of them. I use Roon as my music server.

I have an Eero mesh network, my Minis were right next to a one of the mesh units.

I have turned off the additional nearby Eero mesh unit, my music is now streaming from my main Eero unit which is connected a wired ethernet connection to my Roon Core. Not a single drop out since the change.

Probably not something that covers everyone, I am guessing most peoples issues relate to Airplay via iPhone etc.

I have seen comments elsewhere recommending that Homepods and Homepod mini speakers all be communicating with the same main wifi router, rather than their respective mesh satellites. Connecting to a mesh satellite throws them "off of their game".

Thank you bgmeek. I have two iPhones and I turned off the Private Wifi network on both, and restarted the HomePod mini. Bingo. Playing music now. Very happy!

Some router systems work more seamlessly with Apple devices, particularly the private Wi-Fi address default. Based on some advice, I bought an Eero 6E 3-pack. I have all kinds of devices hooked up to the network. 2 Apple TVs, two HomePod Minis, a Phillips Hue hub, a Yale door lock, three televisions (LG and Samsung) 10 Kasa Smart dimmer Switches, a pellet grill, a Cafe grinder/coffee maker, garage door opener, GE washer and dryer, multiple computers phones, two iPads, air monitor and an Ecobee Smart premium with 8 rooms sensors…multiple Sonos speakers and an Marantz Network-enabled receiver…no trouble with any of it over the past year when I installed it all aside from having to reset the Yale lock once. Not a single problem with the HomePod Minis. They’re in separate rooms, not paired, and I don’t use them for the televisions. That’s all Sonos. I’ve read other comments from Eero users that say the same thing. I love the Minis. I use them for music, to tell me about the weather, Wikipedia seamless and to give verbal commands to most of my devices. Aside from Siri periodically asking who I am when there’s background noise, it all works seamlessly.