Apple Home can’t share without HomePod ?

This, one more, is just a big f*** you to all apple users. It always worked without a hub. Now its not possible to share home features without a hub?! So my gf cant control lights anymore in our home?! Are you kidding me? This doesn’t make me buy a apple tv or home pod, it just drives me more away from apple in the hands of android… Really bad decision.

I'm facing a frustrating situation with the recent home upgrade. It's puzzling why certain features seem to require specific hardware. Here's an example that baffles me:

If I have two phones with the same Apple ID, a few smart bulbs, and a shared Wi-Fi network, both phones can easily control the lights without any issues. However, if one of the phones has a different Apple ID, suddenly it's being claimed that additional hardware is needed. This raises questions about why this change is necessary and whether it's truly a hardware requirement.

I'm curious to understand the technical reasoning behind this. OP mentions it working before the update, so it seems unlikely that hardware alone could be the determining factor.

It would be fantastic if Apple could explore ways to enable multiple users to control the same accessory within the Home app, even without relying on specific hardware. This would provide greater convenience and flexibility for users like myself who want to avoid unnecessary purchases.

Thank you for considering my concerns. I'm eager to hear any insights on this matter.

If anyone is curious, here is the feedback I sent (not word for word, just the gist of it):

If two phones have the same Apple ID, they can control home accessories such as lights, but if one has a different ID, an on-site device is required. This seems arbitrary and lacks clear justification. Requiring additional hardware adds costs and contributes to electronic waste and resource consumption. There must be a better way to make Home Sharing more inclusive and convenient for everyone.

Thank you.

camilrv wrote:

With the latest upgrade to home, is there no way for two individual to add/use the same accessory in their home app without an apple home pod or Apple TV ? Even in the same wifi I never have the invite button.

Why is it one accessory per person/device ?

I’m not going to pay 100€ just to be able for two people to control two lights !!!

Home Sharing (with the Matter support) requires the home have a HomePod, HomePod mini, or Apple TV box, yes.

Here is how to: Share control of your home - Apple Support

Thanks for the link and the suggestion to contact Apple- I will do so. It's disappointing that the details behind the on-site device requirement aren't documented. It leaves us wondering about the reasons behind this limitation. Hopefully Apple will consider user feedback and explore options that provide greater flexibility without relying on additional hardware.

In the meantime, I've stumbled across a workaround. If you have an older iOS device in a drawer somewhere, wipe it, put your apple ID and Home app on that puppy. It's essentially turning an iPhone into a glorified home remote which can be used by anyone in the household. So fascinating that this works without extra hardware. A mystery.

It's not ideal but it saves you from a €109 purchase, not to mention saves resources.

Once again, thank you for your insights and for sharing the product feedback link. Let's hope for a more inclusive and user-friendly experience in the future.

wiggle321 wrote:

…It's puzzling why certain features seem to require specific hardware…

No one here can answer this. Only Apple. And Apple has not documented the details of why an on-site device is required for sharing access. Matter might have, but I’ve not checked those specifications.

Send your request (for no local device) to Apple: Product Feedback - Apple

lrdtrbl wrote:

This, one more, is just a big f*** you to all apple users. It always worked without a hub. Now its not possible to share home features without a hub?! So my gf cant control lights anymore in our home?! Are you kidding me? This doesn’t make me buy a apple tv or home pod, it just drives me more away from apple in the hands of android… Really bad decision.

If Android better meets your needs, by all means use that.

As for the rest of Home and this particular presumably-Matter-related change, having a local device resident provides a controller that can maintain the state and automations, and it means not having to access iCloud as part of sharing. I already had a HomePod mini, so this change has meant things associated with Home are somewhat more reliable. Not that HomeKit still isn’t a little flaky, but things are getting incrementally better.

And again, send your request for sharing with no local device to Apple: Product Feedback - Apple