Apple is doing interesting things with the Find My network. Earlier this month it opened things up to third-party accessories, and, of course, launched the AirTag item tracker. But Siri apparently thinks Apple isn’t quite done just yet.
As first noted by 9to5Mac today, asking Siri a specific question regarding the Siri Remote or an Apple TV Remote leads to an interesting response. Namely, that the digital assistant suggests either one of those remotes aren’t associated with an iCloud account. That’s a bit strange considering, as it stands right now, the Apple TV remote doesn’t associate with an iCloud account by default.
Here’s how it shakes out, based on the report. Asking Siri “Find My Siri Remote” or “Find my Apple TV Remote” will lead the digital assistant to respond that either accessory is not discoverable, and not associated with an iCloud account. As far as Apple has informed anyone, the new Siri Remote –which Apple introduced with the brand new Apple TV 4K— doesn’t support the Find My network.
However, it’s an interesting turn of events because there were certainly rumors circulating that Apple was indeed planning to offer support for the Find My network with a new Apple TV remote. Some even thought it may feature Apple’s U1 chip for more accurate location discoverability (just like the AirTag).
To compare, asking Siri to locate an accessory that doesn’t support Find My, like the Apple Pencil, will have the digital assistant say the accessory can’t be used with the Find My network. Siri’s response when asked about the Siri Remote suggests that the remote does support the Find My network, but, right now, just doesn’t.
From today’s report, suggesting Apple may have something else to announce later this year:
The acknowledgment of the Siri Remote support in Find My seems to be a new addition. Whilst we can successfully observe the behavior on iOS 14.5 across many languages, Siri does not understand the same request when asking on an iOS 14.4 device.
It is possible that Apple has a surprise for us, or — more likely — Siri is tipping on the hat on an in-development feature that didn’t make the cut for this generation of remote hardware.
Well, we know that Apple is ready to host this year’s all-online Worldwide Developers Conference at the beginning of June. Maybe that’s when Apple will confirm even more features for the new Siri Remote.