Richard's Tech Reviews

Setting a sleep timer on HomePod or iOS

A sleep timer is a countdown timer that stops whatever is playing once it completes the countdown.  For example, if you set a 45 minute sleep timer and you're playing audio on your device, the audio will stop playing after 45 minutes.

On HomePod

You can just say

"Hey Siri, set a sleep timer for x minutes"

and it will stop playing when the timer runs out.

In iOS

The generic way to do this on iOS / iPadOS is to go to Clock ->Timers and for When Timer Ends, at the very bottom of all the sound options, select Stop Playing.

In iOS 17.1 you can now name timers and have a history of previous timers, so you could have different named sleep timers depending on how much time you want.

There are also app-specific timers, e.g. in Books you can click on the sleepy moon icon (a moon with zzz above it) to set a sleep timer, but I like using just the generic timer since it works across all applications (including video).

SIDEBAR: The missing feature of actually detecting sleep

Apple has an obvious missed opportunity for Watch integration, since your watch knows when you've fallen asleep (more or less).  There should be a system-wide "stop playing when I fall asleep" option.

There is at least one app that does this.  I haven't tried it, but it's called Sleep When I Sleep, from AppleVis.

Air Quality as an Apple Watch complication

You can get air quality as an Apple Watch complication, if the location is the right size/shape.

In the Modular Compact face, I put AQI (air quality) as the middle complication.

Above is a simulated display, not a live display.
Note the simulated display shows the US AQI scale.

When you are using the Apple Watch in Canada, it will still say AQI, but it will use the Canadian AQHI scale, which runs from 1 to 10+ and uses different colours.

The Canadian colours are:

• 1 light blue to 3 dark blue = low risk
• 4 yellow to 6 orange = moderate risk
• 7 light red to 10 dark red-brown = high risk
• 10+ brown = very high risk

Please note: AQI values on your Apple Watch or iPhone are Internet-provided values for your entire city, not real-time personal values measured directly at your location.  Your Apple devices don't have built-in PM2.5 sensors.  Your local air quality could be much worse than the city value.  The only way to get your personal value is to get a PM2.5 sensor, they cost about $150.

Unlike AQI, Sound Levels are your local personal value as Apple devices can just use their built-in microphones.

iPhone and Apple Watch Weather app

You can also see the AQI (or in Canada the AQHI) in the iPhone Weather app or the Apple Watch Weather app.  Scroll down in the Watch Weather app and the Air Quality should appear immediately after the temperature data.  The data comes from a company called BreezeoMeter, it doesn't come directly from the Canadian government.

Here's the view in the iPhone Weather app.

Tap on Air Quality to go to a detail screen (you do know you can tap on almost any of the Weather app display boxes e.g precipitation and it will take you to a more detail screen?)

BreezoMeter Data and Watch Update Frequency

The Canadian AQHI data come from BreezeoMeter, not directly from the Government of Canada, and the watch face updating is slow. You may have to tap through on the AQI watch complication to get the latest AQHI in the Apple Watch Weather app.

I frequently see the BreezoMeter AQHI on the Apple Watch and in Apple Weather reporting a level one lower (less risk) than the official Government of Canada level, e.g. the Apple Watch will say 4 when the actual official level is 5.

Government of Canada Weather App

If you want official Canadian government AQHI data, you'll need the Government of Canada weather app WeatherCAN.  I think it is iPhone only, not Apple Watch.

You won't often see the weather condition as simply "Smoke" unless that really predominates over other weather activity.

For an individual city, tap the down caret ⏑ on the main screen.

once you open the additional ▼ menu you will see Air quality with the current AQHI value and colour.

Tap that line or the > next to the AQHI value to see the Forecast Maximums as well as any Special Air Quality Statement that may be in effect.

On the detailed screen you can also click for a web table of the AQHI for the past 24 hours, in the upper right across from Observed Conditions click "Past 24 hours", and for a web table of forecast values for the next 24 hours, in the centre right across from Forecast Maximums, click "Next 24 hours".

If you do get the WeatherCAN app, you can set up custom air quality (AQHI) alerts, although I'm not convinced about how quickly you will get alerted.

Disclaimer

Although I am a Government of Canada employee, I have no involvement with the WeatherCAN app.