If you’re an Apple TV user then you may be interested to know that Apple announced tvOS 18 earlier today. Here’s a closer look at all the new features now confirmed to be coming to Apple TV players later this year.
Apple TV’s New InSight
What was arguably the biggest announcement was the introduction of a new InSight feature. Similar to Prime Video’s X-Ray, Insight offers access to information related to the scene. This includes actors and characters on screen as well as music that might be playing.
Along with the information, Apple TV users will be able to perform additional actions. For example, adding the song currently playing to an Apple Music playlist.
New Apple TV Screensavers
tvOS 18 will also bring with it a number of new screensaver options. A new Portraits category will offer the option to use a stylized personal image, and there will also be the option of adding an image from an Apple TV+ series.
For Snoopy fans, a new Snoopy and Woodstock screensaver will be available as well.
Improved Dialogue And Subtitles
Enhance Dialogue rolled out last year with the tvOS 17 update and tvOS 18 is expected to make it even smarter. Thanks to the use of machine learning and computational audio, Apple TV 4K users can expect improved vocal clarity when music is playing, during action scenes, or just when there’s a lot of background noise in general.
Soon after the release of tvOS 17, Enhance Dialogue gained support for HomePod speakers, and users can expect wider device support in the future. With tvOS 18, Enhance Dialogue also works when listening through built-in TV or HDMI-connected speakers, AirPods, and other Bluetooth-connected devices. This is in addition to when playing supported content on an iPhone and iPad.
On the subtitles front, it looks they are also getting smarter as well. According to Apple, subtitles in tvOS 18 “automatically appear at just the right moments.” For example, subtitles will automatically show when the user mutes a video, skips back, or when the language does not match the device language.
Better Support For Projectors
While not everyone uses a projector, those that do will want to know that tvOS 18 includes 21:9 support for playing movies and shows, providing a widescreen experience as the director intended.
Improvements To Apple Fitness+
If you often use Apple Fitness+ on your Apple TV player, some improvements are coming your way. For example, tvOS 18 will introduce For You, Explore and Library spaces. Users can also expect new search features and enhanced awards.
A FaceTime Upgrade
Another Apple app getting a TV upgrade is FaceTime. Released with tvOS 17, FaceTime makes it possible to stay in touch with friends and family by making and taking calls on the big screen. tvOS 18 will look to improve the experience further through the introduction of Live Captions for English in the U.S. and Canada. In other words, users will be able to read what others on a FaceTime call are saying.
tvOS 18 Arrives Later This Year
The tvOS 18 upgrade is due to roll out to supported devices in the autumn, and multiple beta versions will become available between now and then. The beta program actually begins right now with the release of the developer preview of tvOS 18 for Apple Developer Program members.
As was the case last year with tvOS 17, the first public betas of tvOS 18 will be released next month, and will be available to download at beta.apple.com on supported Apple TV players.
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