Apple TV users will be getting a bounty of new features when tvOS 17 arrives next month, ranging from the long-awaited integration of FaceTime to a HomePod-enabled dialogue-boosting mode.
You can experience tvOS 17 now by installing the beta on your Apple TV hardware, or you can simply wait until the final release arrives, which should happen shortly after Apple unveils the latest iPhones in September.
If you do decide to wait, you can still take a gander at the upcoming new features in tvOS 17, which Apple detailed during its WWDC keynote back in June.
Here are the five tvOS features that we’re looking forward to the most.
FaceTime calling
Hard to believe, but Apple is only now rolling out FaceTime calling support to Apple TV with the coming iOS 17 update. But even once FaceTime finally does come to Apple TV, it will still require some assistance from an iPhone or iPad.
Apple says you’ll be able to initiate FaceTime calls on Apple TV in one of two ways: either by transferring a FaceTime call from your iPhone or iPad, or by launching a FaceTime chat directly from the Apple TV’s FaceTime app.
You can move a FaceTime app from your iPhone to an Apple TV at the tap of a button.
Apple
Once in a call, your Apple TV will need help from the camera and microphones on your iPhone or iPad, using the existing Continuity Camera feature that was initially just for MacBooks.
The lens on your Apple phone or tablet will be able to follow you around the room (you will need a newer iPhone or iPad that supports Center Stage functionality), and you’ll be able to trigger animations using hand gestures; for example, making a heart-shaped gesture with your hands will spawn floating hearts.
Controls on your iPhone or iPad will allow you to move FaceTime calls on an Apple TV back to your personal device, and if another FaceTime call comes in during an active session on the big screen, a notification for the incoming call will appear without revealing who’s on the other end.
Besides FaceTime, Apple is promising that both Webex and Zoom will arrive on Apple TV later this year.
Revamped Control Center
tvOS 17 will bring a complete redesign of the Apple TV’s Control Center, adding tabs along the top that let you switch between the controls for audio output devices, Apple Home, key Apple TV settings, and profiles.
Control Center on tvOS 17 will arrive with a completely redesigned look, including a tabbed interface in the top corner of the screen.
Apple
The Home tab, for example, will let you see live feeds of your security cameras, as well as buttons for favorite HomeKit scenes, while the Settings tab shows your Apple TV’s Wi-Fi status, current Focus mode, connected controllers, accessibility options, and a large power-off button.
Finally, the tabbed interface along the top of Control Center will show the time, Apple TV status details, and the active profile.
Siri Remote finder
Did your sofa swallow your Siri Remote? It’s bound to happen if it hasn’t already, and a new tvOS 17 feature will help you find the wayward wand.
Your iPhone will let you know once you’re close to your missing Siri Remote.
Apple
Once the tvOS 17 update is live, you’ll be able to track down a missing second-gen Siri Remote by launching the Apple TV remote within Control Center on an iPhone.
Just tap the finder button, and a radar-style blue-and-white animation will appear, with the outer blue circle growing larger as you get closer to your lost Siri Remote.
When you’re close enough to the remote to grab it, the entire iPhone display will turn blue, with a caption reading “look for your remote nearby.”
New screensavers
If you dig the Apple TV screensavers that feature mesmerizing slow-motion footage of floating jellyfish and Amazonian rainforests, good news: more screensavers are incoming with iOS 17.
tvOS 17 will let you turn Memories from your Photos library into Apple TV screensavers.
Apple
Expect new aerial screensavers of Arizona’s Monument Valley and California’s coastal redwoods, for starters.
Even better, you’ll be able to use curated Memories images from your Photos library as Apple TV screensavers.
Dialogue enhancer
Last but not least, Apple TV will soon let you boost the sound of dialogue, but the feature won’t work with any old audio output device.
The new Enhance Dialogue mode works by separating dialogue from sound effects, music, and other background noise and “bringing it forward to the center channel,” Apple says.
Nice, but the feature will only work with a second-generation HomePod, not your TV speakers, soundbar, or other audio devices. (Luckily, many soundbars come with their own dialogue-enhancement modes.)
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.