Apple has announced key improvements with tvOS 18 for Apple TV. But that’s not all, the Home platform gets significant updates, too.
tvOS 18 Announced with InSight, Enhance Dialogue, 21:9 Support for Projectors
Though one might dismiss this update as a small one, but it brings in key features to elevate the living room TV experience.
InSight is a brand new feature that will shows you key information about actors, characters and music in TV+ movies and TV shows. If you like a song in a show or movie, you can send it to your Apple Music playlist by looking at the details from InSight. This same information is available on the iPhone if you’re using it as a remote for your Apple TV.
There’s a new Enhance Dialogue feature baked in, allowing you to push vocal clarity and cut through the noise. This works on the built-in TV speakers, HDMI connected speakers, AirPods and even HomePod, if you’re using them as your sound output method.
Subtitles have gotten smarter too. If there’s a scene where the language changes from the native, subtitles will automatically appear on screen so that you can stay engaged with the movie or TV show.
Last but not the least, if you have a projector that supports 21:9 output, tvOS 18 ensures it will play nicely with it. You even get brand new screensavers, including Portraits, TV and Movies and Snoopy.
New FaceTime with Continuity Camera in tvOS 18 now has Live Captions. You can now see, in text, what the other person is saying. This feature will be available in the United States and Canada.
Fitness+ also gets a slight revamp, allowing fitness buffs to stay motivated at all times with a personalized For You, Explore and Library spaces, including search and rewards.
Improvements to Home
Later this fall, a brand new feature is coming that will allow anyone to take control of the music playing on a HomePod, even the mini. It works by joining an Apple Music SharePlay session which can be done by bringing an iPhone close to another one or scanning a QR code in the Apple Music SharePlay window. You can add or remove songs in a playlist, even if you don’t have an Apple Music subscription.
Guest access is coming to the Home app with iOS 18 allowing you to give access to things like locks, garage doors, security systems and more. Hands-free unlock is also coming, which means supported locks will open as soon as you’re within six feet of them.
The Home app will show you more details regarding your electricity usage, giving you insights to how you’ve been consuming energy. This works in partnership with certain companies when you link your account to the Home app.
Robot vacuum cleaners are now also compatible with the Home app whereas AirPlay now supports Spatial Audio.
