Apple Seeds Seventh Beta of Upcoming tvOS 11 Update to Developers [Update: Public Beta Available]

[MacRumors]

Apple today seeded the seventh beta of an upcoming tvOS 11 update designed for the fourth-generation TV, one week after seeding the sixth beta and over two months after releasing the first beta during the 2017 Worldwide Developers Conference.

Registered developers can download the tvOS 11 update by connecting the Apple TV to a computer with a USB-C cable and installing the beta software using iTunes.

tvOS 11 didn't receive a lot of attention at the Worldwide Developers Conference because it's a modest update, but according to Apple's release notes, it does introduce a few new features to the operating system.

tvOS 11 brings automatic switching between light/dark mode based on local time, Home screen syncing options that keep multiple Apple TVs in a household in sync, new background modes and notification support, Focus API improvements, custom sound support, network-based pairing and development support, improvements to Mobile Device Management, and more.

The seventh beta of tvOS 11 most likely focuses primarily on bug fixes and other small refinements, as the first six betas did. Apple's new tvOS 11 update is available for both registered developers and public beta testers. It will see a public release later this year.

Update: Today's update appears to include HDR assets for "J105a," the code name for a next-generation Apple TV capable of supporting a 4K resolution. References to J105a have previously been found in the HomePod firmware, suggesting we could perhaps see a release of a new Apple TV in the near future.

tvOS 11 Beta 7 contains some HDR assets for model J105A 😇 pic.twitter.com/IH2XdDfrrW - Guilherme Rambo (@_inside) August 21, 2017

Update 2: Apple has also released a new public beta of tvOS 11 for public beta testers.

Article Link: Apple Seeds Seventh Beta of Upcoming tvOS 11 Update to Developers [Update: Public Beta Available]

 

[Braderunner]

TvOS is sloooooowly getting more stable. Only took two years!

 

[PsykX]

tvOS 10 was pretty stable for me, but tvOS 11, although there's nothing new, is filled with bugs... :-/

 

[fhall1]

Nothing new???

"tvOS 11 brings automatic switching between light/dark mode based on local time, Home screen syncing options that keep multiple Apple TVs in a household in sync, new background modes and notification support, Focus API improvements, custom sound support, network-based pairing and development support, improvements to Mobile Device Management, and more"

 

[seanrt]

Nothing new???

"tvOS 11 brings automatic switching between light/dark mode based on local time, Home screen syncing options that keep multiple Apple TVs in a household in sync, new background modes and notification support, Focus API improvements, custom sound support, network-based pairing and development support, improvements to Mobile Device Management, and more"

Including the revamped Computers App, with grid display that mimics the way TV shows and movies are displayed in the TV APP and iTunes TV shows and Movies app. Gone is the non-graphic scroll list of titles. As much as I've seen discussions wanting this change since at least ATV3, I'm surprised it gets so little mentioned. I tried Plex and Infuse but hated that my iTunes purchases had to be viewed in separate app. I can now use this updated Computers app and control the library in iTunes. Which will also let me edit my purchases to confirm with my genres etc and correct the many typos I find on purchased info as well as fix air date or movie year which iTunes frequently gets incorrect.

 

[dugbug]

I do have some bugs that I have to unplug/plug in to force a power reset. Thats with the previous beta.

Not sure what in iOS11 is affecting basic stability given the change list.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

Not sure if this is a bug or intentional, but Airplay Mirroring works while NOT connected to the same network. It works over remote WiFi and LTE. I assume this works only for devices logged into the same iCloud account and previously paired together.

I tested from my rMBP running High Sierra while connected to a Comcast Xfinity Guest signal (neighbors) and from my iPhone6+ running iOS 11 via LTE. It takes a bit longer for Airplay Mirroring to start, but once the connection is made there is no discernible difference in lag vs. when all devices are on the same local network.

Not sure what the use case is. Perhaps a prelude to FaceTime on the ATV.



Airplay Mirroring via LTE

I took this picture of my ATV4 with my iPhone 6+ with Airplay Mirroring via LTE.