Apple TV App Features Revamped Navigation in tvOS 17.2 Beta

[dugbug]

you know my biggest gripe with atv is the lack of consistent media player interfaces. So much muscle memory is needed depending on what app Im using. I pause on one app and sometimes you hit menu to remove the pause clutter and sometimes you have to just let it time out all depending on the app.

Apples is the best, and if I was king for a day every ATV app would use that player when streaming video.

-d

 

[AppleTO]

Soon the Apple TV will just become the Apple TV App... and then we've come full circle.


jk... kinda

 

[trump2024]

Ok is lit , downloading now

 

[Pezimak]

Not sure about this? Will need to try it for myself.

 

[TrenttonY]

How about all your subscribed, and purchased content is sorted in a unified genre list?

Why do I have to open each app to view that app’s genre list? It should be unified into one location in the TV.app.

 

[a.jfred]

Now if I could only have the choice what appears in the sidebar, as well as the AppleTV app ... otherwise it's more suggestions/recommendations, and otherwise clutter.

So much this; and the ability to stop it from pulling up things I don't have subscriptions for (and will not pay for). Like, I don't have a Hulu Subscription, I do not want to sign up for a Hulu subscription, stop giving me things that are only available on Hulu.

 

[McKodiak]

Can they make it so you must select your profile upon turning Apple TV on. I'm sick of seeing my kids' shows in my Up Next because they won't change to their profile.

 

[AndreaCicca]

And what about Plex. Will that integrate?

1) Plex free to watch content with ADS yes
2) Plex personal library of course no.

 

[Jonathan Gilliam]

So much this; and the ability to stop it from pulling up things I don't have subscriptions for (and will not pay for). Like, I don't have a Hulu Subscription, I do not want to sign up for a Hulu subscription, stop giving me things that are only available on Hulu.

You'll subscribe to Hulu and you'll like it, lol.

 

[morphineseason]

Wish they'd improve the library navigation in the TV app. Bought the complete Mad Men series from the iTunes Store and I have one row to scroll through all seven seasons worth of episodes and bonus features. Let me select a season like every streaming app does.

 

[coolfactor]

I noticed the headline says "Revamped" not "Improved", which is what we come to expect from an Apple that confuses change with innovation and improvement.

What about consumers that expect "innovation" year after year after year with every single update? That word has lost its meaning, not in the eyes of Apple, but the average tech reviewer.

 

[awshucks]

Wouldn’t this make more sense for them to wait until a whole new tvOS version comes out?

 

[T-Will]

Why can't we just have a simple list of shows that we "follow" with unwatched episodes, like a DVR, instead of the current "Watch Now", which adds in random shows/episodes that we don't care about.

 

[!!!]

Why is it so hard for Apple to make a competent TV/Movie-watching app? Ever since TV+ subscription the iOS app has been horrid, the Apple TV app is just a mess, and I hear the Mac app is also trash. What's going on at Apple?

 

[Surf Monkey]

I noticed the headline says "Revamped" not "Improved", which is what we come to expect from an Apple that confuses change with innovation and improvement.

Yeah, this looks WAY more complex and appears to take the focus away from what you’re already watching and forces it towards things you’re not watching or have to pay to watch.

But I’ll hold final judgment until I use it. AppleTV needs a total rethink in terms of interface, I just doubt this is it.

 

[dugbug]

Why is it so hard for Apple to make a competent TV/Movie-watching app? Ever since TV+ subscription the iOS app has been horrid, the Apple TV app is just a mess, and I hear the Mac app is also trash. What's going on at Apple?

I think some of this stems from starting with the app store approach, then trying to herd all the cats into a central player.

 

[dlondon]

Wouldn’t this make more sense for them to wait until a whole new tvOS version comes out?

I was thinking the same. Why weren't these part of the original betas or previously announced? It feels like they've just slipped it in.

 

[Surf Monkey]

I was thinking the same. Why weren't these part of the original betas or previously announced? It feels like they've just slipped it in.

Could take it a step further. Rumors suggest new AppleTV hardware is pending. Wouldn’t that be the moment to unveil a whole new ATV interface? Regardless, the whole thing looks like a marketing effort, not a consumer faced upgrade.

 

[jdanilson]

the sidebar is an advertisement. Simple as that. Use these; we get paid. I love Apple TV. But not for all the extra charged streaming services I don't subscribe to. Like others said, I hope it can be customized to remove the junk and no, I'm not going to subscribe to Apple TV+.

 

[ipedro]

"Channels and Apps"

This lends to my long held belief that Apple is phasing out the app grid Home Screen in favour of the TV app serving as a new tvOS Home Screen with content as the feature instead of a collection of apps. The Home button has already defaulted to the TV app for a few versions now.

Having channels and apps integrated in a row (and now the side bar) fills the remaining problem that some streaming services like Netflix and Disney don't want to be Channels, but do have apps.

With the success of the iOS, Apple went on to try to replicate the app grid and App Store format on tvOS and watchOS – to less success in both cases. People want to get to their content on tvOS, not play with apps on their TV. The TV app is the answer to that calling.

While over time there's been a major culling of a variety of apps leaving the tvOS App Store, video content apps have thrived. Games are the other category so one final element to sort out is Arcade. I expect that it'll be added to the sidebar by the time tvOS 18 rolls around next year and the Home Screen is phased out.

 

[TechRemarker]

Can they make it so you must select your profile upon turning Apple TV on. I'm sick of seeing my kids' shows in my Up Next because they won't change to their profile.

This times 100. All our profiles are a mess since other than the techy in the house no one changes to their profile, certainly not the kids. And if one does then when they open up an app they have to once again choose their profile. Wish option to force you to choose profile and then apps were forced to honor that and not make you select a profile again. And ideally some consideration for showing recently watched by parther in a section (if you both allow) like shared photo libraries so that when watching together you can pickup on either persons profile. Yes you could just have one profile but most people have different tastes than their parthers.

 

[Surf Monkey]

"Channels and Apps"

This lends to my long held belief that Apple is phasing out the app grid Home Screen in favour of the TV app serving as a new tvOS Home Screen with content as the feature instead of a collection of apps. The Home button has already defaulted to the TV app for a few versions now.

Having channels and apps integrated in a row (and now the side bar) fills the remaining problem that some streaming services like Netflix and Disney don't want to be Channels, but do have apps.

With the success of the iOS, Apple went on to try to replicate the app grid and App Store format on tvOS and watchOS – to less success in both cases. People want to get to their content on tvOS, not play with apps on their TV. The TV app is the answer to that calling.

While over time there's been a major culling of a variety of apps leaving the tvOS App Store, video content apps have thrived. Games are the other category so one final element to sort out is Arcade. I expect that it'll be added to the sidebar by the time tvOS 18 rolls around next year and the Home Screen is phased out.

This all makes sense to me and does appear accurate. The app grid stopped being the focus long ago.

 

[HDFan]

How do you get the sidebar? I don't have one.

 

[Realityck]

I noticed the headline says "Revamped" not "Improved", which is what we come to expect from an Apple that confuses change with innovation and improvement.

You really go only by Macrumors article titles?

The organization of the GUI was too complicated before this redo of the Apple TV app interface is a lot friendly to navigate and use IMHO. I don't have a huge digital collection but would like to see if some of the people that do try out the tvOS beta 1 to see if the library tab works for those avid collectors that have well over a thousand digital content in their collection?

 

[HDFan]

but would like to see if some of the people that do try out the tvOS beta 1 to see if the library tab works for those avid collectors that have well over a thousand digital content in their collection?

in what format?