tvOS 12 Wishlist: Features MacRumors Readers Want to See Added to the Apple TV in 2018

[ersan191]

What I would love is incoming call and text notifications. As well as push notifications from apps.
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A new remote with FindMyiPhone support (ie a remote with a small speaker so I can find it in the couch cushions). Please please pretty please.

And this - the remote is awful, I replaced it with a Harmony.
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oooohhh and a UberEats partnership app, that allows you to order Popcorn & Soda, Snacks, Hotdogs or even Chinese Food.

Seamless/GrubHub has this, though it's a bit clunky. An Uber Eats app would be welcome.
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For years I have wanted them to make remote audio available so I can mute the TV and plug headphones into my phone to listen. I don't think this will ever happen.

AirPods

 

[EdT]

I want a remote that isn’t a PITA to use. Siri definitely doesn’t count, and even if it suddenly would work 10 times better I don’t know if I can trust AI assistants. Yes Apple says they don’t listen/record/monitor conversations but we don’t really know that they aren’t lying. Lots of things that Apple has said over the last couple of years are turning out to be untrue or at least shaded toward an intentional deception. I’m thinking of the iPhone 6 and how easily it bends and how Apple said they didn’t know but news recently says they did and the bad display screen with the same phone,which evidently they also knew about.

I also want to be able to connect to my computer and watch downloaded movies instead of the system constantly trying to stream that movie.

My internet connection is too slow for streaming.
My internet connection is too slow for streaming.
My internet connection is too slow for streaming.

If I start downloading a movie to my computer right now then sometime tomorrow morning, and I mean 8 to 10 hours later, I will be able to watch it. Start watching any sooner and I will probably catch up to the download. And the download will stop and frequently I will need to start over.

This is the reason I am seriously considering leaving the Apple ecosystem. They want everything wireless and my internet speed from the single, solitary internet provider who sees no need to invest because he has a monopoly isn’t going to spend a dime on upgrades. And there are too few people in the county so in the 24 years I’ve lived here no other ISP’s have bothered. Satellite is my only other option and it’s too slow, sensitive to the weather and there are data caps.

Tell you what, Apple. Spend some of that Trillion dollars in cash you have on hand upgrading and in most cases simply establishing a decent rural network and I’ll never make fun of an Apple executive decision again. But I think that’s a promise I will never need to keep.

 

[jazz1]

Even with my 4th generation Apple TV I find it hard to use when simply in the iTunes universe, or other "networks" subscribed to. Shouldn't the interface show me a particular TV program available or movie available for "free" with third party subscriptions? What am I missing here. Not to mention the many clicks of the remote to be where I want to be. I have older Apple TV's also, but would love to upgrade if the user interface was way more user friendly. Also, my Apple TV viewings don't seem to always sync when I watch with my iPad, and go back to resume on my Apple TV. Sheesh, that is annoying.

 

[TalonFlyer]

Just having a error free OS would be great. How about just fixing the OS before adding new features which are bound to cause more headaches.

Yes, the tvOS has become unstable. I have yet to get an AppleTV 4K to work. Had to return all the units as none would work and after working with apple for 8 weeks they were not able to correct the many issues I found.

 

[El_nino_tech11]

At the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple will introduce new versions of iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS, and for those latter two updates, we have no idea what to expect.

Historically, Apple hasn't introduced major changes in its tvOS updates, but the operating system is still new and there could be some larger scale changes in the works for 2018. We've asked MacRumors readers what they'd most like to see in tvOS 12, and this is what they had to say.

[*]Atmos support - Apple promised to add Dolby Atmos support to the Apple TV, and has yet to do so. tvOS 12 would be the ideal time to do so, and it's certainly a feature many MacRumors readers want.
[*]Audio passthrough - Along those same lines, MacRumors readers would also like to see support for digital audio passthrough.
[*]Picture-in-picture - A classic feature on a lot of television sets, picture-in-picture mode is not supported on the Apple TV. MacRumors reader Bbednarz would like to see picture-in-picture added for watching multiple shows, watching a show while using an app, and more.
[*]Safari - Apple isn't likely to add Safari to the Apple TV to allow for web browsing, but it's still a feature at least one MacRumors reader would like to see available as an option.
[*]Open screensavers - The Apple TV can only display screensavers that are sourced from Apple, but it would be nice to be able to add non-Apple screensaver options if desired.
[*]tvOS App Store access via computer - MacRumors reader HobeSoundDarryl has a long wishlist for tvOS 12, including a suggestion for an option to browse through tvOS apps on a Mac or PC to make it easier to discover tvOS apps.
[*]iCloud playlists for movies and TV shows - You can create playlists for Apple Music, and Leon1988 would like to see that same functionality made available for television shows and movies on the Apple TV.
[*]Multi-user support - Each Apple TV is limited to a single iCloud and iTunes account, but multi-user support, as suggested by MacRumors reader The 12th Man, would make it easier for different family members to have access to their favorite apps and channels and suggestions through the TV app without having to mix content.

What do you want to see added to the Apple TV with tvOS 12? Let us know in the comments, and make sure to check out the full tvOS 12 wishlist thread.

Article Link: tvOS 12 Wishlist: Features MacRumors Readers Want to See Added to the Apple TV in 2018

 

[bacaramac]

Love the AppleTV’s at my house. The one biggest feature I’d love to see is synced video streaming. Similar to how Sonos syncs the music across speakers, I need this for Video. When we host a party for Super Bowl, Boxing, etc, we have multiple TV’s going and it sucks that they are not 100% in sync. We’ve cut the cord so all content is via AppleTV app like DirecTV Now or HBO, etc.

 

[El_nino_tech11]

I wanna be able to turn on my apple tv with Siri on my phone if I'm connected to the same WiFi network.

 

[defunder]

As someone who wants a smaller iPhone and a bigger HDD in my MacBook (~2TB), seeing Atmos as the first thing on the wishlist, feels amazing! I think we're finally starting to get each other, Fellow Apple Fans Good luck w/ the WWDC announcements/releases, everybody!

 

[boston04and07]

Posted this in another thread, but here’s mine...

My biggest wish is for live services like PlayStation Vue and Directv Now to be available directly in the TV app.

I’d also like picture in picture, an audiobooks app, and even an alarm clock type function would be nice.

A Home app and an option to always default to a HomePod or other airplay speaker as the audio output (even when the the HomePod has been used with another device recently) and override any other device that’s using it would be awesome.

 

[zantafio]

am I the only one who would like to see a visualizer for the music app?

 

[kgoulton]

For years I have wanted them to make remote audio available so I can mute the TV and plug headphones into my phone to listen. I don't think this will ever happen.

Why don't you just use AirPods or bluetooth headphones and pair them to the Apple TV?

 

[yoyo kayak]

• Bring in the iOS keyboard, including switching languages. Now to write in other languages you need to use the iPhone remote app.
  
• Siri everywhere -- if it works in iOS, why not tvOS?!
• Hey Siri support
• Safari
• Better sync for iCloud shared photo albums.
• TouchID on the remote (or FaceID if they prefer that...), and with that, support for ApplePay in the app store. For those with older remotes, should be able to use touch/faceID on iPhone to authenticate.
  
• Hidden albums support in Photos, but only if it comes with a passcode. No access is better than free access.
  
• TV app to more placees, assuming it's useful, haven't gotten to try it really
• Facetime, as said by many others...

 

[verniesgarden]

I would love to see a "live" tab in the TV app that just has a channel guide of all the live feeds from the apps that provide them. so I can just do some simple surfing

 

[Shanny80]

The time, it’s a tv, we need to know the time.

 

[AidenL]

Atmos for me also.

 

[D-a-a-n]

How about Siri in other countries?
Our neighbor country has it and we have the same language. That’s a bad .

You're not from Belgium by any chance?

 

[ipedro]

You're missing an obvious addition: AppleTV to be treated as a real HomeKit device. You should be able to add AppleTV to Scenes and Automations. Arriving home should turn the TV on and maybe tune into a channel or a playlist. Saying Goodnight should turn off the TV. Good morning might play the news.

Given that AppleTV was shown to be joining the Home app because of AirPlay, it's not a far step to having it included in Scenes and Automations.

 

[recoil80]

I'd say Picture in Picture is the most important one to me. Multiple user support is another feature I'd really love to see on the Apple TV and on the iPad, I guess it is more likely they'll introduce it on the TV since they cannot expect each member of a family to have its own tv set. We don't have multiple iPad either, but some family do

 

[TrenttonY]

tvOS Wishlist

Apps

• Weather.app added
• Computer.app removed and functionally added to TV.app and Music.app
• Search.app removed
• Movies.app removed and functionality added to TV.app
• TV Shows.app removed removed and functionality added to TV.app

Features

• Radar view in weather added
• Picture in Picture added
• Control Center added
• Notification Center added
• Widget Center added
• Option to have TV.app’s Up Next list to always show on the Home Screen no matter what app is highlighted
• Double tap of Menu.button opens Multitasking not the TV.button
• Breakdown of Up Next into Recently Added and Recently Watched
• Apple Music style artist (director) and genre picker for a more personalized recommendations in the TV.app
• In multitasking, show a sound con next to the icon, to indicate that app is playing audio in the background, thus making it clear when you close that app, your audio will be stopped
• If I delete an app on one device it deletes it on all other devices (ask)
• iCloud backup support

UI/UX

• Show Menu tray all the time in apps
• On home screen, swipe down from the top for universal search

 

[mccaffertee]

For years I have wanted them to make remote audio available so I can mute the TV and plug headphones into my phone to listen. I don't think this will ever happen.

I connect my headphone by bluetooth to the ATV... why throw the phone into the mix????

 

[McTool]

You're not from Belgium by any chance?

Yep. I am.

 

[Greg_Manila]

At the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple will introduce new versions of iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS, and for those latter two updates, we have no idea what to expect.

Historically, Apple hasn't introduced major changes in its tvOS updates, but the operating system is still new and there could be some larger scale changes in the works for 2018. We've asked MacRumors readers what they'd most like to see in tvOS 12, and this is what they had to say.

[*]Atmos support - Apple promised to add Dolby Atmos support to the Apple TV, and has yet to do so. tvOS 12 would be the ideal time to do so, and it's certainly a feature many MacRumors readers want.
[*]Audio passthrough - Along those same lines, MacRumors readers would also like to see support for digital audio passthrough.
[*]Picture-in-picture - A classic feature on a lot of television sets, picture-in-picture mode is not supported on the Apple TV. MacRumors reader Bbednarz would like to see picture-in-picture added for watching multiple shows, watching a show while using an app, and more.
[*]Safari - Apple isn't likely to add Safari to the Apple TV to allow for web browsing, but it's still a feature at least one MacRumors reader would like to see available as an option.
[*]Open screensavers - The Apple TV can only display screensavers that are sourced from Apple, but it would be nice to be able to add non-Apple screensaver options if desired.
[*]tvOS App Store access via computer - MacRumors reader HobeSoundDarryl has a long wishlist for tvOS 12, including a suggestion for an option to browse through tvOS apps on a Mac or PC to make it easier to discover tvOS apps.
[*]iCloud playlists for movies and TV shows - You can create playlists for Apple Music, and Leon1988 would like to see that same functionality made available for television shows and movies on the Apple TV.
[*]Multi-user support - Each Apple TV is limited to a single iCloud and iTunes account, but multi-user support, as suggested by MacRumors reader The 12th Man, would make it easier for different family members to have access to their favorite apps and channels and suggestions through the TV app without having to mix content.

What do you want to see added to the Apple TV with tvOS 12? Let us know in the comments, and make sure to check out the full tvOS 12 wishlist thread.

Article Link: tvOS 12 Wishlist: Features MacRumors Readers Want to See Added to the Apple TV in 2018

[doublepost=1527243893][/doublepost]DTS and DTS X would also be nice.
So frustrating playing back movies using VLC and finding the audio is restricted.
[doublepost=1527243971][/doublepost]iMessage. Send a message home and know kids would have seen it. Send message to apple TV feature.

 

[sprezz]

• Screensavers from Photo Albums rather than shares
• Facetime!
• iMessages
• Notifications
• Multi-user / Profiles (with TouchID/FaceID/password's to switch between active users)
• More media on the screen (with 500+ movies it's really annoying to browse 8 at a time)
• Safari! (I know Apple doesn't like this, but customers do)
• Web-based TV Management
  • TV App Store
  • TV screens for organizing and managing apps
  • Logins
• Storage of media app logins (including TV providers) in KeyChain
• Seemless integration of streaming and local media from a designated Mac
  • e.g. I have music, videos, etc. that aren't in the cloud but want to play them on my TV
  • Having to switch to "Computer" then find the media is ... silly
• Local caching of streaming media
  • Either on the TV box or (even better) on a designated Mac
  • For media that I play frequently it's silly to continuously stream from the Internet
  • Example: my kid watches Frozen 3-4 times a day. If it was cached - even with a time limitation - it could be pulled from a local device.
  • Caching could also allow us to 'pre-download' streaming movies, allowing better 4k movie watching and eliminating interruptions
  • Consider this an advanced form of buffering

Your kid watches Frozen 3-4 times a day, so 5-6 hours of TV? I hope you meant per week...

 

[GiovanniDK]

I would like to have...
- Siri support in DK
- The TV App launched in DK
- Possiblity to set a sleep timer that automatically turns of ATV and TV

The last one I really don't understand doesn't already exist!

 

[andrs]

Please – Ability to ask Siri "play X on my Apple TV". ATV turns on display via HDMI and flips to the right input (existing capability) and song or show starts playing. One of those features that you just expect to work but somehow doesn't.