The fourth generation Apple TV has even been on the market for less than six months and there’s already a massive update ready for it. The new tvOS 9.2 software update is now available and includes several features that previously hadn’t made it from Apple TV 3 as well as features totally new to the platform.
You can now use Siri Remote to dictate text for search queries, usernames, and even passwords, and Bluetooth keyboards are once again supported for easier text entry. Apple TV apps can now be grouped into folders so you can keep games together, and iCloud Photo Library subscribers can view complete photo and video collections on the big screen. Here’s the full rundown on everything new in tvOS 9.2 for the new Apple TV:
Before we dive in and you try out everything new for yourself, be sure you’re running tvOS 9.2 on your fourth generation Apple TV or you won’t be able to experience all the latest capabilities. To check your tvOS version number, head to the Settings channel, then the About section, and look for tvOS followed by a version number (like 9.1.1).
Apple TV will update its software automatically by default, but you can give it a heads up if you don’t want to wait. Just go to the Settings channel, then the System section, and look for Software Updates under Maintenance, and select Update Software (below). Here’s the official support article in case you need it. Read on to find out what’s new.
Siri Remote dictation for search fields & usernames/passwords
Starting with tvOS 9.2, you can now use the Siri Remote and your voice to dictate text into search fields as well as username and password boxes. This dramatically improves text input without relying on channels to work with universal search or users to toggle between the Siri Remote, the iOS and watchOS Remote app, and Bluetooth keyboards. Just press and hold the microphone button on the Siri Remote, then say the phrase you want to search for and voila, you’re done. For passwords, you simply dictate each character, specifying capital for uppercase letters.
Siri search for App Store content
Siri is also getting smarter with tvOS 9.2. Siri could already launch apps you already had installed, and now Siri on Apple TV can search the App Store. Press and hold the microphone button on Siri Remote, then try a command like ‘Search the App Store for Trailers’ to jump right to that app’s listing where you can install it.
Siri Remote scrubbing through video
Finally, Siri Remote is changing how scrubbing through video works and removing a point of frustration in the process. Before now, swiping across the glass Touch Surface on Siri Remote during video playback would summon the on-screen interface to jump to another part of the video playing. This wouldn’t lose your place in the video, but you did need to click the menu button on Siri Remote for the overlay to quickly go away. Starting with tvOS 9.2, video must first be paused, which you can do by clicking the Touch Surface, before you can scrub through video. If you’re familiar with the old method, the new way does require adjusting to but overall it’s a win.
App folders
Now that we’ve got Siri Remote squared away, it’s time to talk about app folders. Just like on iOS and OS X, tvOS can now group apps together in folders for improved organization. If you’re like me, you probably have a few channels where you watch video content, and a ton of games that you don’t use quite as often. I’ve grouped my games and miscellaneous apps together in a folder that really tidies up the Home screen. You could go all out and organize apps and channels into groups like Games, News, Education and whatever else you have on your Apple TV.
To create a folder, select an app by clicking and holding the Touch Surface on Siri Remote when highlighting an app, then drag and drop it over another app that you want to group it with. There’s even a text field above the folder where you can give it a name. Clicking the play/pause button when selecting an app will give you further options including shortcuts for moving apps between folders.
App switcher UI
Also like iOS, Apple TV has changed the app switcher user interface when moving between apps using multitasking. You can jump between recently opened apps by double-clicking Siri Remote’s TV button. This previously looked like iOS 8’s full-screen tiles scrolling left to right; the updated switcher looks like iOS 9 with overlapping snapshots of each app scrolling right to left.
iCloud Photo Library & Live Photos
tvOS 9.2 is also a big deal for Photos fans. Apple TV’s Photos app now supports iCloud Photo Library for the first time; previously Photos only supported My Photo Stream and Shared Photo Streams. If you subscribe to iCloud Photo Library (it usually requires upgrading iCloud storage), you can view your full photo and video collection on the big screen. This even presents albums that you create including the Favorites album that groups photos that you mark with the heart icon on iOS and OS X. Live Photos shot on the latest iPhones can also be played on the updated Photos app.
Bluetooth keyboard support
Supported on older Apple TVs and curiously missing on the fourth-ten box, Apple TV now once again let’s you pair Bluetooth keyboards for wirelessly entering text and navigating around tvOS. Apple’s Magic Keyboard works fine, but Logitech’s K811 EasySwitch keyboard is a better option if you want to use it with Apple TV plus other devices like iPads and Macs as you can toggle between each with a press of a button.
Conference Room Display
Previously available on older Apple TVs, Conference Room Display mode lets you set a background and display instructions for using AirPlay on Apple TV. This makes using the Apple TV as a target for presentations without seeing the entertainment features much easier.
What’s New in Settings
There’s also a newly added What’s New section under the System section in the Settings channel. This will presumably display release notes and highlight changes between software updates. Previously, release notes were only available online.
Finally, check out our hands-on video with tvOS 9.2 on the fourth generation Apple TV on YouTube or below:
You can read all of the latest info from Apple’s ‘Let us loop you in’ event in our live blog/news hub.
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You’d think it would be simple but I can’t figure out how to actually enable a Live Photo from Apple TV. I tried holding down on the swipe surface area but it just takes me back to the Home screen.
Oh well, the dictation in the search fields is nice as well as folders and the new app switcher.
I also tried the live photo on the Apple TV and can’t make it work. If just click the touchpad it goes to home. If hold the pad it dose nothing. The going to home tells me bug must be time to call Orken. 😃
Still stupid that Siri can find music that is in your own home sharing. Not everyone wants to pay monthly for Apple Music when you have a massive collection you have gotten over your life time. So sad when you say play some song and she says I don’t see it in your music but you are staring right at the song on your list.
I have a massive NAS that has tons of music and movies on it but since Siri refuses to look at local stuff it still worthless most times.
If you got a NAS with some media content and you can’t get Siri to search for that content or if you use Siri to navigate that content, then perhaps that’s a problem with the folks who make that NAS or/and the app which is designed to access that content and not with Apple. A lot of apps that access that content don’t have full Siri support, thus that’s why you can’t fast forward or rewind with Siri using the app(s) you’re using v.s. With Apple’s apps.
Nope no problem with it. iTunes home sharing is serving everything from the NAS to the Apple TV. Apple TV can see everything on it. It is Siri being crippled on the Apple TV is the problem. Can go to home sharing with the remote and play anything I have. Siri won’t look at local context on the Apple TV. It only crawls streaming.
The whole reason I got the Apple TV 4 was Siri since my wife is totally blind. Wanted to give her a way to use her voice to play what ever music I have when she wants but nope.
Oh and note I’m using home sharing which is apples own built in app.
Also funny on your comment can’t rewind with Siri with other apps. I’ve been doing it with other apps sine it came out.
Also tvOS 9.2 include MapKit support so deveopers can now develop apps using maps which opens up the doors for all kinds of apps that weren’t possible before
Great improvememts, nice to see Apple listening to issues and actually change things not working perfectly, like the way you search a video and adding dictation for easy “entering” text (like in the search box). I still would love to see sharing being integrated in TVOS too.
Finally… a much need update… i was getting annoyed with the search box in most apps… endless scrolling from left to right to pick letters with a remote that has a mic for dictation…
It seems since I updated today that the touch pad doesn’t seem over sensitive, now I can go to an app much easier without over shooting the desired app. I haven’t checked the NHL app yet but I would easily without trying scroll to a different day when trying to choose the game I wanted.
GREAT update! Live photos works for me but took a little while before it had downloaded the whole video part. That said it only seems too play the live part when you first go into a picture. Why can’t i just press the play button and play the Live part? I still do NOT understand why Siri can’t search my home sharing TV shows, Movies, and Music?? I have a large library with full metadata in iTunes. Why can’t Siri access this in formation Apple to Apple but it can search Netflix? The other huge surprise update I hadn’t expected but love is that now in the Home Sharing all of the TV shows I have in there list as Shows instead of listing every single season separately!!! Saves soo much time in scrolling through them!
Now that Apple has brought MapKit to the Apple TV i’m hoping they bring find my friends. i’d really like to be able to ask siri on my tv and see a map when my phone isn’t right to hand on the sofa :)
I still can’t get live photo to work. Also the lack of Siri with my own stuff in home sharing is my biggest gripe. Really defeats the main reason I got the new Apple TV
Yeah I agree with you. I use home sharing a lot. In fact it’s probably 98% of what I use my Apple TV for. I have my shows and movies and music in iTunes with full meta data. I don’t see why Siri can’t have a searchable index of that information to show me shows and episodes of shows when I ask for them. I would think since it’s all Apple software it should be very easy for them to bring us this feature.
Live Photos for me took time to work. It definitely seemed to download the actual jpg part of the Live Photo first, for all of them. Before it went back and started showing any of the movement. My complaint would still be that even when it worked it only moved as it opened or as I flicked to a photo. Why can’t I press play or something and play the photo whenever I choose? I would hope these are issues that can be fixed in an update that I figure will probably come within a few weeks.
I’m surprised that no one has mentioned that it’s still impossible for the screensaver to show your entire iCloud photo library. Why is this so hard? Even if they loaded it in batches and maybe updated once a day?
Speaking of Bluetooth, does anyone know of a reasonably good cheap Bluetooth speaker that works with the 4th gen Apple TV?
In Photo Library Albums there are no subfolders. How to fix it? :)
I recently updated to tvos 9.2 and after that my youtube app video/audio plays out of sync. any one notice same issue
They’ve broken Netflix with this latest update. Note that I’m 100% certain my ATV4 was NOT set to auto-update but lo and behold I got home from work one afternoon and it had updated to 9.2. Now I get all the neat new features including a broken Netflix that keeps freezing the picture while the audio continues playing even after I quit the video and then I resume and the video now plays with TWO audio tracks playing at different times, it will fail to play with error: Parse error, sometimes will not start at all and will hang on the spinning red circle. I’ve power cycled the ATV4, unplugged and plugged back in but nothing. I’ve resorted to watching Netflix using the WiiU! That hasn’t been updated in months and runs fine. Why do they keep trying to update things that work perfectly fine?