tvOS 26: Three new features coming to Apple TV 4K this year

1 month ago 3

This year, Apple TV 4K stands to capitalize on the growing success of Apple TV+ with both new hardware and software coming. tvOS 26 will be the next major software update, and these three features are expected to be announced next week.

#1: New tvOS design, consistent with iOS 26

One major highlight of Apple’s WWDC announcements will be a unified new design across all software platforms.

iOS 26, macOS 26, iPadOS 26, and more will get a new design featuring glassy elements inspired by visionOS.

tvOS 26 will get the new look too, with refreshed UI elements and app icons expected.

The biggest changes will likely be reserved for iOS 26, but your Apple TV 4K will still adopt the cross-platform new design aesthetic.

#2: Apple’s new ‘Games’ app

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Apple wants to boost gaming across its platforms, and part of this effort is a new, cross-platform ‘Games’ app coming to tvOS 26 and more.

The new Games app will feature:

a hub for launching all your installed tvOS games
editorial content to fuel game discovery
game achievements you’ve earned or can try for next
social features like leaderboards
and likely the ability to download new games

Essentially, Apple plans to combine existing Game Center and App Store features into a single new hub, with some extra functionality.

#3: Captive Wi-Fi network sync

Mark Gurman has reported iOS 26 will add captive Wi-Fi network sync.

This means when networks require a login screen to connect, you’ll only need to perform that process on one device before gaining access across all devices.

Gurman specifically mentions iPhone, iPad, and Mac supporting the feature, but expect it to hit Apple TV 4K too with tvOS 26.

Due to its lack of a web browser, tvOS currently has the most convoluted method for accessing captive networks. The new sync feature should enable bypassing that altogether.

Wildcard: Siri’s AI upgrades

Siri will certainly get AI upgrades on the Apple TV 4K eventually. But that may not happen next week with tvOS 26.

Why? Because there’s a good chance new Apple TV 4K hardware will be needed before Siri can get its AI overhaul. And Apple isn’t expected to ship its next-gen Apple TV 4K until later in the year.

It’s always possible Apple will show off an updated Siri UI, or some other new tvOS 26 feature that doesn’t require power-hungry LLMs. But the full AI upgrades likely won’t be seen until a later date.

tvOS 26 features: wrap-up

These rumored tvOS 26 features are hopefully just a small sampling of what’s coming. For example, with Apple TV+ becoming more mainstream, I’m hoping for a more user-friendly revamp to the Apple TV app.

Whatever other new features Apple has in store for tvOS 26, the big reveal is only days away.

What new features do you hope to see in tvOS 26? Let us know in the comments.