Apple Seeds Fifth Beta of tvOS 13 to Public Beta Testers

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming tvOS 13 update to its public beta testing group, one week after seeding the fourth public beta and shortly after seeding the sixth developer beta of tvOS.

Public beta testers can download the new update by going to the Settings app on the Apple TV and navigating to the Software Updates section under "System." "Get Public Beta Updates" will need to be toggled on, and once it is, the ‌Apple TV‌ will download the beta software.

Those who want to beta test the software can sign up to do so on Apple's beta testing website.

tvOS 13 includes a new Home screen that's aimed at making it easier to find new content, with support for autoplaying videos to show off new TV shows, movies, and apps, similar to Netflix.

Multi-user support is new in tvOS 13, letting each member of the family have their own customized ‌Apple TV‌ interface with separate recommendations, music playlists, and Watch Now lists. A new Control Center lets you swap between profiles.

tvOS 13 gets the ‌Apple TV‌ ready for Apple Arcade, Apple's new gaming service that's coming to the ‌Apple TV‌, iOS, iPadOS, and macOS later this year. ‌Apple Arcade‌ will offer unlimited access to more than 100 new and exclusive games, for one subscription fee.

‌Apple Arcade‌ preparations include support for the Xbox Wireless Bluetooth Controller and the PlayStation DualShock 4 Controller, both of which can be connected to an ‌Apple TV‌ over Bluetooth.

Apple is also adding new under-the-sea themed screensavers made in partnership with the BBC Natural History unit, also known for "Blue Planet," and the new software brings support for a picture-in-picture mode that lets you watch TV while doing other things on the ‌Apple TV‌.

For more on what's new in tvOS 13, make sure to check out our tvOS 13 roundup.

Related Roundup: Apple TV

Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Neutral)

Related Forum: Apple TV and Home Theater

Top Rated Comments

FilmYak

57 months ago

A word of warning, I've had two 4K tv units bricked in the past couple of weeks. First one, I installed the beta, it worked for several days, and then died. Apple replaced it for me. I installed the beta on the replacement unit as well (Apple support assumed it was a hardware glitch), and the replacement unit died last night. Same issue. Apple is replacing it once more, but this time I had to point out it was likely the beta, and that the beta was released to the public so bugs could be found, and I'd clearly found a serious one .And to charge me money to fix the bug was unfair. They agreed, but asked me not to install the beta on this next replacement. I fully agreed to skip the beta this time. Sharing the warning in case anyone else is having second thoughts....

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

GIZBUG

57 months ago

A word of warning, I've had two 4K tv units bricked in the past couple of weeks. First one, I installed the beta, it worked for several days, and then died. Apple replaced it for me. I installed the beta on the replacement unit as well (Apple support assumed it was a hardware glitch), and the replacement unit died last night. Same issue. Apple is replacing it once more, but this time I had to point out it was likely the beta, and that the beta was released to the public so bugs could be found, and I'd clearly found a serious one .And to charge me money to fix the bug was unfair. They agreed, but asked me not to install the beta on this next replacement. I fully agreed to skip the beta this time. Sharing the warning in case anyone else is having second thoughts....

Sadly posts like this fall on deaf ears around here.....

Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Read All Comments

Popular Stories

iOS 17.2 Will Add These 12 New Features to Your iPhone

Friday December 1, 2023 12:19 pm PST by Joe Rossignol

iOS 17.2 has been in beta testing for over a month, and it should be released to all users in a few more weeks. The software update includes many new features and changes for iPhones, including the dozen that we have highlighted below. iOS 17.2 is expected to be released to the public in mid-December. To learn about even more features coming in the update, check out our full list. Journal ...

Read Full Article

Apple Confirms Governments Using Push Notifications to Surveil Users

Wednesday December 6, 2023 5:06 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Unidentified governments are surveilling smartphone users by tracking push notifications that move through Google's and Apple's servers, a US senator warned on Wednesday (via Reuters). In a letter to the Department of Justice, Senator Ron Wyden said foreign officials were demanding the data from the tech giants to track smartphones. The traffic flowing from apps that send push notifications...

Read Full Article • 135 comments

Apple Releases New AirPods Pro 2 Firmware

Tuesday December 5, 2023 11:28 am PST by Juli Clover

Apple today released new firmware update for both the Lightning and USB-C versions of the AirPods Pro 2. The new firmware is version 6B34, up from the 6B32 firmware introduced in November. Apple does not provide details on what features might be included in the refreshed firmware beyond "bug fixes and other improvements," so it is unclear what's new in the update, but prior software releases ...

Read Full Article • 76 comments

'All-Screen' iPhone Under-Display Camera Enters Development

Wednesday December 6, 2023 2:03 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Apple's Korean suppliers have begun developing smartphone under-display cameras (UDC), paving the way for the first iPhone with a true "all-screen" appearance. According to The Elec, LG Innotek has entered the preliminary development of the UDC, which sits under the display and does not result in a visible hole in the panel when the camera is not in use. A UDC differs from a typical front ...

Read Full Article • 104 comments

iOS 17.2 Brings Qi2 Support to iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 Models

Tuesday December 5, 2023 11:04 am PST by Juli Clover

The iOS 17.2 update that Apple is set to release to the public in the near future will bring support for the next-generation Qi2 wireless charging standard to the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 models. Qi2 was mentioned in the release notes for the RC version of the update that came out today. With the addition of support for the new standard, iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 models will work with Qi2...

Read Full Article • 32 comments

iPhone SE 4 May Reuse Existing iPhone 14 Battery

Wednesday December 6, 2023 1:17 pm PST by Marko Zivkovic

Recently, MacRumors has received details on the battery currently being tested on the upcoming fourth-generation iPhone SE, and the information corroborates previous findings in relation to the device. The iPhone SE 4, known by its device identifier D59, is expected to use the exact same battery found in the base model iPhone 14. Partially assembled prototypes of the next iPhone SE have been ...

Read Full Article • 81 comments

Black Friday Prices Return for AirPods Pro 2 With USB-C, iPad, and More

Tuesday December 5, 2023 7:30 am PST by Mitchel Broussard

Today we're tracking a collection of deals that are matching - or nearly matching - the same all-time low discounts we saw during Black Friday. This includes the AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C, 9th generation iPad, and M1 MacBook Air. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the ...

Read Full Article • 4 comments

Instagram and Facebook Messenger Chats to Disconnect This Month

Tuesday December 5, 2023 1:57 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Meta has revealed plans to end Instagram users' ability to chat with Facebook accounts later this month, rolling back a feature that it introduced over three years ago. In September 2020, Meta (then Facebook) announced it was merging its Facebook Messenger service with Instagram direct messaging, allowing Instagram users to chat with Facebook users and vice versa using the same platform....

Read Full Article • 28 comments