tvOS 14.5 Beta 6 References Apple TV Remote With 'Center Button' [Updated]

The tvOS 14.5 beta that was released this morning includes a code change that references an Apple TV remote control that features a "Center Button," which is a description that does not fit the current ‌Apple TV‌ remote.

mystery remote feature 2
"Press the center button or the touch surface to continue," reads the tvOS 14.5 code, which was discovered by MacRumors contributor Steve Moser.

The remote for the fourth and fifth-generation ‌Apple TV‌ models features a series of buttons that are arranged in two rows, with no button in the center.

There is an older "Apple Remote" with a center button that's designed for the second and third-generation ‌Apple TV‌ models and is compatible with the current ‌Apple TV‌ models, so it's possible that's what the code change is referencing, but it could also be referring to a new unreleased ‌Apple TV‌ remote.


The specific code that was found is in a "setup" app, which would make more sense for a new remote rather than an older remote, but we don't know for sure that this is a reference to a new ‌Apple TV‌ remote option. If it is indeed something new, the upcoming ‌Apple TV‌ remote could perhaps feature a design similar to the remote app on the iPhone, which features a large touch area, a main center Menu button, and side buttons for accessing Siri, play/pause, the Home screen, and search.

Apple is rumored to be working on a sixth-generation ‌Apple TV‌ that will feature an upgraded A-series chip and a revamped remote control. We haven't heard details on what the remote control might look like, but it could have a "Find My" feature for location purposes when lost.

In an earlier beta, Apple renamed the "‌Siri‌ Remote" to the "‌Apple TV‌ Remote," which is another possible reference to an unreleased ‌Apple TV‌ remote option.

Update: The code could be referring to a third-party ‌Apple TV‌ remote that's in development and which could be offered by Universal Electronics to cable, satellite, and MVPD companies. This remote also has a circular button, and an image of it was found in the beta by 9to5Mac.

It's possible the Universal Electronics remote will soon be available from various cable providers who will offer it alongside the ‌Apple TV‌, much like the Salt Remote sold by a Swiss telecommunications company.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 21, 2025 2:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices from credible sources. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X...
iPhone 16 Battery Life Feature

iOS 26's New Battery Life Mode Available Only on These iPhone Models

Saturday June 21, 2025 9:02 am PDT by
Last week, we reported that iOS 26 introduces an opt-in Adaptive Power Mode on the iPhone, alongside the existing Low Power Mode. Apple says that Adaptive Power Mode can make "small performance adjustments" when necessary to extend an iPhone's battery life, including slightly lowering the display brightness or allowing some activities to "take a little longer." The full description of...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

iPhone Reportedly Moving to All-Screen Design in Two Stages

Sunday June 22, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
Apple has long been working towards an iPhone with an all-screen design, and it might finally achieve the feat in a few more years from now. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple will shrink the size of the Dynamic Island on new iPhone models released next year. A year after that, he expects Apple to release a redesigned 20th-anniversary iPhone model....
iOS 26 Feature

Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 2

Monday June 23, 2025 2:57 pm PDT by
Apple provided developers with the second beta of iOS 26, introducing the first changes and refinements to the new operating system since it debuted after the WWDC keynote. Because we're early in the beta testing process, there are quite a few tweaks to iOS 26, which we've rounded up below. Control Center The background behind the Liquid Glass Control Center buttons has more blur, allowing...
ios 26 control center b2

iOS 26 Beta 2 Fixes Control Center Design

Monday June 23, 2025 10:58 am PDT by
With the second beta of iOS 26 that Apple provided to developers today, Apple addressed one of the major complaints that people have had with Liquid Glass. iOS 26 beta 1 on left, iOS 26 beta 2 on right The Control Center buttons are now slightly more opaque, making it easier to see the different control options even on a multicolored background. The new, more opaque look is apparent with the ...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro's Alleged Vapor Chamber Cooling System Partly Revealed

Sunday June 22, 2025 6:37 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models are rumored to be equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, and a leaker known as Majin Bu today shared a photo of an alleged copper thermal plate for the system. Many high-end Android smartphones like Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra are equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, which can manage heat dissipation inside the...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adding Two New Wi-Fi Features, Allows AirDrop and AirPlay Alternatives

Saturday June 21, 2025 7:02 am PDT by
iOS 26 is gaining two new Wi-Fi features, including Captive Assist and Wi-Fi Aware. MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris discovered a reference to Captive Assist within the code for the first iOS 26 developer beta, but Apple has yet to enable the feature. It should be available by the time the software update is released later this year. In his Power On newsletter last month, Bloomberg's...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 26 Includes These Five Smaller Features You Might Have Missed

Saturday June 21, 2025 11:18 am PDT by
While the dust is beginning to settle on the first iOS 26 beta, we continue to take a closer look at new features coming with the update. Below, we recap five smaller changes that you might have missed. Emoji Game Apple News+ subscribers in the U.S. and Canada can play a new Emoji Game, which tasks players with completing words and phrases with emoji. This is the fifth game that is...
airpods 4 blue

Apple Offering Free AirPods — Here's How to Get Them

Tuesday June 17, 2025 6:33 am PDT by
Apple is running a new promotion that offers free AirPods to qualifying customers. Now through September 30, college and university students in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Singapore can receive free AirPods 4 when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. AirPods Pro 2 are also available at a discount. If you do not want AirPods, the promotion also offers various other...

Top Rated Comments

LeadingHeat Avatar
55 months ago

Press the center button or the touch surface to continue
Please keep the touch surface. It would be a huge step backwards to have to spam click the down arrow to get down the page, instead of swiping with slow or fast gestures to immediately get to the right place.

Never really understood the hate. Unless maybe it’s the “picking it up upside down”... but how long does that really take to correct? .04 seconds to quickly spin around? Plus isn’t that what the raised “menu” button was for? If anything, make it look like the iPhone’s Apple TV remote interface like the article described. That way you wouldn’t pick it up the wrong way. Just please keep the touch pad, and volume buttons.

the upcoming Apple TV remote could perhaps feature a design similar to the remote app on the iPhone, which features a large touch area, a main center Menu button, and side buttons for accessing Siri, play/pause, the Home screen, and search.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ouimetnick Avatar
55 months ago
Considering the aluminum remote (2009) works with ALL Apple TV models they are most likely referring to this one. I actually used that remote to configure my used 4th gen Apple TV HD that didn’t have a a remote.

Attachment Image
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michael Scrip Avatar
55 months ago
Hmmm... a center button... and maybe a D-pad for up-down-left-right?

You know... like almost every media remote control ever made?

?




Attachment Image
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brijazz Avatar
55 months ago

10 sec skip is so painful to use on some apps, especially YouTube.
The YouTube app for Apple TV is garbage all around. The 10-second skip. Scrolling through lists. "Watch Later" and "Subscriptions" don't update in-place (you need to back out of them and then navigate into them to see changes). And it's kinda ugly.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
profets Avatar
55 months ago

Looks better than the current version, looks like the stupid swipe pad is gone !



? guess anything is better than the current remote.


Uhhhh....




Attachment Image
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Unity451 Avatar
55 months ago

Hmmm... a center button... and maybe a D-pad for up-down-left-right?

You know... like almost every media remote control ever made?

?



Or like the ones they created first. Roku and the like just copied their simple design and added buttons.



Attachment Image
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)