Apple Releases tvOS 16.4 for Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Releases tvOS 16.4 for Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD

by

Apple today released tvOS 16.4, the fourth major point update to the tvOS 16 operating system that came out last September. Available for the Apple TV 4K and ‌Apple TV‌ HD, tvOS 16.4 comes two months following the release of tvOS 16.3.

apple tv 4k red image
The tvOS 16.4 update can be downloaded over the air through the Settings app on the ‌‌‌‌‌Apple TV‌‌‌‌‌ by going to System > Software Update. ‌‌‌‌‌Apple TV‌‌‌‌‌ owners who have automatic software updates turned on will be upgraded to ‌tvOS 16.4 automatically.

tvOS updates are often minor in scale, focusing on internal bug fixes and improvements rather than outward-facing changes. The 16.4 update adds a Dim Flashing Lights option that is meant to dim the display when there are flashes of light or strobe effects.

This update adds Dim Flashing Lights, an accessibility option to automatically dim the display of video when flashes of light or strobe effects are detected, and includes performance and stability improvements.

Apple shares information on tvOS releases in its tvOS support document, which is updated after each tvOS launch.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: Apple TV and Home Theater

Popular Stories

General visionOS watchOS and tvOS Betas Feature Redux

Apple Releases First watchOS 26.6, tvOS 26.6 and visionOS 26.6 Betas

Tuesday May 26, 2026 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today provided developers with the first betas of upcoming watchOS 26.6, tvOS 26.6, and visionOS 26.6 betas for testing purposes. The software two weeks after Apple launched the 26.5 versions of each platform. The software updates are available through the Settings app on each device, and because these are developer betas, a free developer account is required. There's no word on...
Read Full Article • 4 comments
Where is the New Apple TV Feature

Apple Previews New tvOS 27 Feature

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:02 pm PDT by
Apple has announced that "Larger Text" support is coming to tvOS, allowing users to increase the on-screen text size to make it easier to read. "Larger Text" lets you adjust the size of text in supported apps, with the option already available on other devices like the iPhone, iPad, and Vision Pro. This was one of the new accessibility features that Apple previewed earlier this week, with ...
Read Full Article
HomePod mini and Apple TV Sage

New Apple TV and HomePod Mini Are 'Nearly Ready' to Launch, New Siri Remote Also Rumored

Sunday May 31, 2026 8:47 am PDT by
New models of the Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini are "nearly ready to go," according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Both devices have been ready "for months," but Apple is holding off on launching them until the more personalized version of Siri is available, he said. "I am told the hardware for the next Apple TV...
Read Full Article • 144 comments

Top Rated Comments

X
xpxp2002
42 months ago

I hope you didn't buy the poverty version without the ethernet port.
The elimination of the Ethernet port on the Apple TV is one of the most infuriating and consumer-unfriendly "upsell" tactics I've seen Apple do to date.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
melapple
42 months ago
Guys, we’ve always complained about large tv libraries taking forever to load in the movies app well, guess what, I have not yet updated my 3rd gen Apple TV HD to today’s release but I’m happy to report that my 700 plus movies library loads in about 3 secs (vs about 30 prior to today). They must have changed something server-side
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michael Scrip Avatar
Michael Scrip
42 months ago

The elimination of the Ethernet port on the Apple TV is one of the most infuriating and consumer-unfriendly "upsell" tactics I've seen Apple do to date.
On the other hand... the difference between the "normal" Apple TV and the "good" Apple TV is only $20.

In my mind that's gotta be the least-offensive upsell that Apple has ever offered. :p

For $20 you get an Ethernet port, a Thread radio, and double the storage. That's really not bad.

Though I gotta wonder why Apple even made the "normal" version in the first place. If they only offered the "good" model at $149, that's still cheaper than the previous generation which started at $179.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
X
xpxp2002
42 months ago
Ever since tvOS 16.2, my TV won't turn on using HDMI-CEC and makes weird static noises when I turn it on manually after the Apple TV turns it off.

Hopefully this finally fixes it.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Devnul0 Avatar
Devnul0
42 months ago
I've only occasionally been able to control my Yamaha receiver via HDMI-CEC and the ATV remote volume buttons since 16 came out. Setup is a TiVo and the ATV going HDMI into the TV, the TV doing the input selection, then HDMI out to the receiver for eArc and CEC. For a while I thought the magic was to ensure that the TV had selected the ATV as the input before I turned on the ATV, but even that proved unreliable. The ATV remote power button wouldn't turn on the system any more, and holding the power button would turn off only the ATV not the TV or stereo.
I hope this update makes it all work again like it did with 15.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nutmac Avatar
nutmac
42 months ago
Isn't new HomeKit architecture also a part of this (and HomePod's) update? I guess Apple will need to flip the switch on their server.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments