Apple Seeds Fourth tvOS 18.1 Beta to Developers

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming tvOS 18.1 beta to developers for testing purposes, with the new software coming a week after Apple seeded the third tvOS 18.1 beta.

apple tv 4k new orange
Registered developers are able to download the tvOS 18.1 update by opting in to the beta through the Settings app on the Apple TV. A registered developer account is required.

tvOS software releases are usually minor in scale compared to other operating system updates, focusing primarily on smaller improvements rather than outward-facing changes. We don't know what's included in tvOS 18.1.

Apple shares some information on tvOS releases in its tvOS support document, which is updated after each tvOS launch, but Apple does not provide notes during beta testing.

Though we don't always know what's new in tvOS betas, we let MacRumors readers know when new updates are available so those who are developers can download new software upon release.

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

Popular Stories

apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...
top stories 2025 07 12

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, iOS 26 Beta 3, and More

Saturday July 12, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
The iOS 26 public beta release is quickly approaching, while developers have recently gotten their hands on a third round of betas that has seen Apple continue to tweak features, design, and functionality. We're also continuing to hear rumors about the iPhone 17 lineup that is now just about right around the corner, while Apple's latest big-budget film appears to be taking off, so read on...

Top Rated Comments

djjuice80 Avatar
10 months ago
No Snoopy, that's all you need to know...
(that's all anyone really cared about anyways)
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
djjuice80 Avatar
10 months ago

Just because Support & Feedback might miss it:

TVOS18.0 is also a nightmare...

Some bugs I discovered:

* Dialogue Boost is broken and deactivated is also much worse than it was before updating. Now you cannot watch movies without constantly adjusting the volume. SHUT THE FRONT DOOR !
* When leaving an app you get the Apple TV app as a result and not the Home Screen, WTF?
* Subtitles are there even if you don't want them, changing settings is ignored by the device, ARE YOU SERIOUS ?

Whenever Apple loudly advertises a new Version of its OS, FROM NOW ON I WILL WAIT AT LEAST FOR 6 MONTHS in order to let them fix their brand new bugs (LMFAO)

Updates are meant to make things better.
The world is laughing at Apple for this deployment quality.

Where is QA's Head at?
well it is still a beta so issues are still expected, the A builds are bug fixes so expect more fixes to come
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jhwalker Avatar
10 months ago

In English it is a choice from the Language select menu, but all the other naguages are not covered.

Sorry you're having these problems, but I have 18.1 on THREE Apple TVs and have not had anything like this on ANY of them.

Just pointing out it's actually not a universal thing - if anything, anecdotal evidence suggests it may be limited, as TallGuyGT is also not having issues.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
5097842 Avatar
10 months ago
I was really hoping that we'd be able to delete the two iTunes Store icons by now. They've been redirecting to the AppleTV app since 17.something. I understand why they leave them there on first start, but at least give us the ability to hide or delete. Otherwise I haven't seen much new in tvOS 18.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MisterBlueSky Avatar
10 months ago
Just because Support & Feedback might miss it:

TVOS18.0 is also a nightmare...

Some bugs I discovered:

* Dialogue Boost is broken and deactivated is also much worse than it was before updating. Now you cannot watch movies without constantly adjusting the volume. SHUT THE FRONT DOOR !
* When leaving an app you get the Apple TV app as a result and not the Home Screen, WTF?
* Subtitles are there even if you don't want them, changing settings is ignored by the device, ARE YOU SERIOUS ?

Whenever Apple loudly advertises a new Version of its OS, FROM NOW ON I WILL WAIT AT LEAST FOR 6 MONTHS in order to let them fix their brand new bugs (LMFAO)

Updates are meant to make things better.
The world is laughing at Apple for this deployment quality.

Where is QA's Head at?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
5097842 Avatar
10 months ago

Just because Support & Feedback might miss it:

TVOS18.0 is also a nightmare...

Some bugs I discovered:

* Dialogue Boost is broken and deactivated is also much worse than it was before updating. Now you cannot watch movies without constantly adjusting the volume. SHUT THE FRONT DOOR !
* When leaving an app you get the Apple TV app as a result and not the Home Screen, WTF?
* Subtitles are there even if you don't want them, changing settings is ignored by the device, ARE YOU SERIOUS ?

Whenever Apple loudly advertises a new Version of its OS, FROM NOW ON I WILL WAIT AT LEAST FOR 6 MONTHS in order to let them fix their brand new bugs (LMFAO)

Updates are meant to make things better.
The world is laughing at Apple for this deployment quality.

Where is QA's Head at?
Not to discount your issues, but I have not have any of them on the 18 betas. Have you tried resetting the device? Why model are you using?

For example, I was shocked at how well Dialog Boost worked. Exiting goes to home, and no surprise subtitles. Not sure what a reset would do with an AppleTV, but may be worth a try.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)