Top 5 New Apple TV Features in tvOS 26 & Upcoming Updates

New Sing Karaoke App

• 🎤 Sing is a new karaoke app for Apple TV that turns your phone into a microphone.
• 📱 Guests can join in by scanning a QR code, and their phones also become microphones, even without an Apple Music subscription.
• 🔊 Users can adjust vocal track levels, remove vocals entirely, and amplify their voice.
• 🗣️ The app provides pronunciation guides for lyrics in different languages, like K-pop.
• ⚠️ Requires a third-generation Apple TV 4K (2022) and an iPhone 11 or newer.

Enhanced FaceTime on Apple TV

• 🧑‍💻 FaceTime on Apple TV now features a new design with contact posters and uses Center Stage to keep subjects in the center of the frame.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Center Stage automatically adjusts focus and can widen the shot to include more people entering the room.
• 🔗 Connect via the FaceTime app on Apple TV by linking to your iPhone or iPad, which can be propped up anywhere.
• 🌍 The feature supports live captions and live translation for other languages.
• 📞 This functionality is available on second-generation Apple TV 4K or newer and is useful for hands-free family calls.

Screen Savers and Settings

• 🖼️ Apple TV screen savers can be customized to avoid embarrassing personal photos by selecting options like Snoopy hyjinks or aerial landscape shots.
• 🔊 A new setting allows users to set a permanent default AirPlay speaker to prevent speakers from switching.
• 📱 The iPhone can be used as a remote control via the control center, which now also helps find a lost remote.

Gaming and Profiles

• 🎮 Apple TV supports downloading games from the App Store and Apple Arcade, and can also pair with Bluetooth game controllers from PlayStation, Nintendo, or Xbox.
• 🕹️ Advanced users can use apps like RetroArch to play old Sega Genesis games.
• 👤 Apple TV displays recommended profiles linked to your Apple account, which can be cleaned up or turned off in settings to have a single default user.

Upcoming Kids Safe Mode

• 👶 A tvOS 26.2 update, expected in December, will introduce an easier kids safe mode.
• 🔒 This update allows creating profiles without a full Apple account, enabling instant PG-rated streaming for children.
• 🔧 For parental controls beyond Apple TV streaming, settings can be found under General > Restrictions.