With the introduction of Liquid Glass, enhanced personalisation, seamless login tools, and new capabilities for Apple Music Sing and FaceTime, the update turns Apple TV into an even more expressive and social hub for the home.
A Bold Redesign with Liquid Glass
The centrepiece of tvOS 26 is a beautiful new visual style powered by Liquid Glass — a real-time rendered material that creates depth, fluidity, and motion reflections, making navigation feel dynamic and immersive. This new design brings a fresh aesthetic to fast-forwarding, volume control, and Control Center features like “Movie night” or sleep timers — all while keeping the content front and centre.
A Smarter, More Personal Apple TV App
The Apple TV app has been redesigned to showcase more content with cinematic poster art that reflects Liquid Glass aesthetics. The enhanced layout helps users browse and discover shows, films, and recommendations with ease. Users can now choose to automatically surface their personal profile when Apple TV wakes, bringing them straight to their watchlist and music playlists.
Developers can also tap into a new login API that connects apps to a user’s Apple ID, streamlining access when setting up a new Apple TV — no more entering passwords app by app.
Sing with Apple Music and iPhone
Apple Music Sing gets a party-ready upgrade in tvOS 26. Users can now turn their iPhone into a handheld mic, amplifying their vocals through Apple TV while following real-time lyrics and onscreen effects. Multiple iPhones can be used at once, so friends can take turns queuing songs and reacting with emoji animations.
Sing also becomes more inclusive, with Lyrics Translation and Pronunciation support for multiple languages and scripts, enabling users to sing along even if they don’t speak the language.
Better FaceTime and Communication Tools
FaceTime on Apple TV becomes even more personal with Contact Posters, displaying the caller’s name and photo just like on iPhone. Live Captions expand to support French, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, and Spanish, making FaceTime more accessible to a global audience. Incoming audio and phone call notifications are now tailored to the active profile and can be answered through connected devices like HomePod or iPhone.
Additional Features and Enhancements
-
Aerial screen savers now include scenic landscapes from Goa and Kerala in India.
-
Users can curate their screensaver experience by choosing between Cityscape, Earth, Underwater, and more.
-
AirPlay-enabled speakers can be set as the default for Apple TV audio output, perfect for dedicated home setups.
tvOS 26 takes Apple TV’s role beyond entertainment by making it more personal, sociable, and expressive. Whether you’re streaming a movie, sharing karaoke nights, or jumping into a FaceTime call, the update ensures a visually rich, intuitive experience that adapts to the moment and to the user.
