Apple's tvOS 13 now available and brings support for games controllers

Parade of features includes Apple Arcade

by Andy Bassett
Movies & TV Shows News

Apple's tvOS 13 now available and brings support for games controllers

After a period of beta testing, Apple’s latest operating system for its Apple TV entertainment system, tvOS 13, is now officially available.

For those Apple TV users who tend to shy away from testing companies' products and prefer to wait until the finished version, tvOS 13 is now available and there are several new features in this major update, including the addition of Apple’s Arcade game platform, support for Microsoft Xbox and Sony PS4 game controllers and the availability of multiple user profiles.

Coming amidst a flurry of more widespread O/S updates for Apple’s devices - iOS 13 for its iPhones and iPadOS for its, well, iPads - tvOS 13 will be supported on the company’s 4th and 5th generation Apple TV models as well as other Apple devices and select third party platforms.

Kicking everything off, there's a refreshed Home screen designed to be more engaging and apps can now play full screen video previews making it easier for users to choose their next TV show, movie or game. Previews from Apple’s TV+ service will also be available when it launches at the start of November. A picture in picture mode has also been added to allow users to watch videos while browsing other apps.

Moving away from Apple’s traditional, one device-one user assumption, multiple user profiles are now supported so that individual app layouts, content preferences and recommendations are stored as a personalised ‘experience’. Moreover, to encourage viewing on multiple devices, a user’s profile will remember where content was last watched up to and start off from that point when the profile is next activated, no matter which device is used, so long as the Apple TV app is installed.

Apple Arcade is the Cupertino company’s new games streaming platform and support for it is now available in tvOS 13. Access to the content requires a monthly subscription of £4.99 and members will then be able to play all the games available in the library across all their iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV devices.

For those games that require precision interaction, tvOS 13 adds support for most popular game controllers in the world, the Xbox Wireless Controller with Bluetooth and PlayStation DualShock 4.

Apple Music has been improved too with onscreen lyrics introduced and everyone at home can easily play their personalised playlists and recommendations since it also takes advantage of the multi-user profile support in the O/S.
Apple's tvOS 13 now available and brings support for games controllers
And during those periods where users are not watching content or listening to music, a variety of new 4K HDR screen savers depicting scenes from the world’s oceans, filmed in collaboration with the BBC Natural History Unit, has been introduced.

Porting over a feature from iOS 13, the Sign In With Apple feature allows owners to use their Apple ID to sign in to services without divulging their email address, meaning one less piece of personal data stored on a server somewhere.

Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Product Marketing commented, “tvOS powers the Apple TV 4K experience and continues to set the standard for home entertainment.” He added, “With more personalised features to enjoy your favourite TV shows, movies, photos and music, expanded gaming support and stunning new screen savers, tvOS 13 delivers the most complete entertainment experience to everyone in the home.”

If you’ve recently updated to tvOS 13, let us know how you got on and how the new features are working for you.

Source: Press release, www.digitaltrends.com 
Image Source: Apple
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