See all of Apple's latest software in action Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Along with the iPhone SE and new 9.7-inch iPad Pro, Apple unleashed a slew of new software updates this week, bringing all-new features to your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple TV.
Find out what’s awaiting you in the new Apple updates, as well as how to update all your Apple devices, in a series of Cult of Mac videos you can watch below.
Get your OCD on with folders on Apple TV. Photo: Stephen Smith/Cult of Mac
The latest Apple TV has 5,000 apps and every one I’ve installed on my Home screen is a pain in the ass to find.
That is, until now. Apple just introduced tvOS 9.2, which brings the organizing power of folders to your 4th Generation Apple TV, and boy are we excited.
Here’s how to organize all those media and gaming apps on your Apple TV with folders.
Apple TV's new app could give us the interface we've dreamed of. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
The fourth-generation Apple TV is ready for a new update to tvOS (9.2), bringing Siri dictation to the whole system, including search, user names and passwords. It’s also got a new Folder system like iOS does, which will let you organize your Home screen to your heart’s content, and it will support Apple wireless keyboards and your iCloud Photo Library on the big screen.
If you want to update your Apple TV right now and get all these great new features, just follow the directions below.
Grab the latest tvOS 11 update now. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The new Apple TV is finally getting folders for apps today, thanks to the public release of tvOS 9.2 that is available now to all fourth-gen Apple TV users.
Apple touted the new update today at an event, previewing new features like app folders, support for Bluetooth keyboards, voice-to-text dictation for text entry fields, a podcasts app and other improvements.
Along with the new Apple TV software, Apple has also released watchOS 2.2 to the public that contains a number of bug fixes, and some small tweaks such as the ability to sync multiple watches to one iPhone, Maps improvements and more.
Evolution, not revolution, was the tone of today’s low-key Apple event. Smaller is better, says Apple, with two big product “reveals” that show off compact new devices with impressive internals.
While most of the announcements today have already been discussed and dissected, like the 4-inch iPhone SE, new Apple Watch bands and a smaller 9.7-inch iPad Pro, there were a couple of surprises.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Apple’s oddly low-key “Let us loop you in” event.
Monday, March 21, will be a big day for Apple, with possible reveals of a budget 4-inch iPhone SE, a 9.7-inch iPad Pro and maybe even some new Apple Watch bands ahead of the second iteration of Apple’s wrist computer.
Want to watch the Apple event live? Here’s how you do it on any of your Apple devices (and even a PC).
Note: Monday’s Apple event starts at 10 a.m. Pacific. Cult of Mac’s liveblog will start serving up color commentary an hour before that, so don’t be late!
The new Apple Events apps for tvOS has finally arrived, giving Apple TV owners a way to watch the iPhone SE keynote from the comfort of their living room.
Apple’s ‘Loop you in’ event will be the company’s first keynote to stream on the new Apple TV, only unlike previous event channels, you’ll have to download it from the App Store to tune in.
In some kind of weird time vortex that makes me feel like it’s 1991 again (now if only I could find my original cassette of Nirvana’s Nevermind!), Apple is giving everyone the chance to huddle around their TV set again playing SEGA Genesis classic Sonic the Hedgehog.
That’s because the original platformer featuring everyone’s favorite blue-spined, ring-collecting, chili dog-eating speedster just landed on Apple TV — with sequels Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic CD following later this month.
Apple TV is the home of March Madness. Photo: Cult of Mac
When the NCAA Men’s Basketball championship tips off on March 15th hoops fans will have an all-new way to get their fix using Apple TV.
The new March Madness Live streaming app will contain an exclusive Apple TV feature that lets users watch two games side-by-side, but you’ll need to be a paying TV subscriber to use it.
Apple TV won't be streaming football this year. Photo: NFL
As it turns out, Apple is not ready for some football.
The iPhone-maker was expected to be among a number of tech giants bidding for the streaming rights to 18 regular season football games this year, but it appears the company has decided to pass on the option to bid, figuring it wouldn’t be a big enough draw for the Apple TV platform.
If you're appy and you know it, check our list! Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The weekend’s halfway gone already, but if you fancy a lazy Sunday getting up to date with the very best apps available for your Apple device, Cult of Mac has your back.
From great games to a superb email client or 100,000 artistic masterpieces at your fingertips, check out our picks below — spanning iPad, iPhone and even Apple TV.
Third-gen owners deserve some love too. Photo: Apple
Apple released a very small update for third-generation Apple TV owners today. The update still shows up as iOS 8.4.1 but has a new build number, so it’s probably just a bug fix update. If you plan to stick by your third-gen Apple TV for a while, it’s probably worth downloading.
Learn the basics of developing for Apple TV here. Photo: Apple
Apple TV does apps, and you could be the next breakout star of the App Store with these new educational videos straight from the mothership.
Apple’s providing developers with 11 new video tech talks to help you understand how it all works, in hopes that even more developers and designers will choose Apple TV for their next project.
Siri can now surface Disney content on your Apple TV. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
It just got a little easier to search for Disney content on the Apple TV, now that Disney properties such as the Disney Channel, Disney Jr., Disney XD, and Watch ABC are searchable through the Apple TV’s universal search API.
Apple has been hard at work refining and updating Apple TV's App Store. Photo: Apple
Apple just granted the Apple TV App Store another small update today. It now supports developers adding video previews to their app description pages. These videos can be up to 30 seconds and showcase how the app works or aspects of the gameplay.
All the Apple info you need in one gorgeous place. Cover Design: Stephen Smith/Cult of Mac
Your next MacBook will get more than just a speed bump, with Intel’s powerful new Skylake chips bringing intense performance (and maybe better battery life) to the new laptops we’ll all be drooling over soon.
Find out exactly how these new processors will make new MacBooks rock, plus what you need to know about iOS’ brick-inducing “Error 53,” how to make Siri work even harder for you on your Apple TV, and which are the best ergonomic accessories for your Mac in this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine.
Your tininess and fragility doesn't scare us anymore. Photo: Evan Killham/Cult of Mac
An upcoming update to the iPhone’s Remote app will let it completely control your Apple TV.
We’re looking forward to this because while we love the Siri Remote that comes with Apple’s latest streaming box, it has a few problems. First, it’s tiny, and we’ve discovered it wedged inside the absolute farthest and darkest corners of our couches far too often. It’s also covered in glass, and while we know that it’s really strong glass, we’re slightly afraid of breaking it because see Point 1: It’s just a little thing.
Third, if the worst happens and we do lose or break our Siri Remote, a replacement costs $79, and then the anxiety starts all over again.
The first piece of original programming to come out of Apple may star none other than the company’s own employee: Andre Young, aka, Dr. Dre.
The hip-hop mogul turned Beats co-founder is reportedly starring and executive producing the first-ever scripted TV series bankrolled by Apple, but it’s still unclear how Dre’s production will be distributed.
Apple oddly hasn't reached out in a while. Photo: Apple/YouTube
CBS CEO Les Moonves had plenty to say about the Apple TV last year, but this year for some reason he said that CBS hasn’t been talking with Apple very much at all. Apparently the two companies used to talk pretty frequently about bringing CBS to Apple TV’s rumored streaming television service, but negotiations haven’t gotten anywhere yet.
“We had conversations awhile back, and we haven’t had recent conversations with them,” Moonves said to CNNMoney.
Get your groove on with Apple TV and Vevo. Photo: Vevo
Vevo is today rolling out its brand new Apple TV app built for tvOS, giving music fans instant access to over 150,000 high-definition videos and exclusive original programming.
tvOS changes the default scrubbing behavior of your Siri Remote, and we couldn't be more glad. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Use the power of your voice to watch TV. That’s not something out of Star Trek, but the promise of Siri on the fourth-generation Apple TV.
Beyond basic commands to find your favorite TV shows and movies, you might not know how much Siri can actually do for you. But using Siri Apple TV voice commands will unlock loads of helpful features, including reading onscreen labels, getting more in-depth info about whatever you’re watching, navigating various screens, and even playing music on demand.
And it’s bound to get better yet, as the new tvOS beta is bringing Siri dictation to search fields and the App Store.
Here’s how to get the most out of Siri on your Apple TV.
The next big app might be yours. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Just a few months after release, the Apple TV has just about 3,600 apps in its App store. That’s a ton of entertainment, games, and media apps waiting to be discovered on the big screen.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a single killer app among them.
AppLovin, a mobile adverting and analysis firm, is hoping to change all that with the first ever Apple TV contest and hackathon, to be held in San Francisco this coming April.
Will Apple finally deliver one of our most-requested features for watchOS? Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
Developers can now download the third beta builds of tvOS 9.2 and watchOS 2.2, which bring a number of changes to the Apple Watch and Apple TV platforms.
Apple’s release notes for the software updates don’t contain clues about the new features, but users who have already installed tvOS 9.2 beta 3 report that it adds the ability to use dictation to insert text in search fields as well as the ability to use Siri search in the App Store.
Which one would you choose? Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The new Apple TV has been on sale for just over three months now, and the growing catalog of tvOS apps and games looks incredibly promising. It’s what Apple TV fans have been calling out for for years, and it doesn’t disappoint.
But does tvOS and a strong backing from iOS developers make Apple TV a good game console? Is it an ideal buy for casual gamers, and can it mount a real threat against the latest and greatest consoles from Sony and Microsoft? Do we even need another console?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over those questions and more for your entertainment!
Apple TV's new app could give us the interface we've dreamed of. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
If you’re a cord cutter like a lot of us, you might be wondering how to get Super Bowl 50 up on your big screen at home without a cable subscription.
Luckily, if you live in the U.S., you’ve got it pretty easy. Even U.K. folks can stream it live (as long as they have a BBC account) on their iPads. If you live outside these two areas, though, you might need a little help.
Here’s how to get Super Bowl 50 on your Apple TV no matter where you live.