Today, Apple has rolled out new software updates for its two home devices: tvOS 18.2 and HomePod 18.2. Here’s a summary of what’s new.
tvOS 18.2 introduces new screensaver, projector support, and additional features
The Apple TV 4K is receiving several enhancements with tvOS 18.2:
- A fresh Snoopy screensaver has been added
- Support for additional screen aspect ratios has been introduced, specifically aimed at projector users
These features were initially revealed by Apple during WWDC in June.
Though they were not included in tvOS 18.0, they have finally made their way to users in version 18.2 before the year concludes.
Users with projectors will particularly appreciate the introduction of the new 21:9 aspect ratio support, which can be adjusted in the Settings app under Audio and Video settings.
Additionally, tvOS 18.2 is expected to enhance Siri’s natural language capabilities when searching for TV shows and movies—a feature also present in iOS 18.2. According to the release notes, it is described as: “Natural language search in Apple Music and Apple TV app allows you to articulate your requests using various categories such as genres, moods, actors, decades, and more.”
HomePod 18.2 enhances Apple Music Siri experience and adds Enhance Dialogue feature
The HomePod has seen various software updates throughout 2024, but the 18.2 release marks the first significant update to introduce notable features.
Apart from the common bug fixes and stability improvements, HomePods gain two new functionalities. According to Apple’s release notes:
Siri on HomePod now integrates with Apple Music’s natural language search, allowing users to describe their music preferences using various categories like genre, mood, decade, or activity.
This is an exciting addition, further aligning with the improvements seen in Apple Music for iOS 18.2. Requests made to Siri regarding Apple Music are among the most frequent on HomePod, making this enhancement particularly beneficial.
Another update is specifically for the 2nd generation HomePods:
Enhance Dialogue on HomePod (2nd generation), when connected with Apple TV 4K, allows for clearer speech over background sounds through real-time audio processing and machine learning.
I’m a fan of the Enhance Dialogue feature in tvOS 18, and with this update, if you use the 2nd generation HomePod as your TV speaker, it receives an improvement. I’m eager to see the impact of this upgrade.
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