Apple Releases tvOS 17.4

[Surf Monkey]

What would make the Apple TV the must have smart hub for your TV? Not much since all the amazing things it would do would be limited to those owning Apple products. IF one could run a Mac, android or windows app on your phones and tablets and computers that would connect those devices in ways that are compelling, that would be something. But apple doesnt play ball like that so Apple TV will be just as annoying as it is useful. On mine all the entertainment I get from it are from non Apple apps because there are too many hoops to jump through to do so. They keep doing it that way and they'll just build a user base who will avoid such a product by the time they upgrade again.

The Apple TV is barely integrated with the Apple ecosystem as it is. Take home sharing for example. It has NEVER worked right on the Apple TV. Take song play counts. They NEVER synch from Apple TV to desktop Apple Music. I can go on and on.

Apple needs to nuke it and start again. A genuinely good Apple TV would absolutely prompt most current owners to upgrade. As it stands Apple TV is no better than ROKU or the typical smart TV. It’s lame.

 

[chevyorange]

I think their whole drive is to move people away from buying movies and shows just like they moved people away from buying songs on iTunes. But the timing is weird. People are turning back to physical media. Owning content on the Movie and TV stores isn’t ideal, but at least it’s better than being at the mercy of the whims of the various subscription streamers.

I must be one of the last people who tends to his music library like a garden.

 

[Surf Monkey]

I must be one of the last people who tends to his music library like a garden.

Count me in as a careful garden tender. One who remains upset that Apple broke smart playlists long ago and refuses to fix them.

 

[zapmymac]

Update went fine. Nothing major as I wasn't having any major/minor issues...other than controlling my OG HomePods volume (glitchy as OP noted).

Still waiting for adaptive audio sampling instead of forcing all audio/video (up or down) to 48khz, as I have a bunch of 24/96+audio 🫤


I'll pass along this tidbit:

Buy / rent Infuse app
Buy the File Browser Tv app (Stratopherix) [ios also]

This allows the tv to be much more versatile. Between these two apps, I can connect to a NAS/win10/mac/router and grab virtually any audio or video file I need, or even a PDF (should you want to view it on a large TV screen) and no Apple software limitations get in my way!

☑️😎

#TGIF

 

[zapmymac]

I must be one of the last people who tends to his music library like a garden.

Right there with you. My audio/video collection gets regular maintenance.


Long Live my own media!

 

[melapple]

Looks like they finally show yourpurchases/searches as movies/shows Apple first and the actual quality (like 4k) instead of hiding it and not knowing what version it is.

Not sure I understand your post. You mean it shows the highest quality the store offers along with the video resolution one owns?

 

[Macs Pain]

This update broke CEC over HDMI…

 

[Cameront9]

I'm still refusing the 17.3 update because of what they did to the movies and TV show apps. Totally ruined the way my wife and I watch movies on the Apple TV. The new way is much clunkier to browse. We have nearly 1200 movies so ease of use is super important.

 

[Wombert]

This update broke CEC over HDMI…

Yup, same here. It still responds to source selection commands (so switching inputs to the Apple TV wakes it up), but everything else is broken.

It does not respond to normal remote button presses anymore, or to e.g. menu commands (CEC message ID 44, for instance, used to bring up control center).

I'm hoping to have time over the weekend to capture CEC logs from my TV and submit a bug report. It feels like all CEC commands even on other devices are somehow sluggish, so maybe it's even spamming the chain with broken messages.

 

[srbNYC]

It's time for TVOS to have an actual idea. A "Wouldn't it be cool if....?" capability. Apple needs to dream again.

 

[minee]

Yup, same here. It still responds to source selection commands (so switching inputs to the Apple TV wakes it up), but everything else is broken.

It does not respond to normal remote button presses anymore, or to e.g. menu commands (CEC message ID 44, for instance, used to bring up control center).

I'm hoping to have time over the weekend to capture CEC logs from my TV and submit a bug report. It feels like all CEC commands even on other devices are somehow sluggish, so maybe it's even spamming the chain with broken messages.

Same issue here.

After updating to tvOS 17.4 my Mi tv remote does not work anymore. Cannot control Apple TV anymore. 17.3 has not issues at all. CEC is working fine before update to 17.4.

Is there anyway I can roll back to 17.3. Instead of using 1 remote, now I need 2 remotes, to control the TV and control AppleTV.

I hope a fix is coming up soon.

 

[Canyda]

I always like TVoS apps because I enjoy trying to figure out why my older Apple TV4K model updates significantly faster than my new Apple TV4K.

 

[priitv8]

HDMI remotes usually connect directly, right? Had to reprogram it in (if that’s the case) to have a remote working again besides the iOS one

How did you reprogram your hdmi remote (I assume the remote of your TV?).
Since yesterday’s 17.4 update I lost the control with direction, back and OK keys.
Only CEC commands that work now are power on and off.
TV is Sony BRAVIA if that matters.

 

[turbineseaplane]

This update broke CEC over HDMI…

omg - really?

I have 4 of these things at a rental home where CEC over HDMI is absolutely critical

 

[DcGamer05]

omg - really?

I have 4 of these things at a rental home where CEC over HDMI is absolutely critical

Came here just for this same problem. Thought I was going crazy. Disabled family member could only use the TV remote now it’s impossible for them to navigate with the horrible glass trackpad remote.

Glad I’m not the only one experiencing this issue. Hopefully the fix comes soon and best of luck to you as well. 🙂

 

[turbineseaplane]

Came here just for this same problem. Thought I was going crazy. Disabled family member could only use the TV remote now it’s impossible for them to navigate with the horrible glass trackpad remote.

Glad I’m not the only one experiencing this issue. Hopefully the fix comes soon and best of luck to you as well. 🙂

JFC Apple
C'mon --

You can't release updates that NUKE basic functionality like this ---
Absolutely INFURIATING

 

[Stefan DT]

Since tvOS 17.4, I lost the HDMI_CEC functionality. I cannot control the AppleTV with my TV-remote-control.

 

[priitv8]

Since tvOS 17.4, I lost the HDMI_CEC functionality. I cannot control the AppleTV with my TV-remote-control.

Just out of the blue, mine started to work again. Today.

 

[Realityck]

Just out of the blue, mine started to work again. Today.

HDMI handshakes if stuck state require a power cycle of all inline device to TV. Then power up devices backwards to check how it works. (TV -> AVR -> ATV4k) The Apple TV is not usually unplugged it's always powered in standby.

 

[pianophile]

I must be one of the last people who tends to his music library like a garden.

I'm right there with you. They'll have to pry my local "iTunes" library from my cold, dead hands (or warm, living SSDs).

 

[Stefan DT]

Same issue here.

After updating to tvOS 17.4 my Mi tv remote does not work anymore. Cannot control Apple TV anymore. 17.3 has not issues at all. CEC is working fine before update to 17.4.

Is there anyway I can roll back to 17.3. Instead of using 1 remote, now I need 2 remotes, to control the TV and control AppleTV.

I hope a fix is coming up soon.

I also would like to see a downgrade option to 17.3

 

[turbineseaplane]

I'm right there with you. They'll have to pry my local "iTunes" library from my cold, dead hands (or warm, living SSDs).

I’m right there with you both

 

[priitv8]

HDMI handshakes if stuck state require a power cycle of all inline device to TV. Then power up devices backwards to check how it works. (TV -> AVR -> ATV4k) The Apple TV is not usually unplugged it's always powered in standby.

I don’t think CEC depends on HDMI hnadshake.
Plus, Power on/off worked. It were the arrow keys that did not. So CEC worked halfway. Today also the arrow keys started to work again.

 

[DcGamer05]

I don’t think CEC depends on HDMI hnadshake.
Plus, Power on/off worked. It were the arrow keys that did not. So CEC worked halfway. Today also the arrow keys started to work again.

I had tried unplugging the TV and Apple TV for a few minutes and turned them back on and still had no success. Hopefully they resolve this soon.

 

[Realityck]

I don’t think CEC depends on HDMI hnadshake.
Plus, Power on/off worked. It were the arrow keys that did not. So CEC worked halfway. Today also the arrow keys started to work again.

HDMI ARC and CEC not working? Try these fixes

If you have a problem with HDMI ARC and CEC not working, you've come to the right place, as we show you how to fix this troublesome tech.

www.trustedreviews.com

HDMI-CEC is really finicky about the order that devices are plugged in, as this affects the handshake that makes the system work. Where HDMI-CEC isn’t working properly, you need to turn everything off at the plug and remove all HDMI cables from your TV.

Next, turn your TV on first. Then, if you have any external sound devices (soundbar or AV amp), you need to plug these into an HDMI port on your TV first, and then power them on. Next, plug in a set-top box, such as Sky Q, via HDMI and power it on. Finally, follow up with media players and Blu-ray players.

It's been less of a problem with HDMI 2.0, but earlier versions of HDMI it cropped up more often. Sometimes you can solve this problem by disabling CEC on devices and then re-enabling it. I have a couple of examples working with 17.4.