Voice control and four speakers for the living room
Apple introduced a new Apple TV 4K today with Siri AI, three microphones for hands-free voice commands and support for surround sound using four compatible HomePod speakers (opens in a new tab). Apple TV 4K (4th generation) supports that speaker arrangement with HomePod mini 2 or HomePod (2nd generation), giving viewers another way to build a surround setup around the streaming device.
- Works with
- Four HomePod mini 2 or HomePod (2nd generation) speakers, with matching front and rear pairs
- Formats
- Dedicated AV1 decoder
- Available
- Preorders open today; availability begins November 13
Preorders open today, and availability is scheduled to begin November 13. Inside, the A19 chip delivers CPU performance Apple rates as up to 50 percent faster than its predecessor, while GPU performance is rated up to 2x faster. Apple says its dedicated decoder for AV1 improves streaming efficiency and reduces bandwidth use.
Speaker matching and personal search requirements
For the four-speaker configuration, the two front speakers must match each other, as must the two rear speakers. Apple says the speakers and Apple TV 4K detect placement within the room, then adjust timing and audio levels automatically. The updated Siri Remote also gains support for Find My, including Precision Finding and a sound users can trigger to help locate it.
Siri AI presents entertainment searches across the screen, drawing poster images from the Apple TV app and offering related viewing suggestions. During playback, answers to follow-up questions appear as a smaller overlay. Requests that draw on personal information, such as finding a show someone recommended, require an iPhone enabled for Apple Intelligence.
Apple says echo cancellation helps distinguish spoken commands from background audio while content plays. Apple says Secure Exclaves handle microphone data separately from other system operations. Siri requests can be handled locally or through Private Cloud Compute, where Apple says the data is not retained or accessible to the company.