Apple Releases tvOS 12.1 Update for Fourth and Fifth-Generation Apple TV - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple Releases tvOS 12.1 Update for Fourth and Fifth-Generation Apple TV

by

Apple today released tvOS 12.1, the second update to the tvOS 12 operating system designed for the fourth and fifth-generation Apple TV models. tvOS 12.1 comes just over a month after the release of tvOS 12.0.1 and six weeks after the September launch of tvOS 12.

tvOS 12.1 can be downloaded over the air through the Settings app on the Apple TV by going to System -> Software Update. Apple TV owners who have automatic software updates turned on will be upgraded to tvOS 12.1 automatically.

appletv4k2
It's not clear what new features or bug fixes are included in the tvOS 12.1 update. We didn't find any major new changes during the tvOS 12.1 beta testing period, and Apple doesn't provide release notes for tvOS releases, so there's not often a lot to go on.

If we discover what's new in tvOS 12.1, we'll update this post with additional information.

tvOS 12.1 follows the tvOS 12 update, which introduced support for higher-quality Dolby Atmos sound, zero sign-on, and new aerial screensavers created in collaboration with the International Space Station.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: Apple TV and Home Theater

Popular Stories

General visionOS watchOS and tvOS Betas Feature Redux

Apple Releases Third watchOS 26.5, tvOS 26.5 and visionOS 26.5 Betas

Monday April 20, 2026 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today provided developers with the third betas of upcoming watchOS 26.5, tvOS 26.5, and visionOS 26.5 betas for testing purposes. The software comes a week after Apple released the second betas for each platform. The software updates are available through the Settings app on each device, and because these are developer betas, a free developer account is required. There's no word on ...
Read Full Article • 3 comments
apple tv plus the savant

Apple TV Series 'The Savant' Set for July Premiere After Delay

Monday April 20, 2026 1:00 pm PDT by
Apple is finally planning to release The Savant, an Apple TV series that it delayed following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. The Savant is set to air in July 2026, according to Variety. The Apple TV show was supposed to come out on Friday, September 26, 2025, but Apple decided not to release it due to the topic and the political climate. When the series was pulled, star Jessica...
Read Full Article • 20 comments
Apple TV Silo

Apple TV's Hit Show 'Silo' is Returning Soon: Release Date and Trailer

Tuesday April 21, 2026 1:29 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that its hit sci-fi series "Silo" is returning for a third season starting Friday, July 3, and it shared a teaser trailer. "Silo" follows the lives of 10,000 people living in an underground bunker to escape the seemingly toxic wasteland outside. The people are unaware of why the silo was built, and those who seek the truth face deadly consequences. Rebecca Ferguson...
Read Full Article • 53 comments

Top Rated Comments

smithrh Avatar
smithrh
99 months ago
The problem is not with the article/MacRumors, but rather with Apple who discloses almost nothing, next to nothing, and many times nothing at all.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GIZBUG Avatar
GIZBUG
99 months ago
“It's not clear what new features or bug fixes are included in the tvOS 12.1 update.”

I wish the articles on here, like this, gave readers relevant information....
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NM Bound Avatar
NM Bound
99 months ago
Dear Apple,
Thanks for nothing. I've invested a lot of money over 3 decades in your products and ecosystem including several Apple TV's. I'm pretty sure I don't understand or utilize many of the outstanding features you engineer into your consumer infrastructure which includes the latest and greatest TV OS upgrade. I might buy an Apple Watch now that I can see the value of monitoring personal health reports I can forward to my physician; I'm getting old and there could be life-extending benefit from understanding issues and events linked to my heart and/or falling down which the watch will record.

But every few months when your firm has an opportunity to reveal 'THE NEXT BIG THING' in the Apple universe, it quickly disappoints, underwhelms and serves one more marketing opportunity to hawk products like so many seasonal runway model events in the personal lifestyle clothing world. And of course, when I really need to make a fashion statement, I end of buying a shirt at Walmart because it's cheap and functional.

But I digress...
NM Bound
Las Cruces, NM
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Beyo Avatar
Beyo
99 months ago
The problem is not with the article/MacRumors, but rather with Apple who discloses almost nothing, next to nothing, and many times nothing at all.
So what the point MacRumors have in writing articles that literally means nothing? Each owner of Apple TV sees when it's update available anyway.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M.Rizk Avatar
M.Rizk
99 months ago
A very much doubt it's a feature that the phone wants me to start typing while watching a show on Netflix, for example. Or just scrolling though the home screen. Or just launching an app, any app. Or wanting me to type something in the middle of the night while I'm asleep in the other room.

But maybe I've misunderstood the feature.

edit: Damnit, it happened again. While watching TV on another input than the one the aTV is on.
I have had the Apple TV 4k for a month and never got such a notification unless there was a text field on screen. Weird.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B
BuffaloTF
99 months ago
12.0 didn't introduce Zero Sign On. We're still waiting for that.

Let's see if this, in combination with iOS 12.1 stops the constant notifications for keyboard entry on my phone! It would be nice if that's the case.
That's a feature, not a bug.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments