What you need to know
- Apple TV is getting support for Spatial Audio later this year.
- It will let AirPods Pro and Max users hear cinema-style sound whilst using headphones.
- It includes a feature that will lock head tracking should you get up from your seat.
At WWDC 2021 this week Apple confirmed that tvOS 15 will bring with it support for Spatial Audio using Apple's AirPods Max and AirPods Pro.
Now select new details from Engadget have revealed the formats that will be supported:
Apple told Engadget the feature will work with stereo, 5.1, 7.1, and Dolby Atmos content.
Spatial Audio on Apple TV will work to create a cinema-style soundstage in your headphones so that no matter which way you turn your head it will always sound like the sound is coming from in front of you as if you were sitting in a movie theater.
iMore can confirm one of Spatial Audio's coolest features, which will disable this if you decide to stand up and grab some popcorn or just want to get up and stretch, the feature will then reactivate once your AirPods detect you've sat down again. This will hopefully stop any wild disorientation that might come from standing up whilst locked into Spatial Audio and means you can still hear your movie clearly. Although you could always just pause whatever you're watching.
tvOS 15 also brings support for SharePlay, which will also be available on iOS 15 and iPadOS 15, as well as new Siri media commands and HomeKit upgrades. tvOS 15 will work on the Apple TV HD, Apple TV 4K (2017), and the new Apple TV 4K (2021), which is already available discounted in these early best Prime Day Apple TV deals.
