Apple's AirPods Pair Automatically With Apple TV in tvOS 11

airpods 4tvOS 11, the newest version of the operating system that runs on the fourth-generation Apple TV, didn't receive any air time during Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference keynote, but it includes a handful of new features, including auto-pairing with Apple's AirPods.

AirPods currently pair automatically with iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches thanks to iCloud support and an Apple-designed W1 chip, but that automatic pairing doesn't extend to the Apple TV. That's set to change in tvOS 11.

In the first tvOS 11 beta, as 9to5Mac points out, AirPods appear as a new speaker option on the Apple TV when a user with AirPods is signed into their Apple ID on the Apple TV. As with any iOS devices or Mac, when connected to an Apple TV, sound will play through the AirPods.

Prior to tvOS 11, AirPods worked with the Apple TV, but had to be paired manually, a process that's not as seamless or as quick as the automatic switching baked into Apple's wireless earbuds.

According to Apple's release notes for the first tvOS 11 beta, other features new to the operating system include automatic switching between light and dark mode based on local time, Home screen syncing between multiple Apple TVs, new background modes and notification support, and a few other under-the-hood changes.

In a few months, tvOS 11 and the fourth-generation Apple TV will be gaining a much-desired Amazon Prime Video app for the first time, which was announced on stage at the Worldwide Developers Conference.

tvOS 11 is only available for registered developers at the current point in time, but Apple plans to make a version available for public beta testers in the future.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
ipad pro 2024

Gurman: New iPad Pro and MacBook Pro Models With M5 Chips to Launch Later This Year

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:06 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPad Pro models with the M5 chip will "launch this year," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new iPad Pro models have progressed to an "advanced testing" stage, and he expects mass production of the devices to begin in the second half of this year. If that timeframe is met, the new iPad Pro models could launch...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...

Top Rated Comments

Return Zero Avatar
102 months ago
You gotta love a product that keeps getting better after you buy it. I stand by my statement that AirPods are my favorite apple purchase in at least 5 years (since my 2011 MBA).
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iReality85 Avatar
102 months ago
Looking into the future, a really cool feature they could add is multilingual playback. Imagine streaming a movie that's in English. Someone, say a friend, wants to listen in Spanish. They pop in their AirPods and are good to go. No need for distracting substitles.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AngerDanger Avatar
102 months ago
That's awesome! I'm really looking forward to future headlines as Apple continues to increase AirPods' functionality:

Apple's AirPods Pair Whether or Not You Want Them to in tvOS 12

[B]Apple's AirPods Automatically Subscribe to Apple Music in tvOS 13


[B]Apple's AirPods Kidnap Children of Nearby Houses With Protected WiFi and Negotiates for Password in tvOS 14
[/B][/B]
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
William Gates Avatar
102 months ago
A small change, but a welcome one.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
itsmilo Avatar
102 months ago
Why are those still so hard to get? These aint Yeezys ...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
44267547 Avatar
102 months ago
You gotta love a product that keeps getting better after you buy it. I stand by my statement that AirPods are my favorite apple purchase in at least 5 years (since my 2011 MBA).
And with iOS 11, comes the change where you can change the track by double tapping on one AirPod or go to a previous track by double tapping on the other AirPod. Apple is expanding on some really nice functionality with these.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)