Apple Releases tvOS 12.4 for Fourth and Fifth-Generation Apple TV

Apple today released tvOS 12.4, the eighth update to the tvOS 12 operating system that runs on the fourth and fifth-generation Apple TV models. tvOS 12.4 comes more than a month after the release of tvOS 12.3, which brought an updated TV app.

tvOS 12.4 is a free update that 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 12.4 automatically.

appletv4k
There were no new features discovered during the beta testing period for tvOS 12.4, making it unclear what's included in the update.

Apple does not provide release notes for tvOS updates, making it difficult to determine what might be new or improved in the operating system.

The update likely focuses on introducing performance improvements and bug fixes, and there could be some refinements to the TV app that was introduced in tvOS 12.3.

Apple has also released new 7.3.1 ‌Apple TV‌ software that's designed for the third-generation ‌Apple TV‌.

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

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Apple Expected to Release iOS 18.3 Next Week With These New Features

Thursday January 23, 2025 6:41 am PST by
iOS 18.3 should be released to the public next week, following beta testing since mid-December. While the software update is a relatively minor one, it still includes a handful of new features, changes, and bug fixes for iPhones. Below, we recap everything new in iOS 18.3. Notification Summary Changes Examples of inaccurate Apple Intelligence notification summaries Apple Intelligence...
iOS 18

5 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.3

Friday January 24, 2025 1:55 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.3 next week, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a couple of neat new capabilities to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 devices, and bug fixes. While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.3 still introduces capabilities that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've...
Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Beta Coming Soon With These New Features for Your iPhone

Friday January 24, 2025 8:16 am PST by
iOS 18.3 is expected to be widely released next week, and that means the first iOS 18.4 beta for iPhones should be just around the corner. Apple has previously implied that iOS 18.4 will be released in April, as that is when it promised to make Apple Intelligence available in even more languages. Below, we outline what to expect from iOS 18.4 so far. Apple Intelligence for Siri Siri ...
Apple Pay Walmart Feature

Walmart Stands Firm on Why It Doesn't Accept Apple Pay in the U.S.

Thursday January 23, 2025 7:32 am PST by
Walmart still does not accept Apple Pay or other NFC payments at its more than 4,600 stores across the U.S., and it stood firm on its reasoning for that today. A spokesperson for Walmart today informed MacRumors that its position on contactless payments has not changed since we last reached out about the matter in 2022. The big-box retailer said it remains focused on its own convenient...
apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Launching This Year With These New Features

Wednesday January 22, 2025 6:01 pm PST by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year. In this article, we recap rumored features and changes for the device. The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports Wi-Fi 6E, which would be an upgrade over the current Apple TV's standard Wi-Fi 6 support. Wi-Fi 6E extends the...
iOS 18

Here Are Apple's Full Release Notes for iOS 18.3

Tuesday January 21, 2025 4:31 pm PST by
Apple provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 18.3 today, and with it comes release notes confirming what's new. While we knew about several of the features that are in the update, there are some lesser known tweaks and bug fixes. The update adds new Visual Intelligence features for iPhone 16 models, it tweaks Notification summaries on all...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Horizontal Single Feature

Kuo: iPhone 17 Models Won't Have Smaller Dynamic Island

Friday January 24, 2025 9:09 am PST by
The upcoming iPhone 17 models that Apple plans to release this year will not feature a smaller Dynamic Island, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today. On social media, he said that he is expecting the size of the Dynamic Island to remain "largely unchanged" across the iPhone 17 lineup. His statement is contrary to prior rumors that we've heard about planned changes for the iPhone 17 models. ...
apple power beats pro 2

Apple's First Product Announcement of 2025 is Imminent

Thursday January 23, 2025 2:48 pm PST by
It's also time for Apple's first product announcement of the year. Last year, Apple said it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and the wireless earbuds are expected to launch very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter last weekend, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the...
iPhone 16 Apple Store Levels

Gurman: Apple Stores Receiving 'Merchandise' Updates Next Week

Saturday January 25, 2025 5:07 pm PST by
Apple's retail stores will be rolling out "merchandise/floor marketing updates" next week, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman did not explicitly say if the store updates are related to any upcoming product announcements, but he did mention that next week is around the time that Apple rolls out its annual Black Unity watch band for the Apple Watch. In each of the past four years, ...

Top Rated Comments

MarceloAvalos Avatar
72 months ago
Apple does provide release notes for tvOS updates. They're here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207936
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BODYBUILDERPAUL Avatar
72 months ago
Definitely an Apple product that I will no longer invest in.

I had to replace two 3rd gen units because viewing activities on some streaming services don't sync between older AppleTV models and newer ones. Sure, it's ultimately the fault of the app developer (looking at you Hulu) but I can understand their dilemma. The 3rd gen AppleTV has an A5 processor. The 4th gen unit has an A8 processor. Yet the 3rd gen unit wasn't discontinued until one year after the 4th gen was introduced. Apple continued to sell its older unit knowing the product was essentially obsoleted.

Btw, I replaced my units with Amazon Firesticks. Got two for less than the price of one AppleTV. The UI is as thoughtful as Apple's. And the remote is worlds better. Will probably sell the 4th gen units we have and replace those with Firesticks too just to spite Apple for pretending their TV aspirations were just "a hobby".
Let's see how long your Amazon Firesticks last!
In all fairness, the ATV3 delivered amazing results in 2012 and 2013. By 2014, it's price was £59. Try and find something as beautifully made as that for £59!
For £59 the ATV3 was an incredible box for the Apple Eco-system. To this day, it still plays movies from iTunes in HD and has Apple HomeSharing and Airplay. All for £59. Not Apple's fault if third party apps decide not to go with it. To this day, Apple STILL updates the ATV3 - Amazon Prime, ATV+ etc. Name another company that will update a cheap £59 product dating back from 2012? I can't think of any.

Good luck if you think that you are getting a decent product with Amazon. Knowing that company and it's disgraceful components used in their mainstream thrash tells me that it'll end up in the landfill far quicker than any Apple product will.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rigby Avatar
72 months ago
Every time a tvOS update is released, it's "Apple TV owners who have automatic software updates turned on will be upgraded to tvOS 12.4 automatically". I have had that option enabled for years and never, not once, has any of my two Apple TV 4 units (or the Apple TV 3s that I used before) upgraded automatically. Does this work for anybody?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MistrSynistr Avatar
72 months ago
Let's see how long your Amazon Firesticks last!
In all fairness, the ATV3 delivered amazing results in 2012 and 2013. By 2014, it's price was £59. Try and find something as beautifully made as that for £59!
For £59 the ATV3 was an incredible box for the Apple Eco-system. To this day, it still plays movies from iTunes in HD and has Apple HomeSharing and Airplay. All for £59. Not Apple's fault if third party apps decide not to go with it. To this day, Apple STILL updates the ATV3 - Amazon Prime, ATV+ etc. Name another company that will update a cheap £59 product dating back from 2012? I can't think of any.

Good luck if you think that you are getting a decent product with Amazon. Knowing that company and it's disgraceful components used in their mainstream thrash tells me that it'll end up in the landfill far quicker than any Apple product will.
I have two Apple TV 4k's and three Roku's. And love them all. I like the ATV's a little better though. I would NEVER get Chromecast/Amazon anything, that's for sure.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
S.B.G Avatar
72 months ago
Every time a tvOS update is released, it's "Apple TV owners who have automatic software updates turned on will be upgraded to tvOS 12.4 automatically". I have had that option enabled for years and never, not once, has any of my two Apple TV 4 units (or the Apple TV 3s that I used before) upgraded automatically. Does this work for anybody?
Nope. Never worked on mine either.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Defthand Avatar
72 months ago
Definitely an Apple product that I will no longer invest in.

I had to replace two 3rd gen units because viewing activities on some streaming services don't sync between older AppleTV models and newer ones. Sure, it's ultimately the fault of the app developer (looking at you Hulu) but I can understand their dilemma. The 3rd gen AppleTV has an A5 processor. The 4th gen unit has an A8 processor. Yet the 3rd gen unit wasn't discontinued until one year after the 4th gen was introduced. Apple continued to sell its older unit knowing the product was essentially obsoleted.

Btw, I replaced my units with Amazon Firesticks. Got two for less than the price of one AppleTV. The UI is as thoughtful as Apple's. And the remote is worlds better. Will probably sell the 4th gen units we have and replace those with Firesticks too just to spite Apple for pretending their TV aspirations were just "a hobby".
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)