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Release record

tvOS 26.0

Full article
Public release
Recorded milestones
11
Beta cycle
98d
Average interval
10d
Public release
Sep 15, 2025

Release notes

Overview

Editorial synthesis with inline references and a source ledger when citations are available.

tvOS 26 was a shared-room release that paired Liquid Glass and a more cinematic TV app with Music Sing, FaceTime, profiles, and AirPlay improvements.[1][2]

The visual treatment depends on supported Apple TV 4K models, and using an iPhone as a Music Sing microphone requires compatible devices.[3][4]

Source ledger

References

Sources are linked to the claims they support. Publication and access dates are shown when available.

  1. New Versions of Apple’s Software Platforms Are Now Available

    Apple Newsroom · 2025-09-15T00:00:00.000Z · tvOS 26

    Back to text ↑
  2. About Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD software updates

    Apple Support · Apple · 2026-07-29 · What’s new in tvOS 26

    Back to text ↑
  3. tvOS 26 Release Notes

    Apple Developer · 2026-07-29 · Overview and availability notes

    Back to text ↑
  4. About Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD software updates

    Apple Support · Apple · 2026-07-29 · tvOS 26 feature requirements

    Back to text ↑
  5. About the Security Content of tvOS 26

    Apple Support · 2026-07-29 · tvOS 26; released September 15, 2025

  6. tvOS 26 Release Notes

    Apple Developer · 2026-07-29

Documented & observed

Changes in this version

Source-linked features, fixes, known issues, removals, and community-observed behavior recorded across this version’s appearances and verified builds.

Release changes

Changed in this release

Features, fixes, removals, and regressions first observed in this release record.

knownIssue · knownIssue

Background Assets beta reliability limitations

documentedconfirmed

The initial state groups the retained Background Assets limitations while preserving their individual Apple issue identifiers.

Recorded at Beta 1

  1. [1] Archived tvOS 26 Beta Release Notes — 20250616183650 raw state · Background Assets — Known Issues; issues 143281558, 151498902, 151647839, 151942388, and 152131750

Milestones

Release history

Every recorded channel appearance in chronological order. Open an appearance for any available build, scope, notes, and sources.

  1. Developer beta

    Beta 1

    Full articleEditorially verified

    The first retained raw Apple DocC state after tvOS 26 Beta 1 and before Beta 2 contains 54 note items; this page structures 8 representative, high-signal entries across the App Store, Background Assets, Metal, AirPlay playback, RealityKit, StoreKit, SwiftUI, and hardware-specific design behavior.

    Availability
    available
    Sources
    9 linked
    Open this appearance
  2. +14 days
  3. +15 days
  4. +14 days
  5. +14 days
  6. +6 days
  7. +7 days
  8. +7 days
  9. +8 days
  10. +7 days
  11. +6 days

    Public release

    Public

    Source-linked recordEditorially verified

    The public tvOS 26 release refreshed the television interface and added shared-room music, calling, profile, and AirPlay conveniences.

    Build
    23J353
    Availability
    available
    Sources
    7 linked
    Open this appearance

Historical context

Cycle comparison

Pace, intervals, and duration compared with earlier releases on the same platform.

Historical avg for major releases

96 days, 9.8 milestones

Based on 10 previous tvOS .0 releases

Cycle vs. platform average

98d (avg: 57d)

41 days longer than the tvOS average

Duration ranking

#6 of 50

Middle of the pack tvOS beta cycles

Longest gap in this cycle

15 days

Between Beta 2 and Beta 3

Previous .0 releases (tvOS)

Previous comparable tvOS releases
VersionYearCycleMilestonesAvg. Interval
tvOS 18.0202498d1011d
tvOS 17.02023105d1111d
tvOS 16.0202298d912d
tvOS 15.02021105d1012d
tvOS 14.0202086d1010d
tvOS 13.02019113d1111d

Scroll horizontally to compare every historical field.

Official release notes