After updating the 4th gen Apple TV to support the iOS Remote app on Tuesday, Apple says it plans to improve on the app itself in early 2016.
Apple VP Eddy Cue told Buzzfeed a new version of the Remote app will include the Siri functionality currently reserved for the dedicated remote.
“We’re working on a new Apple TV remote app that will give you the full functionality of the Siri Remote on your iPhone,” Cue said. “We’re hoping to ship that in the first half of next year.”
Once the new version of the app is rolled out to customers, they’ll have complete command of the Apple TV without using the bundled in Siri Remote.
It’ll also be handy if and when it disappears down the back of the sofa.
Elsewhere in the interview, Cue talked up gaming on the new Apple TV claiming the category has been “pretty hot,” since the device went on sale at the end of October.
Related: iOS 10 release date
Cue said Apple wasn’t going after hardcore gamers, but hardcore games will be available on the Apple TV.
“What we’re seeing with the new Apple TV is to me very similar to what happened with gaming on the iPhone,” he said. “When we first announced the iPhone, we didn’t tout it as a gaming device. But games became a huge part of iPhone, because it turns out that a lot more people than just hardcore gamers love games. We expanded the market.
“I think the vast majority of people around the world probably aren’t looking to buy an Xbox or PlayStation. But that doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy playing games. I think Apple TV expands the gaming market to those people.”
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
