It’s been almost two and a half years since the Apple TV 4K hooked up to its first telly, but now it seems Apple is ready to finally ready to unleash a successor.
An as-yet-unannounced Apple TV model has been spied by the eagle-eyed 9to5Mac website within the tvOS 13.4 beta code.
The T1125 codename referenced within the code suggests its a pre-production model. The current 4K model is called “J105a” internally, while the HD model is codenamed “J42d”. These don’t exactly correspond, but its presence within tvOS 13.4 is probably telling.
According to the report, the beta’s internal files suggest it’ll run the A12 or A13 bionic chip because it is based upon the arm64e architecture. However, that might be somewhat overkill considering the current model runs the A10 chip and remains one of the most powerful devices on the market.
Related: Apple TV Plus
So what would Apple want with an Apple TV that’s as powerful as its most recent iPhones? Well, it may be about gaming. With Apple Arcade now in full swing, the company might be looking to bring higher end experiences to the set-top box that would require more processing power.
So far we’ve had no problems running Apple Arcade games on the Apple TV set top box, but that doesn’t mean Apple’s ambitions aren’t to bring better and better games to the platform moving forward.
What other features the company might be looking to add remain to be seen. The current flagship model already offers 4K HDR video and access to Dolby Atmos sound. Beyond the updated processor, it’s not entirely obvious how Apple would improve the hockey puck. Perhaps a new form factor is in order?
Apple could launch the new device soon given its presence within the iOS 13.4 beta. Recent rumours have suggested Apple is holding an event next month where a host of new hardware could be released.