No-one likes signing into smart TV apps, even with the brand new Siri Remote for the Apple TV 4K (2021).
Whether it’s the elongated hassle of typing in a username and password on using a remote’s trackpad, signing-in via a TV provider, or entering codes via a web link on a secondary device, it’s a pain in the you-know-what.
Well, for Apple TV owners that’s about to change with the forthcoming tvOS and iOS 15 releases coming this autumn. The updates will enable app sign-in using Face ID on a companion iPhone or iPad.
The new feature came to light during a session at the ongoing WWDC event, which is again taking place virtually in 2021.
Should a user have their password saved via the iCloud Keychain password management and syncing tool, it’ll be possible to choose a ‘Sign In With Apple Device’ option.
If the iPhone or iPad is nearby, users will get a notification similar to the Apple Pay screen that requires Face ID confirmation in order to authenticate a purchase made on Mac for instance.
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During the session (via 9to5Mac), we got a look at the screen iPhone users will see when asked to sign into the tvOS app (main pic). If the username and password combo isn’t saved via iCloud Keychain, mobile users will still be able to enter the password manually on their iPhone/iPad, as they can today.
It’ll still be up to the major streaming platforms and apps to enable the feature within their tvOS apps, but we’d imagine anything that eases the sign-in process will be adopted in a heartbeat.
The feature was announced following a WWDC keynote that was pretty short of tvOS news, despite the recent launch of the brand new Apple TV 4K (2021). We did learn, yesterday, that the new HomePod mini will also sync nicely with the set-top box as well as the previously-announced HomePod.
All of these additions are sure to make the Apple TV 4K a leading contender among the best set-top boxes, at least for those already within the Apple ecosystem.
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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.
