Summary
- I’m disappointed: tvOS 26 adds little to my older Apple TV; Liquid Glass and features unavailable.
- Since updating, Netflix and HBO Max audio are badly out of sync; no reliable fix yet, but 26.1 beta helps.
- I regret updating early — updates can introduce bugs; I’ll wait on updates unless necessary.
I was excited about the release of tvOS 26 despite not having a new Apple TV 4K to take advantage of it. I’m still using a first-gen model that’s closing in on a decade old, and that means Liquid Glass isn’t even available on my model. That’s not a huge deal since it’s a cosmetic change, but it was one of the selling points of the update. The update didn’t amount to much for my first-gen model, and it’s the stuff I didn’t see coming that bothers me the most.
Updating to new software comes with its share of growing pains, but I didn’t expect things to be this bad. Ever since I made the move to tvOS 26, I noticed my apps weren’t working the way they used to, and I chalked it up to some day one problems. As time has gone on, I see that it’s a bit more than that. Sadly, it’s not just a one-off thing either, as other people have the same problem with apps as I do.
- Brand
-
Apple
- Bluetooth codecs
-
5.0
- Wi-Fi
-
6
- Ethernet
-
Gigabit (128GB model only)
- Storage and RAM
-
64GB, 128GB
Some apps are simply broken
This needs a fix
Ever since the update, my audio on HBO Max and Netflix are wildly out of sync. There might be problems with other apps, but those are the two where it’s very noticeable to me. Yes, I could mess with the settings on my receiver to get it all synced back, but those are steps I don’t want to take. The problem is so noticeable that I actually installed these two apps on my smart TV. I picked up an Apple TV 4K so I didn’t have to do that anymore, so it’s disappointing to see one update cause so many issues. It’s especially frustrating since it’s an update that didn’t do much for my device.
Not that it matters, but I don’t like to be alone with my issues, and I’m not. I immediately went to Reddit to see if there was a fix, and not only did I find that other people have been sharing the same problem as me since updating, but that there seems to be no fix. I’ve tried everything from updating the apps, matching the frame rate, not matching the frame rate — all of it to no prevail.
I’m sure a fix will come eventually, and I’m already seeing promising signs, thanks to the tvOS 26.1 beta that the issue is solved, so hopefully that rolls out soon, and I can get back to enjoying my Apple TV in peace.
The unfortunate downsides of updating
It’s not just Apple TV
Updating software always runs a risk because there’s no telling if it’ll introduce new bugs into the mix, as we’ve seen with this tvOS 26 update. It’s one of the reasons I like to keep my smart TV’s Wi-Fi turned off when I’m not using it. If something is working, there’s usually no reason to update it. You can’t always avoid that with something like an Apple TV 4K because there will always be new features to look forward to.
Something like your Blu-ray player doesn’t have much of a reason to be receiving constant updates, so you can get away with never updating it with relative ease. To be fair, I didn’t have to update to tvOS 26 right away either, and looking back on it, I should have held off and made sure there weren’t any problems. This is especially the case since my Apple TV 4K was left out of any of the major updates. Yes, it says it has tvOS 26 installed, but the only real thing I notice from it is an out-of-sync HBO Max and Netflix app. That’s not ideal if you ask me.
