Apple introduces tvOS 17 at its WWDC keynote. With this, the company brings FaceTime to its Apple TV 4K media players. The feature uses the camera and microphone of a connected iPhone or iPad. The feature will be available this fall.
Apple with FaceTime for the Apple TV uses its Continuity Camera feature, which the company previously introduced in macOS. Users can open the FaceTime app on their Apple TV and it will automatically connect to a user’s iPhone or iPad. FaceTime then uses that device’s camera and microphones for video calls. The conversations themselves are displayed on the television.
Users can start a FaceTime call from the Apple TV. It is also possible to transfer an ongoing FaceTime call from an iPhone or iPad to the media player. The feature also supports Center Stage, which automatically crops the camera’s frame so that call participants appear in the center of the screen. The frame moves as users move and adjusts as more participants appear on screen.
Apple promises that the Continuity Camera API will also be made available to developers of Apple TV apps. This will allow other video calling services, such as Zoom, to introduce tvOS versions of their services. That includes support for iPhone and iPad cameras. TvOS 17 is due this fall for Apple TV HD and 4K media players. The FaceTime app is only coming to the Apple TV 4k.
