Apple’s tvOS 14.5 with 'Colour Balance' calibration feature is available now

Apple’s tvOS 14.5 with colour calibration is available now
(Image credit: Apple)

Apple has today released tvOS 14.5 for Apple TV. The update will be available for those with Apple TV HD and first-generation Apple TV 4K, as well as the new Apple TV 4K.

Users who own an iPhone that supports Face ID and has been updated to iOS 14.5 can take advantage of one of the most intriguing features of tvOS 14.5 – automatic colour calibration allowing the video output to be tailored to your TV's specific colour balance. Essentially, the Apple TV outputs a test image to your TV that you then measure using the iPhone. The Apple TV then compares the measured colour balance to 'industry-standard specifications' and adjusts its output to correct inaccuracies and improve contrast.

The promise is a more accurate and faithful reproduction of TV shows and movies without the need to actually calibrate the TV itself. It works with both HDR and SDR content, but not Dolby Vision, which should be more or less spot-on as is.

Today’s software update also adds compatibility for the new Siri Remote and the latest PlayStation 5 DualSense and Xbox Series X/S controllers.

The Siri Remote will be available to order from 30th April for £55 ($59, AU$79).

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Mary is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi? and has over a decade of experience working as a sound engineer mixing live events, music and theatre. Her mixing credits include productions at The National Theatre and in the West End, as well as original musicals composed by Mark Knopfler, Tori Amos, Guy Chambers, Howard Goodall and Dan Gillespie Sells.