Apple to bring 4K, HDR support to new Apple TV

Apple looks set to launch a new version of its Apple TV streaming device with 4K and High Dynamic Range support, after code referring to these technologies surfaced online.

iOS developer Guilherme Rambo tweeted an in image of a line of code from Apple’s Homepod Speaker firmware that referenced Apple TV support for 4K, HDR10, Dolby Vision and Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG).

The news comes after Bloomberg reported in February that Apple was testing a fifth generation version of Apple TV that will support ultra high definition content, with a launch date slated for as early as this year.

According to Bloomberg the new box will run on a faster processor than the current generation of Apple TV and was being referred to internally as ‘J105’.

This report surfaced in the same month that Apple appointed the director and general manager of Amazon’s Fire TV product, Timothy Twerdahl, to work on Apple TV.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said during the company’s most recent earnings call last week that the company is “very excited about the advances in iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS coming this fall.”

Cook did not give any specific update on its Apple TV streaming device on the third quarter earnings call, but the ‘other products segment’ that includes Apple TV, Apple Watch and Beats Products experienced a 23% year-on-year increase in revenue in Q3 to US$2.7 billion.

Apple’s last previous update for Apple TV came in September 2015 when it launched a fourth generation version of the streaming device.