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Apple’s InSight feature for Apple TV Plus will tell you who that actor is

Apple’s InSight feature for Apple TV Plus will tell you who that actor is

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The Apple TV Enhance Dialogue feature is coming to more speakers, and there’s a new Snoopy screensaver.

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Image: Apple

Apple’s tvOS doesn’t get the primary focus at WWDC, but it’s still adding a few new features this fall, including one that will be familiar to people who’ve used Amazon’s streaming service.

The new InSight feature is limited to Apple TV Plus original shows and movies, where it will show details about the actors and characters onscreen as well as pull up details about the show’s soundtrack so you can add tracks to Apple Music. Amazon’s similar X-Ray feature began its life on the Kindle platform before rolling out for TV shows and movies across the Fire tablets and smart TV devices over the last decade.

Screenshot of Apple TV Plus showing the “Insight” feature on screen identifying the actor, Kristen Wiig, and the music playing in the scene.
Image: Apple

InSight is also viewable on your iPhone when you’re using it as an Apple TV remote.

Another new addition is smart subtitles that can automatically appear when you mute the TV or skip back. They can also appear when the characters are speaking a different language from the one currently set on the device.

Apple TV’s Enhance Dialogue feature, which arrived with iOS 17, will now use machine learning for “greater vocal clarity,” said Ron Huang, VP of sensing and connectivity at Apple, during the WWDC event today.

Support for Enhance Dialogue, which separates the dialogue from the background noise so you can better hear what is being said over the sound effects and music, can now be used with “built-in TV or HDMI-connected speakers, AirPods, and other Bluetooth-connected devices, and when playing supported content on iPhone and iPad.” Previously, it was limited to second-gen HomePods.

The company is also adding support for 21:9 projectors so you can view widescreen movies “exactly as the directors intended.” And it’s introducing new screen savers from TVs and movies, including a new animated Snoopy screensaver that lets the playful pup spring to life through animations when your TV is idle.