With the release of tvOS 12 later this year, Apple TV 4K will gain support for Dolby Atmos. Your iTunes movies will be upgraded to Atmos for free.
Dolby Atmos on Apple TV 4K
Apple says that iTunes will offer the largest movie library with Dolby Atmos sound available anywhere. Apple TV 4K will also be the first and only streaming player to be both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos certified.
- "Combine Apple TV 4K with a Dolby Atmos–compatible sound system and you’re fully immersed in three-dimensional audio that sends sound around and above you with pinpoint precision. Whether a jet zooms overhead or a torrential downpour erupts, the true-to-life sound puts you inside the action," the company said. "And as the first streaming player to be both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos certified, Apple TV 4K brings home the complete cinematic experience."
Movies that you have purchased through iTunes will get upgraded with Dolby Atmos audio for free, if the soundtrack is available. Several years ago, Apple upgraded movies from 720p to 1080p HD quality for free, and did it again with 4K HDR last year.
Dolby Atmos is an object-based audio technology that stores sound as objects rather than channels. It can improve the audio experience and make it more immersive. Atmos also delivers overhead sound. Atmos can be delivered either lossless (TrueHD) or compressed (DD+) but it is not clear which variant Apple is using.
Besides iTunes, Netflix offers a handful of movies and TV shows with Atmos sound.
Apple is highlighting the following titles that will be available in 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos at launch: Ready Player One, Mudbound, Paddington 2, Lost in Space, Blade Runner 2049, Altered Carbon, Justice League, The Lego Batman Movie, and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
Dolby Atmos support is coming to Apple TV 4K later this year with the release of tvOS 12.
