Apple has been strengthening the ecosystem ties between iOS and tvOS in recent years. In 2023, the company introduced the FaceTime app on Apple TV, letting users video call their loved ones on the big screen with the help of a nearby iPhone or iPad. Now, tvOS 26 will make it even easier to reach others from your Apple TV by mirroring regular iPhone calls.
As spotted by Macworld, the fourth developer betas of iOS and tvOS 26 bring audio phone calls to the Apple TV. The feature, long supported by Macs and iPads, will let you answer incoming calls on tvOS when your paired iPhone is nearby.
Unlike FaceTime on Apple TV, the new feature doesn’t rely on the Continuity Camera API to transmit your audio input to the caller. Instead of using your iPhone’s microphone, it’ll utilize the mics embedded in connected HomePods. Users without Apple’s smart speaker will still be able to answer calls on tvOS, but they won’t be able to talk until they can reach their iPhones.
It’s worth noting that tvOS 26 beta 4 doesn’t include a dedicated Phone app to initiate calls from the Apple TV. Siri similarly failed to start a regular phone call when I asked it using my TV’s remote. So, for the time being, the new addition, unlike FaceTime, is seemingly limited to accepting incoming calls only. Whether Apple addresses this omission in future tvOS 26 builds remains to be seen.
To activate the feature, head to the Settings app on your updated Apple TV. Go to Users and Accounts > [your name], and scroll to the bottom. Once you enable the Show Incoming Calls toggle, your updated iPhone will display an alert to confirm your choice. If you find it too distracting, you can always turn it off using the same tvOS menu or via the Phone app’s settings on iOS.
If you don’t have a spare iPhone and Apple TV, we advise you to avoid installing the OS 26 betas. While the current builds are relatively stable and usable, random crashes may still occur, and future pre-release versions could potentially introduce fresh bugs. iOS and tvOS 26 should become available to all users in mid-September, packing the new call mirroring feature, Liquid Glass UI, and a ton of other perks.
Author: Mahmoud Itani, Contributor, Macworld
For a decade, Mahmoud has rigorously evaluated Apple hardware and software. His current technological arsenal features an iPhone 16 Pro Max, Apple Watch Series 9, MacBook Air M2, iPad Air M1, AirPods Pro 2, AirTag, Apple TV 4K 3, and HomePod Mini stereo pair. Outside of work, you’ll likely find him jogging at a park, swimming in open water, brainstorming at a coffeehouse, composing poetry on a rooftop, or merely lost in nature.