Today is a big day in Apple’s software calendar, and as well as the small matter of a new-look iTunes 11, update 5.1.1 has just been released for the Apple TV. The little black box doesn’t quite get the attention of some other iOS devices, but with continual rumors of a connected Apple TV on the horizon, it’s hardly surprising so few have picked up the $99 set-top. Unlike iTunes, which looks vastly different from the old versions, update 5.1.1 isn’t too much of a bump, offering mainly bug fixes, couples with support for iTunes Up Next with iTunes 11 or iTunes Match.
Apple brought a bunch of features with the previous release – 5.1 – including the ability to save multiple iTunes accounts and quickly switch between them, Shared Photo Streams, and AirPlay – all of which could be considered significant upgrades. Rarely does Apple churn out two consecutive updates packing such big changes, and as such, update 5.1.1 mainly smoothens things out, with changes serving to iron out any lingering bugs with said new additions. As with the last release, 5.1.1 firmware is only compatible with the second and third-gen variants of the Apple TV.
Here’s the full change log:
iTunes Up Next
Adds support for Up Next with iTunes 11 or iTunes Match. See upcoming songs when playing music on your Apple TV. Add new songs and edit what’s queued with your Remote or with the Remote app.Stability and performance
Includes performance and stability improvements with the iTunes Store, AirPlay, Netflix, iTunes Match, and wired Ethernet connections.
At present, there’s still no further news on a jailbreak for the third-gen Apple TV. The second-gen device is selling for big bucks on eBay – despite its inferior list of specs – because it can be jailbroken untethered. In order to run many of the most useful apps, one needs a jailbroken Apple TV device, and as can often be the case with the iPhone and iPad, the stock offering severely limits the capabilities. Don’t get me wrong, the Apple TV does have its strengths even without a jailbreak, but unless you like, for example, watching videos only encoded in Apple’s whitelisted formats, the experienced is infinitely enhanced once the shackles are removed.
It’s highly recommended you download and install the latest update to your Apple TV. In order to do so, fire up your device, and navigate through Settings > General , then hit Update Software option. When prompted, select Download and Install to acquire that latest build.
If you prefer, you can also download the firmware file which we’ve provided below, and apply the update to your Apple TV via iTunes.
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