This Low-Key Update to tvOS is what Fitness+ Fans Have been Waiting for Since 2020

We previously wrote about Fitness+ on our phones without an Apple TV or an Apple Watch and it was not great. We then managed to try it with the Apple Watch Series 8 and the Apple TV 4K and we found much to love about it save for this one thing.

During the WWDC 2023 event the new tvOS 17 was announced and with it came big announcements like FaceTime on your TV (using your phone as a camera) as well as a new Control Center on Apple TV to access your most used settings.

However, the most requested update by Fitness+ fans was left out in the keynote. But it was highlighted in the press release after the event: Audio Focus

What is Audio Focus for Fitness+?

Fitness+ has an extremely robust library of content for health and wellness and they're paired with their library of artists from Apple Music.

Though it's great, we've mentioned in our initial review that the repeated calls and prompts during workouts by trainers may grate on you over time. Since most people have a certain subset of workouts that they enjoy, you may be stuck listening to the same trainer say the same things over and over.

But now, with Audio Focus the function "...gives users the ability to prioritise the volume of the music or the trainers’ voices."

Finally, you can focus on the music in the background which makes its Artist Spotlight feature more enjoyable. Tracks from Taylor Swift, The Beatles, and Imagine Dragons can be listened to unimpeded with the new feature—well, at least, that's what we think it'll do.

Apple tvOS 17 will be available for public use later this year. We'll be sure to check it out and report back on its use. For now, let's all petition for the next feature, selecting your own music.