Apple says iPhone and iPad owners can now choose which iCloud photos show up on Apple TV, without exposing their whole library on the living room screen. The change was announced in Apple’s Apple TV 4K press release alongside a new screen saver shuffle feature.
Here is what Apple announced, what you need, and how to control photo screen savers with the settings Apple documents for tvOS 27. Our Apple TV 4K (4th generation) story covers the new hardware.
What Apple announced
The release says: “With an iPhone or iPad, users can now customize how their iCloud photos appear on Apple TV, making it easy to set up personalized Memories & Slideshows or Portraits screen savers without making their entire library visible.”
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It continues: “Plus, a new screen saver shuffle feature automatically rotates between categories so there is always something new to see.”
Apple has not published the menu steps for the new iPhone and iPad controls, so we will not guess at them. What Apple does say is that the setup happens on your iPhone or iPad and applies to the Memories & Slideshows and Portraits screen savers.
What you need
The photo controls sit right after a footnoted sentence about FaceTime and viewing photos on the big screen. That footnote, number 8, reads: “Available on compatible iPhone and iPad devices with Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later) running the latest operating system software.”
Apple’s tvOS user guide adds two limits that already apply:
- Portraits screen savers “are only available on Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later).”
- “Only the default profile on Apple TV 4K can sync their photos and view content in the Photos app.”
| Item | Requirement Apple lists |
|---|---|
| Apple TV | Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later), per footnote 8 |
| Controller | Compatible iPhone or iPad |
| Software | Latest operating system software |
| Photos sync | Default profile on Apple TV 4K |
Step 1: Decide how much of your library syncs
The simplest way to keep most of your library off the TV is at the sync stage. According to Apple’s user guide, the first time you open the Photos app on Apple TV 4K, “you’re prompted to sync all of your iCloud photos, or only your Shared Albums.”
To change it later, Apple’s guide says:
- Go to Settings on Apple TV 4K.
- Go to Profiles and Accounts > [default profile], then select Photos.
- Select iCloud Photos to turn it on or off. When you turn it on, you’re prompted to confirm on another Apple device.
Step 2: Set a photo screen saver
Apple’s guide lists four screen saver types under Current Selection: Aerials, Memories & Slideshows, Portraits, and Snoopy.
- Go to Settings on Apple TV 4K.
- Go to Screen Saver > Current Selection.
- Choose Memories & Slideshows or Portraits.
Step 3: Choose which memories or albums appear
For Memories & Slideshows, Apple’s guide says to go to Settings, then Screen Saver > Memories & Slideshows:
- Select Memories, then choose All Memories or Favorites.
- Select Albums, then choose Favorites, Activity, or scroll down to choose a specific shared or personal album.
- When an album is your screen saver, select Style to choose the transition between photos.
You can also start from the Photos app. Apple says to navigate to Shared Albums or Albums, select an album, then select Set as Screen Saver and confirm.
Step 4: Tune Portraits
For Portraits, Apple says Portraits screen savers “show the best photos of people, pets, nature, or cities from your photo library with a stylized clock overlay.”
- Go to Settings, then Screen Saver > Portraits.
- Choose whether to show or hide People, Pets, Nature, and Cities.
- Under People, choose all people or only those you mark as Favorites in the Photos app.
- Under Update Frequency, select Change Every and pick an interval.
How shuffle fits in
Apple describes screen saver shuffle as a feature that “automatically rotates between categories.” Separately, Apple’s guide already lets you switch categories by hand on Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later): while the screen saver is running, swipe up or press up on the clickpad, then select the category you want.
The privacy angle
Apple’s pitch for the new controls is that you can show selected photos “without making their entire library visible.” On the Apple TV side, the most effective options in Apple’s current settings are syncing only Shared Albums, choosing Favorites instead of All Memories, and limiting Portraits to Favorite people. Together they keep the screen saver to photos you have picked on purpose.
