There are Apple patents and rumours that give us some idea, including a New York Times report stating that the new Apple TV will come with a touch-enabled remote and a newly discovered Apple patent that suggests Apple may integrate gesture controls into its remote (both go hand in hand with one another).
We've discussed our favourite iOS apps and decided on seven apps that we would love to see supported on the Apple TV.
You may also like: Nine iOS games that we want to see on Apple TV
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: Skype
Skype is arguably one of the most popular video calling platforms in the world, and we can see why. It offers a free way for users to message, voice call or video call each other from anywhere in the world and brings endless possibilities, from announcing a new pregnancy to family members to hosting Skype interviews for a job opportunity. It doesn't just stop at calling Skype users either, as Skype offers a (paid, but cheap) service that allows you to call landlines and mobiles.
So, why would Skype be a good addition to the Apple TV Imagine getting a call from your family, and instead of talking to them on your 4.7in iPhone 6 screen, you could talk to them on your 42in living room TV. There's obviously one issue to address with video calling, and that's the lack of a camera on the Apple TV, but is also an issue we've created a workaround for.
This is purely speculation but it could be possible for the Apple TV to connect to your iPhone via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and use your iPhone camera. That way, you could leave it in a dock and enjoy a catch up with family via the big screen.
Also, imagine you're watching Netflix and you receive a Skype message from a friend. Chances are you'd miss this if it came through to your iPhone - but we imagine an Apple TV notification system that would notify you of the incoming message, and prompt you for an action (Reply, Ignore, etc). If the next Apple TV comes with a built in microphone (you never know) Siri could be used for both navigation and dictation, letting you reply quickly before getting back to your film.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: Tweetbot for Twitter
It seems like the whole world is a part of social media these days, so it'd be crazy to leave out some kind of Twitter app from the Apple TV if Apple did add an App Store. But instead of choosing the official Twitter client, we've decided to opt for Tweetbot 3 for Twitter, a third party Twitter client for the iPhone. Why We feel that the overall design of Tweetbot reflects iOS8 more than the official client, making it the better option to showcase on the Apple TV.
That's not the only reason though, as Tweetbot also supports streaming of tweets, negating the need to refresh your timeline - a feature that would be very helpful on the Apple TV, you could just sit there and let the tweets appear. It would also change the way we interact with tweets, as discovering and watching vines via Twitter on a big screen with friends is a much more enjoyable experience than trying to show friends using your iPhone.
It would be great for events too - you could open Tweetbot, track a specific hashtag and see the tweets about the event appear in real time on the TV. It may even encourage people to tweet about the event, who knows.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: TVCatchup
Even though Apple is rumoured to be launching a streaming service pretty soon, we'd imagine it to be US only at launch (like most other things) - so what does the rest of the world do We may not be able to get the content that Apple might offer, but we have a UK alternative - TVCatchup. TVCatchup is legal (thanks to a legal loophole) and is a free app that allows you to watch live TV on your iOS device, and boasts 9.5 million active monthly users.
The app broadcasts popular UK channels including BBC One, Two, Three, Four, CBBC and BBC News as well as the likes of ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, and Viva. It used to include more channels, including E4 and ITV 2 and but TVCatchup was forced to remove 21 ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 channels after a high court ruling in 2013.
It'd be a great addition to the Apple TV, and relying on an internet rather than a signal is a step in the right direction, especially for users in a poor TV signal area. It'd transform the Apple TV from a place for on-demand TV to a place where you can watch live TV and have on-demand services at your fingertips without even having to change the TV source.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: Dark Sky
The audience for Dark Sky on the Apple TV is limited, we grant you that, but it'd still be a fantastic app to have. Dark Sky shows satellite images of rainclouds on a world map so you can see if there are any potential showers coming in your direction. You can also scrub forwards and backwards in time to see what the weather will be like in the coming hours/days, and we think it'd look gorgeous on a TV. Think of it as a personalised weather report, telling you when it's due to start raining in your area.
As well as displaying satellite images, it also gives you a breakdown of the weather over the next 24 hours as well as predictions for the following seven days and a graph displaying the highs and lows temperature wise. It also notifies you when it's due to start raining (which comes in handy pretty often) so if Apple did integrate some kind of notification system into the Apple TV like we suggest, it could notify you of the weather while watching your favourite TV show.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: Spotify
iTunes has always been an integral part of the Apple TV, where you can browse and play your complete library of music if you use iTunes Match or have set up home sharing on your network. A lot of people tend to use the Apple TV for this reason, as a home cinema system usually sounds better than standard computer/phone speakers. And even if you haven't set up iTunes Match/home sharing, the option is there to AirPlay music from your iPhone to the Apple TV - but what about users of third party streaming services, such as Spotify
Sure, you can go on your iPhone and AirPlay music via the Spotify app, but we'd love to see some kind of Spotify client for the Apple TV where you can browse your playlists, radio stations and podcasts (thanks to the latest Spotify update) and play them without having to use your iPhone and drain its battery.
Come to think of it, why isn't this available on the Apple Watch C'mon Spotify! Spotify for Apple TV could also support Spotify Connect, allowing you to browse your playlist on your Apple TV via a remote, or control it via your iPhone.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: iMovie
We'd assume that a new Apple TV would be using one of Apple's chipsets, possibly an even unannounced A9 chip. If this is the case, it could possibly turn the Apple TV into an editing suite for budding filmmakers that want to use Apple's own iMovie. iMovie is great piece of software to get into the world of video editing, but it can be a bit frustrating to use on an iPhone.
The iPad experience is better, but we think the best experience would be on a regular size TV where you can really see the footage you've shot, and see what it'd look like on a TV. Apple could even choose to go one step further and design a different version of iMovie for the Apple TV, possibly supporting Bluetooth mouse/keyboard input for ease of use.
It'd also make the editing process a bit easier, as the UI would be easier to navigate and you could finely trim your clips better than you could on a small screen. Additionally, it'd make showing friends and family your project a lot easier, as it'd be on screen and ready to play at the push of a button.
Seven apps we want to see on Apple TV: Thunderspace
Thunderspace is one of our favourite apps on the App Store, and is one that we use almost every day. Thunderspace is a sleep aid that uses stereoscopic sound and headphones to place you in the middle of a thunderstorm. You'll hear the rain around you, thunder rumbling above you and the wind howling, and if that's not your thing then there are other clips available, even one simulating being inside a car when raining.
Another word for stereoscopic sound is 3D sound, which allows you to detect different sounds from different directions and paint a mental image of the world around you. When using stereo headphones, you're fooled into thinking that you're in a thunderstorm - even if you're in bed. It was a surreal experience when we first tried the app, one that we hadn't experienced in any other white noise app. The storms were all recorded by Emmy-award winning sound recordist Gordon Hempton, who has recorded sounds of nature for over 20 years.
We'd love Thunderspace to come to the Apple TV, even if the developers have warned that it may sound different if being played via a home surround system. It may sound slightly different, but many people find it uncomfortable to sleep with headphones/earphones on so it's an acceptable compromise to make. Thunderspace uses your iPhone's LED to simulate flashes of lightning in time with the sound you're listening to, so imagine the same effect but with a TV being used, flashing bright white whenever there's lightning.