Starting later this year, Sony's new 2019 Z9G Series 8K LCDs, A9G Series OLED 4K TVs, and X950G 4K LCD TVs will support Airplay 2 and HomeKit protocols from Apple.
Other TV manufacturers, including Samsung, Vizio, and LG have also announced support for HomeKit and AirPlay 2 for their 2019 smart TV lineups. All of the major TV brands will support both, with the exception of Samsung. Samsung TVs support AirPlay 2 and will have an exclusive app for accessing iTunes content, but won't work with HomeKit.
With AirPlay 2 support, compatible Sony television sets will be able to stream videos, music, photos, and more right from an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and multi-room audio across multiple AirPlay 2 devices will also be available.
Content AirPlayed on Sony television sets will be able to be controlled using the Lock screen widget or the Control Center of an iOS device. Users will be able to play, pause, fast-forward, rewind, and adjust volume on the TV when AirPlaying TVs, movies, and music.
With HomeKit and Siri integration, users will be able to control their TVs via Siri voice commands, using voice requests to do things like play specific TV shows on a specific television. The TVs will be present in the Home app, so Siri controls will also be available for doing things like turning on the TV or including the TV in a HomeKit scene.
Sony's television sets run an Android-based operating system with built-in Cast support from Google, which means users will be able to choose between using Google and Apple services.
AirPlay-compatible Sony television sets include the newly announced Z9G 8K TVs available in 98 and 85 inch sizes, the new A9G 4K OLED TVs available in 77, 65, and 55 inch options, and the new X950G 4K LCD TVs available in 55, 65, 75 and 85 inch sizes, all of which are set to launch in spring 2019. Sony says that AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support will launch for these TV sets "later this year."
Apple has added new details about the upcoming smart television integrations on its AirPlay website for those who want more information about its upcoming partnerships with TV manufacturers.
