Apple’s Snoopy TV Screensaver Is Brilliant, So Why Not Give Us More?

I like a pleasant surprise, and seeing one of my childhood favorites—Snoopy—pop up as a screensaver option on my Apple TV 4K definitely counts as extremely pleasant. However, this got me thinking of the wasted potential of how Apple handles native screensavers on Apple TV devices.

Apple’s Snoopy Screensaver Is Amazing

If you haven’t checked it out, the Peanuts screensaver dropped along with tvOS 18.2 in the first half of December 2024. Featuring the famous cartoon dog Snoopy, the screensaver is a beautiful high-res rendition of Snoopy doing various activities, like sleeping on top of his doghouse, or exploring space—as you do when you’re a dog with a big imagination.

We’ve had it on almost since it was released to the general public (it was available to Beta participants before) and it really reminds me of classic screensavers like Johnny Castaway.

Also, since I have now switched over to OLED TV technology, I feel like screensavers are back to their old function again. Burn-in is much less of an issue with modern OLEDs, but it’s a non-issue with a good screensaver. I don’t turn my TV off during the day and prefer to use it as a media player or use art apps to show nice pictures that jazz up the place.

Apple Offers Beautiful Screensavers, but a Limited Selection

This Peanuts screensaver is the latest addition to Apple’s native screensaver selection, which also includes Aerials, Memories & Slideshows and Portraits. These are slick and very nice to look at, but there’s not much in the way of choice.

Of course, new videos are added to Aerials semi-regularly, but I’m talking about new screensaver concepts. I’d love to have more charming screensavers like Snoopy’s to choose from.

For example, on one of my Samsung smart TVs, I use a museum-funded art screensaver. Turning the TV into a high-resolution portrait. It would be grand if Apple did something like that!

Third Party Creators Don’t Have Access to Native Screensavers

If Apple is seemingly reluctant to add more screensavers, I think it would be great if they let third-party creators make their own. A “native” screensaver is one that runs at the OS level, and is triggered by tvOS itself. There are “screensaver” apps on the Apple TV app store, but these are just normal separate apps that you have to open manually.

Giving third-party creators access to screensavers on tvOS would quickly create a large selection of screensavers, and some of them would even be functional, rather than just decorative. However, if we look at how Apple handle’s watch faces for its popular line of smartwatches, I’m not too hopeful that they’ll do this.

Perhaps it’s over security concerns, or low-quality or inappropriate content in screensavers. I tried looking for any sort of official statement about native third-party screensavers from the company, but didn’t find anything as of this writing.

The Apple TV Needs a Screensaver Store

If the desire to spread some beauty around isn’t enough to motivate Apple to add first-party or allow third-party screensavers, then how about cold hard cash?

Apple’s already happy to sell us ringtones on iPhone, so why not let the movie studios and other content producers in to sell us cool 4K native screensavers for a few bucks?

I don’t know about you, but I’d be pretty happy do have a dozen or so screensavers to cover every mood and season. The TV’s going to be there one way or another. It might as well contribute to the interior decoration of my home, such as it is.