Apple TV displays visual static/snow when waking

Every single time I turn on my TV, the Apple TV displays visual static/snow on the screen. This is not normal TV static—it’s a distinct corruption pattern. The only fix sometimes is unplugging the Apple TV from power for 2-3 minutes. Software restart works but doesn’t consistently. Sometimes I need to restart it 2-3 times. 

This happens 50-70% of the time when turning on the TV from standby, or waking the Apple TV after the TV has been off.

After research: 

This is an HDMI-CEC handshake protocol failure in tvOS. The Apple TV fails to properly negotiate display capabilities when resuming from standby.

Proof it’s your firmware bug:

• Same issue reported across LG, Samsung, Sony, Philips TVs since 2017

• All other HDMI devices (Roku, Fire TV, consoles, Blu-ray players) work perfectly on the same TV and ports

• Users report older Apple TV models or older tvOS versions worked fine, but the issue appeared after tvOS updates

• Premium certified HDMI cables don’t fix it

What I’ve Already Tried

• Replaced HDMI cables with certified Ultra High Speed cables

• Tested all HDMI ports on TV

• Disabled Match Dynamic Range and Match Frame Rate

• Changed audio format settings

• Disabled HDMI-CEC

• Factory reset

• Updated to latest tvOS (every year after updating I hope the problem is fixed yet the biggest tech company in the world continues to surprise me)

Nothing works. The only “solution” is restarting or unplugging the device every single time I want to use it.

This is Unacceptable

HDMI handshake protocols are standardized. Every other streaming device manufacturer handles this correctly with proper timing delays and retry logic.

This bug has been documented in Apple Support Communities since 2017—over 8 years—with no official acknowledgment or fix. This is absolutely inexcusable.

I cannot recommend this product when I have to tell people they’ll need to physically unplug their $150+ device multiple times per week.

What I Need from Apple

1. Official acknowledgment this is a known firmware bug

2. Timeline for a permanent software fix

3. Explanation why this has remained unfixed for 5+ years despite thousands of reports

4. If unfixable via software, provide hardware replacement or recall program

This is not user error. This is a fundamental failure in your HDMI-CEC implementation that persists across multiple tvOS versions and hardware generations.

Apple markets itself on products that “just work.” This doesn’t work at all. It’s by far the worst apple product that had one job and fails to do it.

Someone from apple, please reply ASAP, this is really unacceptable. 

Thanks..