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Anyone else uninterested in a 4K Apple TV at this point?

thadoggfather

thadoggfather

macrumors P6
Original poster
Oct 1, 2007
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I have an OLED 4K tv, but Apple TV 4 disappointed me so much, i think I’m done investing in apple set top boxes.

They mostly collect dust aside from HBO, I just use built in apps on my LG if anything and my xb1s for 4K blu rays

This isnt a very informative post, but I think apple blew it dragging their feet on the tv scene, and hyping up a set top box with decent hardware, and potential, but never any pay out since the 2015 model came out
 
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I think Apple TV does have usage if people are invested in iTunes. Also Apple TV was released when there wasn't many smart TVs in the picture. They just didn't grow the platform with time.
 
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akash.nu said:
I think Apple TV does have usage if people are invested in iTunes. Also Apple TV was released when there wasn't many smart TVs in the picture. They just didn't grow the platform with time.
Click to expand...

But I guess I'd also wonder how many 4K iTunes movies they'll have and if they retroactively upgrade purchases? We shall see of course but I wonder
 
For starters, I don't have a 4k TV, so that immediately makes it unnecessary.

In general, I love my AppleTV 4 because it does way more than most streaming boxes. It plays games (the SteelSeries Nimbus is awesome!). I can AirPlay from other devices. Even the lack of the Amazon Prime app has been a non-issue for me because of AirPlay.

If I *had* a 4k TV, I would be on board with the ATV5 very quickly.

All in all, I think AppleTV could be even better, but for what it is today, I love it.
 
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thadoggfather said:
I have an OLED 4K tv, but Apple TV 4 disappointed me so much, i think I’m done investing in apple set top boxes.
Click to expand...

Like most high end toy, the 4K crowd is always small and noisy (vocal). Sure I think ATV should release a 4K version at some point but to answer your question, no I'm uninterested in an Apple TV BUT I would like and new version of the box with Facetime integration and Siri live.
 
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Don't have a 4k TV, don't want one. Still using my two AppleTV 3's and they meet my need, which is just accessing a large library of ripped DVD's. Moved to my current rural location in 2006 with no cable service and only very slow DSL internet. I used to watch cable TV heavily but I quit cold turkey back then and it was the best thing that ever happened to me, freed up a lot of time that I've put to better use.

Just got 150/150 FIOS a couple months ago, so now I have a big enough pipe for whatever content I want, but I don't see it changing much in my media consumption habits. :)
 
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All my TVs are now 4K with HDR but 4K in itself means nothing. Do I get 4K access to the films aready bought? And other features the device will have??

So right now, I'm not in the slightest interested as it's just a product of fiction until it's public and I know what's in the box.
 
I don't have a 4K/HDR TV, so I'm not that concerned about that functionality at the moment. However, since I tend to keep Apple TV devices for 5 years, I would probably buy the next Apple TV to replace my 3rd-generation device and be prepared for the future.
 
I've never had an ATV before and am looking to get the ATV5 when it launches, but I'm not interested in 4K - am I right in assuming watching 4K content is not necessary, I can still buy and watch 1080 HD content with a 4K option in the background?
 
Gulfam said:
I've never had an ATV before and am looking to get the ATV5 when it launches, but I'm not interested in 4K - am I right in assuming watching 4K content is not necessary, I can still buy and watch 1080 HD content with a 4K option in the background?
Click to expand...

I would absolutely assume/bet on there being a setting to just display 1080 if that's all your tv supports
 
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It will be a very long time until I have a 4K tv so I'm not interested, but I understand the market is moving in that direction so it's probably time for it.
 
Still happy with my good old HDTV and AppleTV 4 (which I got when I signed up for DirecTVNow last fall). No interest in 4K at all.
 
I might be interested in an upgrade if the new one finally has gigabit ethernet. A faster processor would also be nice, my Apple TV3's have a fair amount of latency even though I have a Mini as an iTunes server that can saturate my gigabit network.

But since the update will no doubt be expensive and packed with features I don't need, I'll probably pass. :)
 
thadoggfather said:
But I guess I'd also wonder how many 4K iTunes movies they'll have and if they retroactively upgrade purchases? We shall see of course but I wonder
Click to expand...

EXACTLY how I look at this situation. If they're interested in making me repurchase the films in my library. Forget it. "Maybe" on new films, if the price difference isn't stupid.
I already have the UHD blu ray, so that's covered. Than it will be a point of will the " Digital Copy code" in a UHD Blu Ray get you the 4K version in Itunes.
 
Being that I'm pretty deep into the Apple ecosystem I'm still very interested in a 4k AppleTV. Even though I have a 4k HDR TV I still tend to utilize my AppleTV 4 at 1080p more than the TV apps and my PS4 Pro at 4k. For me the AppleTV is MUCH more then just a way to watch Netflix, if that is all it did then yes my Samsung TV would be better.

First, there is all the proprietary stuff like AirPlay, TV app, easy access to my iTunes collection, Apple Music, iOS remotes, etc....

Second, homekit hub. While that could fall under proprietary stuff the fact it can be a hub at all is the point. Combined with using "Hey Siri" to turn on lights, adjust temp and stuff is nice. Although turning on lights would be better once the HomePod is released.

Third, 3rd party apps my TV may not have access to like VLC or apps specifically for my NAS. For example I can monitor security cameras throughout my house with their app on my TV. While I don't have a need for it a buddy of mine uses it to see and hear his baby daughters room upstairs while he's in his office in the basement.

Fourth, I just prefer the layout and interface plus its voice control (Siri). While Siri is in no way indispensable the way I use my AppleTV makes it really useful. Game of Thrones title sequence "Fast forward 1 minute 30 seconds" and its gone. I find that much easier then scrubbing through. And its incredibly useful for a show that starts the title a random way in.

Fifth, just general ease of use. While my PS4 Pro and Samsung TV features aren't by any means "hard" to use I don't feel its as fluid and seamless especially when the TV app is accounted for.

Sixth, future app potential. I feel its a platform ripe for future apps and expansion whereas many TVs are stuck with what they came with. Plus the devs aren't as limited when it comes to updates for their apps and Apple is good at handling the update implementation.

While I understand the AppleTV isn't the best solution or even a good solution for many people, for me a 4k AppleTV would pretty much remove all its negatives and clearly stand above all other options. And while I would like other things too like full pass through of any and all audio codec I can deal without.




I don't want to sound like a paid shill though because its not all good. The remote can be finicky and its incredibly fragile. Apple has their own restrictions especially when it comes to game controllers. Some apps just suck and since tvOS isn't as popular as iOS they don't get updated as often as they need too. And I question the tools and power the devs have over the OS itself sometimes. For example...

There is STILL no refresh button in the YouTube app. My subscriptions put up new content and closing the app and reopening seems half baked. Less than half baked actually, its like they completely forgot.

The new Netflix app does that live preview thing like my TV but its not very fluid (not that I like it, I find it distracting).

Hulu app used to crash all the time. Got rid of Hulu so it might be better now.

Certain things make me wonder if its the devs inexperience, not caring due to the small user base or just limitations of tvOS itself.

At the end of the day even after attempting to replace it with other devices I keep coming back and for me its price point is currently very reasonable for the amount of stuff I use it for.
 
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I currently do not have a 4k tv and I don't anticipate a need for one in the near future. Because of this I can't say that I am very interested in the new ATV. I am hoping they lower the price on the ATV4 at which time I would certainly pick up another. Many people have been disappointed in the ATV4, but my experience has been very positive.
 
thadoggfather said:
I have an OLED 4K tv, but Apple TV 4 disappointed me so much, i think I’m done investing in apple set top boxes.

They mostly collect dust aside from HBO, I just use built in apps on my LG if anything and my xb1s for 4K blu rays

This isnt a very informative post, but I think apple blew it dragging their feet on the tv scene, and hyping up a set top box with decent hardware, and potential, but never any pay out since the 2015 model came out
Click to expand...


I love my Apple TV 4. It's clearly not for you.
 
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Boyd01 said:
I might be interested in an upgrade if the new one finally has gigabit ethernet. A faster processor would also be nice, my Apple TV3's have a fair amount of latency even though I have a Mini as an iTunes server that can saturate my gigabit network.

But since the update will no doubt be expensive and packed with features I don't need, I'll probably pass. :)
Click to expand...

For the AppleTV 4 gigabit ethernet was a pointless spec. With lossy 4k streaming (15-25Mbs) its still useless. I can't even think of a way to saturate 100Mbs with a 1080p stream. Even with triple layer 4k BD one could still argue its usefulness due to the time spent below MAX bitrates and the AppleTVs ability to buffer. I think locally shot 4k content is why the next AppleTV will have gigabit ethernet.

And regardless of whether we need it or not I think we'll see a substantial bump in CPU performance due to it being something new. I'm more curious what CPU they will use. Usually its a cut down ARM from the past. However we'll need the latest 4k video codec that may not be built into older ARM chips....
 
cynics said:
I can't even think of a way to saturate 100Mbs with a 1080p stream.
Click to expand...

I think you missed my point, I was talking about latency, not whether gigabit was necessary for streaming. I just don't like watching the spinning wheel while my movie loads - and this happens with standard definition content. Also try "rewinding" or scrubbing, the ATV can't keep up and the screen goes black.

This does not happen when I access the same iTunes server with home sharing from my Mini or Macbook Air, movies start instantly and scrub smoothly. But I was also talking about the ATV3, which is what I have. It may be a little better on the ATV4 if you use 802.11ac wifi instead of the 100baseT ethernet.
 
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