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I'm not sure what the thought process was in including glass in a TV remote. The designers must all have carpeted living rooms.

very simple... for IR and Bluetooth signal to pass through, you have a choice of either plastic or glass. and we all know what apple doesn't like, plastic.

this is the same design concept as iphone 4, glass and aluminum.
 
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Note: Running the previous version AppleTV.

Anyone else notice in the Trailers lately that a number of images for the movies are missing? Just empty grey squares???
 
I've never seen the appeal in using a smartphone app as a remote control. Sure, it can save the day in a pinch if you've misplaced your regular remote. And again, it's the best solution on the rare ocassion when you need to type something.

But for general purpose use it's simply inefficient. A dedicated remote can be operated instantly and solely by touch. An app requires you to have your phone nearby, unlock it, search for and open the remote app, select the device to be controlled, and finally interact with it poorly since it's not as responsive as the dedicated remote.

What is so appealing about this?
It's a beautiful world where people who see the appeal of using an app on their iOS device which has its own display, and those who think that such an app is completely superfluous can live together in perfect harmony, each respecting the other's unique preferences.
 
I've never seen the appeal in using a smartphone app as a remote control. Sure, it can save the day in a pinch if you've misplaced your regular remote. And again, it's the best solution on the rare ocassion when you need to type something.

But for general purpose use it's simply inefficient. A dedicated remote can be operated instantly and solely by touch. An app requires you to have your phone nearby, unlock it, search for and open the remote app, select the device to be controlled, and finally interact with it poorly since it's not as responsive as the dedicated remote.

What is so appealing about this?

The remote is a direct reflection of the UI. Frankly I hate the TV UI. I always opt for streaming content from my iPad because it's so much easier to navigate than the TV UI. And you seem to be creating problems for yourself ... It's not a mutually exclusive situation -- I have a Directv remote on my couch as well as my iPad. When I just have to quickly mute the TV or something I grab it. When I'm sitting down to navigate my entertainment, I grab the iPad. Unlock is one touch action while I'm picking up the device. The remote app is on the dock. Selecting the device is no more difficult than selecting the device I want to control on the directv universal remote. The interaction of the app is no different than the dedicated Siri remote.

But I will agree on one point, the whole TV UI and remote interface is not as responsive as using AirPlay to stream from the dedicated app. Both the Siri remote and iOS app are cumbersome to slide your finger around guessing where you are on the screen, especially without an arrow/cursor to see where you are.

I really hope along with bringing Siri to the iOS app, they also bring a mirrored TV UI to the iOS app so you can literally look at the actual screen on the iPad display and just touch what you want to select rather than sliding your finger around a grid of icons, etc. dumbest UI ever. And this will BLOW the current Siri dedicated remote out of the water.
 
you dont seem to understand why it doesnt. Siri on your iphone doesnt cover an entire catalog of movies, actors, and directors, which now all have to be translated for local pronunciation recognition -- because the way you say their names isnt the same way i say their names.

this stuff doesnt code itself.
Bull. Siri on my iPhone works just fine with Apple Music. You are seriously delusional if you think that for every single language Siri supports, there are adjustments for every single country where Siri use is enabled.
 
Yeah, because EVERYONE at Apple works on ATV and no something else or something bigger to worry about. ;)

I always appreciate the extremist excuses my fellow Apple consumers will make for Apple.

But Apple is not exactly a tiny company lacking human or cash resources. It wouldn't take "everyone" to make anything happen at Apple. And (IMO) 3.5 years is a LONG TIME for even a relative tiny subset of "everyone" to get something as commonly used as the remote app updated for the launch of the "4."

Apple has positioned itself as a "just works" company. Some of us expect them to deliver on that. And it's not "just works*" where the asterisk means "after 5 software updates in coming months"- it's "just works" right out of the box.

So again, I appreciate the spin but this seems like a detail that should have been ready at launch (IMO). We Apple consumers should not feel like beta testers for fairly mainstream parts of the "just works" experience.
 
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I still want a remote app that mirrors the UI on the iOS device (especially now with larger iPhones) vs. just providing a big touch area. Like the 3rd party "smart remote" type UIs, or even some of the iOS apps that you can use to control a Mac (as an HTPC).
 
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I've never seen the appeal in using a smartphone app as a remote control. Sure, it can save the day if you've misplaced your regular remote. And again, it's the best solution on the rare ocassion when you need to type something.

But for general purpose use it's simply inefficient. A dedicated remote can be operated instantly and solely by touch. An app requires you to have your phone nearby, unlock it, search for and open the remote app, select the device to be controlled, and finally interact with it poorly since it's not as responsive as the dedicated remote.

What is so appealing about this?

I use the remote app on my iPad. I use it because its faster than the linear browsing on the Apple TV itself. Like scrolling through movies or music. Also, when browsing on the remote app, movies in my library show up with artwork. Its just a much more pleasant way to browse a large library. I just got an Apple TV4 and the touchpad remote is horrendous! Steve Jobs would never have allowed that to happen. Remember when Apple's mantra was the you don't need instructions to use their products because its intuitive? I don't think that's the case anymore.
 
The many people are breaking their remotes? Wth are they doing with them??

Mine went flying across the living room and crashed on the hard floor without so much as a scratch. But the thing is made of glass, and I've seen several reports from people who've dropped and broken theirs. Seems excessive to charge $79 just for a replacement remote for a $149 product, suggesting the Apple TV 4 itself is only worth $70?

 
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I still want a remote app that mirrors the UI on the iOS device (especially now with larger iPhones) vs. just providing a big touch area. Like the 3rd party "smart remote" type UIs, or even some of the iOS apps that you can use to control a Mac (as an HTPC).

That would make more sense.
 
I still want a remote app that mirrors the UI on the iOS device (especially now with larger iPhones) vs. just providing a big touch area. Like the 3rd party "smart remote" type UIs, or even some of the iOS apps that you can use to control a Mac (as an HTPC).

Yes this!! I just said the same thing above in response to freediverx. I'm shocked it took so many posts for us to bring it up first. It would be a reverse AirPlay situation, but it's completely possible with third party apps right now so, easy for Apple to do it.

The TV UI is the dumbest thing I've ever seen. It's set up like a touch screen, in a grid that the remote has to navigate one by one. Imagine if you had to navigate your iPhone screen to select apps with the Home button, going line by line until you got to the app you wanted? The old Apple remote was actually easier to use than the new Siri remote, because you had a physical button that confirmed the step by step movement, with the slider (and is is the same problem I have with the remote app) I'm always guessing how far I'm moving, and have to pay careful attention to the screen. With the old remote if I new I needed to move over four icons, I just press the button 4 times.

This is long overdue, and at a minimum the mirrored screen remote is a must for the TV UI as it exists today. For those who want a dedicated remote, Apple should "dumb-down" the iPod Touch, or morph the iPod nano into a dedicated Siri remote with integrated screen mirror. And keep costs down by offering it as an optional remote purchased separately for those who prefer to use their iPhone or iPad.
 
How about enabling Siri on Apple TV to be used AT ALL in the first place, that would be a good start. Siri in english and russian works just fine on my iPhone, but Apple decided that since I live in the wrong country (Finland) according to them, they won't allow me to use it on Apple TV (so far).

That pisses me off too. We know how to speak english, just let us use it!
 
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I just hope they fix Homesharing. The existing Remote app is garbage, it only connects to my Homeshare-enabled mac maybe 5% of the time.
 
Although I am cuban, I have not been the biggest fan of Eddy. However, it is nice to hear him validate something that I have been saying for a while. Namely that many people, the casual gamers, will use the Apple TV instead of buying PlayStation, XBOX or Wii. But I have gone further and stated that I believe those in between casual and hardcore are also migrating away from a dedicated game console. Even hardcore seem to be migrating to PCs. Bottom line, the hay days of consoles are coming to an end. Mind you, they will continue to be around, but as the iphone, ipad, and ATV eat into the bottom end and the PC on the upper end, the console is going to get squeezed into a niche. I gave them 5 years. that was about a year ago, so I am at 4. Let's say by 2020, dedicated consoles will be around but more of a niche thing than a mainstream thing.
I personally think this is the last generation of the console as we know it today. MS and Sony know it too. That's why the PS4 and XBone are more home entertainment focused than ever before. The capability of both systems beyond gaming is pretty sweet. The next iteration will probably be more entertainment hub that plays games as an added benefit. It's pretty much that now.

On topic: This app should have been ready when the ATV4 was released. We belittle other devs when their ATV4 apps aren't ready, but apologize for Apple when they can't get their crap together (not talking about you, just in general). It'll be ready soon, so I guess that's something to be thankful for.
 
Siri/Search on the new Apple TV is completely useless to me until it indexes/searches my Home Shared iTunes library of over 1,000 movies.

Apple didn't even bother refreshing the Home Sharing interface and you think they're going to add Siri Search to it? The best case for Home Sharing users is to use Plex and pray that the promised universal search API can be made to work with it.
 
This new Apple TV Remote app should have been released with the Apple TV.
OK. Great. But it wasn't. Yet everyone and his relatives keep on saying it should have been released with the tv4. But it wasn't. What good does it do to say it should have been released over and over and over again. My lord! Give it a rest already. There was a reason is wasn't. Stop complaining already and move on. The signal to noise ratio here keeps on getting lower and lower. Soon there won't be a single non complaining post to be found and the only people populating this forum will be the moaners and groaners.
 
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What about pairing an apple keyboard to this thing.. When will that be enabled.. Tired of sliding back and forth to enter text and passwords... At least the remote app gives me keyboard on my iphone. maybe bluetooth connect keyboard to phone and then use remote app...
 
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This "long awaited" tv service is another thing that baffles me. I cut the cord for a reason: to get away from all the crappy channels, commercials, and programming and focus only on the channels and shows I like.

With Apple TV we have access to HBO, Showtime, Netflix, Hulu, PBS, and various other channels with premium, commercial-free content. Why on earth would anyone want - let alone pay $40/mo for - crappy networks like CBS, ABC, NBC, and FOX? On the rare occasion when a good show is on one of those channels, it can be better accessed, commercial-free, via other services.

This is yet another sign of Apple targeting the older baby boomer demographic, in sharp contrast to the younger audience they once catered to.


Agreed! It's cheaper for me at least to buy episodes/season pass (iTunes) of shows I watch, skip the commercials and watch on my time. I still have Netflix and Hulu for binge (Seinfeld is great).
 
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This "long awaited" tv service is another thing that baffles me. I cut the cord for a reason: to get away from all the crappy channels, commercials, and programming and focus only on the channels and shows I like.

With Apple TV we have access to HBO, Showtime, Netflix, Hulu, PBS, and various other channels with premium, commercial-free content. Why on earth would anyone want - let alone pay $40/mo for - crappy networks like CBS, ABC, NBC, and FOX? On the rare occasion when a good show is on one of those channels, it can be better accessed, commercial-free, via other services.

This is yet another sign of Apple targeting the older baby boomer demographic, in sharp contrast to the younger audience they once catered to.

Live sporting events. That's about it.
 
This app should have been ready when the ATV4 was released. We belittle other devs when their ATV4 apps aren't ready, but apologize for Apple when they can't get their crap together (not talking about you, just in general). It'll be ready soon, so I guess that's something to be thankful for.
I agree that the remote app should have gone out with the ATV on day one. Its almost like buying a 50 inch TV and when you open the box there is a remote but it does not all work. Certainly provides less than awesome user experience.
 
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