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Vermifuge

macrumors 68020
Mar 7, 2009
2,067
1,589
True. To me, each of those has a draw-back which, in my opinion, is greater than lack of 4k.

Specifically I despise the Roku UI and remote. To me, it is the worst designed user experience since MSN WebTV. ChromeCast is pretty nice, but I don't want to rely on a smartphone to control things, rather I want it to be a standalone thing that will work all on its own. I don't subscribe to Amazon Prime, so most of the FireTV features are useless to me.

Buying a TV with a built-in ecosystem, like Samsung's Tizen-based SmartHub and LG's WebOS 3.0, is a decent solution too, with obvious downsides.

Apple's solution just seems like the best mix of UI, simplicity, and apps.

I guess what i meant to say is over time the chicken egg problem will solve itself. with other options people will slowly adopt competing technologies. 4k will gain importance over the next 5 years and 4k content should be the norm.
 

vipergts2207

macrumors 601
Apr 7, 2009
4,349
9,692
Columbus, OH
Actually this is exactly what I'm talking about. As a cord cutter my ISP (AT&T) has saddled me with a data cap of 1 TB . The only way to have unlimited data in my region (California) with AT&T is to subscribe to a TV package (Direct TV/U-Verse) in addition to paying for the mid tier data service. Anything slower than 20 mbps will result in a data cap of 150 GB.

This will become the new norm.

Who says this will be the new norm? I have TWC and have no data cap. With Google Fiber continuing to roll out, the traditional ISP's can only squeeze their customers so much before they choose to leave for someone else. I have at least two or three ISP's in my market. I think data caps are going to be a temporary thing in some markets until newer competitors without caps like Google enter those markets.

In any case, I don't know about you, but I don't upgrade every electronic device I have the moment a new one comes out. I upgrade my phone every two years instead of every year, my MBP is from 2011 as I wait for skylake MBP's and my Apple TV has been in use for around 3 years now. I expect my new Apple TV to last just as long and one without 4K will be far outdated 3 years from now, as 4K will enter the mainstream next year. You can easily pick up a 4K TV for less than $600 today, so pretty much everyone shopping for a new TV will end up with a 4K model by default. Pretty much only people shopping at walmart for the cheapest TV possible will continue buying 1080p models, which are going the way of the 720p models, bye-bye.
 

Tech198

Cancelled
Mar 21, 2011
15,915
2,151
Go watch 4K on a samsung tv at best buy....the images are real...this fact will scare parents as crime shows will show the blood and you will think you are a witness to a murder or killing....not for children.

At some stage kids must of freaked out when color came along and they all knew what color blood was..

Apple probably things 4K isn't really ''main-strem' yet....

More and more with 4K sets, maybe the fast majority are still on HD...

Besides, it makes little sense on bring our 4K on TvOS if the iTunes Store doesn't yet support 4K...

I reckon Apple is not gonna implement something just u can use it with the competition which drives their movies away on iTunes..

While 2K would still look good, 4K native content is still not on iTunes, therefore i assume will not be done till it is. I think the goal is to keep customers and Apple knows how to do that..,
 
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megfilmworks

macrumors 68020
Jul 1, 2007
2,046
16
Sherman Oaks
I love 4k.
But,
I shoot and edit 4k RAW and 4kUHD ProRes every hour of every day on pro 4k monitors.
And even under those best of class circumstances I find most non professionals can't tell the difference between 2k and 4k at screen sizes below 50 inches.
And streamed 4k is a joke at this point.
Like your 4k smart phone, it's all marketing.
 
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Mildredop

macrumors 68020
Oct 14, 2013
2,478
1,510
Not sure why Apple chooses to be behind in this area.

Planned obsolescence. Apple need somewhere to go. Somewhere for the product to improve.
[doublepost=1476311611][/doublepost]
At some stage kids must of freaked out when color came along and they all knew what color blood was..

Apple probably things 4K isn't really ''main-strem' yet....

More and more with 4K sets, maybe the fast majority are still on HD...

Besides, it makes little sense on bring our 4K on TvOS if the iTunes Store doesn't yet support 4K...

I reckon Apple is not gonna implement something just u can use it with the competition which drives their movies away on iTunes..

While 2K would still look good, 4K native content is still not on iTunes, therefore i assume will not be done till it is. I think the goal is to keep customers and Apple knows how to do that..,
What on Earth have you typed this on??
 

vipergts2207

macrumors 601
Apr 7, 2009
4,349
9,692
Columbus, OH
Planned obsolescence. Apple need somewhere to go. Somewhere for the product to improve.

You're probably right, the only problem is, when your competitors offer what some may consider must-have features (like 4K) that you do not. The only reason I use an Apple TV over other streaming devices is for the Airplay ability to use with my Mac and iPhone. The majority of other consumers don't need that feature and would be better off choosing a different streamer, thus Apple will at best remain stagnant in market share in this area.
 

cynics

macrumors G4
Jan 8, 2012
11,959
2,155
Erm, the video image on a UHD bluray will also be lossy. The question is whether that loss is acceptable. For most people it will be. The image quality of a 100mbps UHD bluray will not be 400% better than Netflix UHD just because the Mbps figure is.

The other thing you've got to factor in sound quality-given that a greater proportion of the 100mbps will include a lossless Atmos (or the like) track, but Netflix will only have lossy soundtracks that means the difference in Video quality will be less, but the Sound quality difference will be greater. But how many people actually have amultiple speaker setup, that is compatible with Atmos etc?

The main reason why Apple are holding back is its like the Wild West out there with regards to standards.

The UHD BD will be lossy in comparison to what? A live play? They are the standard. Further compression introduces the "loss".

For most people the loss will need to be acceptable with the current cost of UHD BD players and the disc themselves. I personally am not interested in buying UHD BD (making my future PS4 Pro purchase justifiable albeit still an annoying omission).

Regardless the difference is stark to even the most untrained eye. You'll never see a major box store with a TV section pushing a 4k Netflix quality image to their 4k TV's merely because its not that impressive.

Again...its good. Its better then streaming 1080p. I'm not debating that. I'm just saying there is a massive gap between UHD BD and its stream 4k counterpart.
 

Vermifuge

macrumors 68020
Mar 7, 2009
2,067
1,589
Who says this will be the new norm?

Here is a good article on the subject

I think data caps are going to be a temporary thing in some markets until newer competitors without caps like Google enter those markets.

Google doesn't really have any interest in competing in markets. Its services have mostly been rolled out in areas that don't have much competition.

You can easily pick up a 4K TV for less than $600 today, so pretty much everyone shopping for a new TV will end up with a 4K model by default. Pretty much only people shopping at walmart for the cheapest TV possible will continue buying 1080p models, which are going the way of the 720p models, bye-bye.

That's very true, but that magic number of over 50% will still take a few years to reach. That would be the optimal time for Apple to introduce a new Apple TV and point of m original response to this thread. Apple Will get there but don't expect a new Apple TV this year or next. 2020 Is the optimal target and i Will be happy to upgrade at that time. I have no problem waiting....
 

vipergts2207

macrumors 601
Apr 7, 2009
4,349
9,692
Columbus, OH
Here is a good article on the subject



Google doesn't really have any interest in competing in markets. Its services have mostly been rolled out in areas that don't have much competition.



That's very true, but that magic number of over 50% will still take a few years to reach. That would be the optimal time for Apple to introduce a new Apple TV and point of m original response to this thread. Apple Will get there but don't expect a new Apple TV this year or next. 2020 Is the optimal target and i Will be happy to upgrade at that time. I have no problem waiting....

That's just the thing, most areas DON'T have competition and have one, maybe two, ISP's to choose from. That's why people have to suffer with this data cap BS. This means there's plenty more places for Google to come in and disrupt the market. In my area, I've got the choice of TWC, WOW, ATT and potentially more I'm not aware of. I haven't looked into it, as I'm rather happy with my TWC service.

Absolutely no way Apple will wait until 2020 to release the next Apple TV and whenever they do, it will support 4K and possibly HDR. I'd be surprised if Apple doesn't release a new Apple TV next year sometime, as they were already slightly behind the curve last year, and everyone else's new models coming out this year isn't helping that any. If Apple waits until 50% of the market adopts 4K TV's to release their own 4K box, where do you think the first 50% of that market will have gone, when they were out buying their 4K streamers to go with the TV? Not Apple.

And as for the second 50%, just because many people don't have a 4K TV yet doesn't mean they don't expect their new devices to support it. Again, most people don't throw out and replace everything the second a new version comes out. I bought an AV receiver earlier this year and made sure it had 4K HDR support. Why? Even though I don't have a 4K TV yet, that doesn't mean I want to have to replace it when I likely buy a new TV next year. Same with the Apple TV, I'm not going to buy a 4th gen when I know I'll want to replace it with a new 4K one soon after I buy it.
 

Vermifuge

macrumors 68020
Mar 7, 2009
2,067
1,589
Absolutely no way Apple will wait until 2020 to release the next Apple TV and whenever they do, it will support 4K and possibly HDR. I'd be surprised if Apple doesn't release a new Apple TV next year sometime, as they were already slightly behind the curve last year, and everyone else's new models coming out this year isn't helping that any.

The Apple TV 3 came out Match 7th 2012
The Apple TV 4 came out October 30th 2015

A total of 1333 days between the two generations.

Now if we just add 1333 days from The previous October release that would land us in mid June 2019. I think that's a totally acceptable date for "Around 2020" and wouldn't be historically out of character for Apple to wait such lengths given the previous product cycle.

Whatever the case.... If someone is on the fence about getting an apple TV hoping something better from Apple is right around the corner... it probably isn't. I wont expect anything this year or next. 2018 is a possibility.... but i'll place my bets on June 2019....
 
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vipergts2207

macrumors 601
Apr 7, 2009
4,349
9,692
Columbus, OH
The Apple TV 3 came out Match 7th 2012
The Apple TV 4 came out October 30th 2015

A total of 1333 days between the two generations.

Now if we just add 1333 days from The previous October release that would land us in mid June 2019. I think that's a totally acceptable date for "Around 2020" and wouldn't be historically out of character for Apple to wait such lengths given the previous product cycle.

Whatever the case.... If someone is on the fence about getting an apple TV hoping something better from Apple is right around the corner... it probably isn't. I wont expect anything this year or next. 2018 is a possibility.... but i'll place my bets on June 2019....

Look at the buyer's guide, the average time between updates is 512 days and is currently listed as "caution, approaching end of cycle." Even if you want to discount the 512 number because it includes same-gen revisions, there are two other things to keep in mind.

First, many people attribute a good portion of the delay between gen 3 and gen 4 to Apple attempting to get some kind Apple-offered streaming service off the ground for the gen 4 launch. Obviously in the end, they never got enough deals inked with the networks to make it a reality so they had to release without. Second, up until the Apple TV 4 was being prepped for launch, Apple was calling the Apple TV a "hobby." They're no longer doing so and I'd expect Apple to accelerate ATV releases to 18-24 months, especially since the streaming market is much more competitive than when Apple first entered the market.
 
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BuffaloTF

macrumors 68000
Jun 10, 2008
1,772
2,234
Erm, the video image on a UHD bluray will also be lossy. The question is whether that loss is acceptable. For most people it will be. The image quality of a 100mbps UHD bluray will not be 400% better than Netflix UHD just because the Mbps figure is.

The other thing you've got to factor in sound quality-given that a greater proportion of the 100mbps will include a lossless Atmos (or the like) track, but Netflix will only have lossy soundtracks that means the difference in Video quality will be less, but the Sound quality difference will be greater. But how many people actually have amultiple speaker setup, that is compatible with Atmos etc?

The main reason why Apple are holding back is its like the Wild West out there with regards to standards.

UHD BD and Netflix are both using HEVC for encoding. Netflix around 25 Mbps, BD goes from 80-something to that 128 Mbps. There really is a jarring difference between the two, though Netflix I'd go out and say is better than a 1080p BD.

Netflix has a big advantage here still though -- scalability. They have the source data, they encode it themselves. 25 Mbps is their current bitrate, and nothing is preventing them from increasing that as they see internet speeds increase. Blu Ray is tied to the specification.

And the standards really are set. HDR standards is about as big a concern as audio ones -- not so much. HDR10 is a baseline, Dolby is beyond that and not necessary as you'll always be able to fall back to HDR10. It appears to be like Dolby Digital and DTS when DVD's first landed. Everything had Dolby Digital, very few things had DTS... and your player could be set accordingly to always do 1, or to switch between one and the other. The discs are coming out with both of these today, BD mandates HDR10 inclusion, they can go over the top and add Dolby in on each movie if they want. All the streaming services so far offering HDR do so in HDR10. So right now, having something with only HDR10 is perfectly fine and will afford you a consistent experience and access to everything; as if you bought a receiver that only did Dolby Digital in 1999.
 

profets

macrumors 603
Mar 18, 2009
5,119
6,166
I'm looking forward to a 4K Apple TV eventually. I'm sure they'll do it, but I hope it doesn't take too long. I think when they do they'll have a lot of the iTunes catalog ready in 4K, and of course market it as a way to watch all the 4K video we've been recording with our iPhones.

But I say if you need an Apple TV just get one now. Who knows when a new one will come out, and it's not like it's some huge purchase anyway. Probably decent prices on refurb options too.
 

BarcelonaPaul

Suspended
Jul 1, 2015
185
243
Well that's your opinion but let's compare facts.

Do you think Netflix (for example) can somehow magically compress a 4K movie into less than 25mbps without massive losses?

Keeping in mind an actual UHD BD is around 100-128mbps.

Compared to the actual movie it's noticeably worse, and if you can't see that you either don't have a UHD player so you no no better or....you're drunk. Lol

Thats not really what the point of my post was. My point was...well does your 75" Sony TV support HDR10, Dolbly Vision or neither? How much did your potentially now out of date TV cost?

Edited

I agree isn't the new codec AV1 coming next March? YouTube will be using that etc. So surely it makes sense for Apple to wait. Maybe i am wrong?
 

Marty80

macrumors 6502
Sep 17, 2015
426
390
Melbourne
I refuse to buy a ultra HD TV when iTunes content is still in 1080p and my Nintendo is still 1080p also. So if apple decides to move to 4k, I will take the plunge and adopt to it, until than my 1080p TV and iMac are just fine for me.
 

Dunk the Lunk

macrumors regular
Oct 27, 2007
232
74
.uk
Isn't AV1 going to have all of the same problems that HEVC has now with licensing/IP etc.?

No because AV1 is open, royalty free and supported from the off by major hardware manufacturers (Intel, ARM, AMD, nvidia), software makers (Google, Microsoft, Mozilla) and content providers (YouTube/Google, Netflix, Amazon). H.265 HEVC is basically none of those things. AV1 is also reputed to be 50% more efficient although how true that is I don't know.

As I said in my earlier post - it's like the Wild West out there still.
 
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Good User Name

macrumors 6502
Jul 7, 2011
283
164
I know that that's the claim being made in support of AV1 but I don't know if that will actually be the case. If/When the codec comes into use there may come some unanticipated legal challenge which again changes the environment.
 
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jbrandonpowell

macrumors newbie
Sep 12, 2016
17
7
Oklahoma Ciy OK
Am I the only one hanging out for a 4K capable Apple TV? Why is it taking so long?

And yes that means iTunes HD tv/movies should be available as 4K content - and at the standard HD price.

Really struggle with a cost difference between SD and HD these days.
Nope not just you. I'm holding off on an ATV purchase until it has 4K
 
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Blair Paulsen

macrumors regular
Jun 22, 2016
211
157
San Diego, CA USA
I do think Apple is waiting until several things align before releasing a UHD/4K ATV device. A better codec that can be decoded on a $10 or less per unit co-processor would really help. Before the HEVC Advance patent trolls torpedoed the H.265/HEVC rollout, we were on track to have HEVC decoding on mass produced $5 chips embedded in displays by now.
 
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400

macrumors 6502a
Sep 12, 2015
760
319
Wales
Depending what options are on the unit, if it is ever released, then it will be the first Apple TV unit I buy. I have 4k live streaming (in the UK, sport at the moment) and it is is very good. For me there is no interest in a HD only option, i do not watch any SD programming anymore. Netflix is certainly very good and a few bluray players around at the moment, hopefully that increases in number. So there is an option for some innovative thinking to nail it now.
 

mellofello

macrumors 65816
Feb 1, 2011
1,257
556
It is killing me knowing that there are tons of cool apps on atv4. I have 2 4k tvs, and wouldn't mind relegating my Nvidia shield to the one I hardly watch. However I refuse to buy one until it has 4k. Netflix is putting up at least one new series a month in 4k, and YouTube videos in 4k look crystal clear.

It is really frustrating. I would even gladly pay a $50-100 premium for a. ATV pro with a HDMI 2.0 port, and faster processor.

Oh well
 
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400

macrumors 6502a
Sep 12, 2015
760
319
Wales
Looking at various articles and the claim seems to be that 4k TV sales are up compared to when HD was taking off.

Problem is for me, I have TV native apps that are very good. I have a box for my ISP TV service (it also works to my aerial input), I have a bluray player (not 4K yet, to be upgraded). So I have a jumble of options. If Apple release a 4k unit it might not even come up on my radar to buy. Apple get it right and a sweet option then out could be a seller.

But 4k is happening, broadcast companies are investing. Telcos are eyeing each other up and competing, in the UK at least.
 

mattopotamus

macrumors G5
Jun 12, 2012
14,670
5,879
True. To me, each of those has a draw-back which, in my opinion, is greater than lack of 4k.

Specifically I despise the Roku UI and remote. To me, it is the worst designed user experience since MSN WebTV. ChromeCast is pretty nice, but I don't want to rely on a smartphone to control things, rather I want it to be a standalone thing that will work all on its own. I don't subscribe to Amazon Prime, so most of the FireTV features are useless to me.

Buying a TV with a built-in ecosystem, like Samsung's Tizen-based SmartHub and LG's WebOS 3.0, is a decent solution too, with obvious downsides.

Apple's solution just seems like the best mix of UI, simplicity, and apps.

You really should look at Vizio 2016 sets. They basically use chromcast, but it comes with a tablet so you do not tie up your own device.

I still would prefer the ATV interface, and the lack of 4K/HDR is the only thing preventing me from using an ATV.
[doublepost=1476980046][/doublepost]
Went with an XBox One S. iTunes is now for my mobile devices. I now keep duplicate movies in iTunes and UV. I can watch my 4K BDs or stream what I want to stream. Gives me Amazon Prime too. The only downside is there is currently no support for Dolby Atmos. For that I have a separate 4K BD player. I wanted to simplify the vast majority of the viewing.

Which is absolutely ridiculous. Either go all in on the next generation or don't =/
 

kevroc

macrumors 6502
Oct 15, 2011
467
126
Chances are if you get data only through one of the large providers like Comcast or AT&T you will get a data cap. The comcast customers in my region have ALL received data caps even those who still subscribe to a TV package. As more People drop Traditional TV packages ISPs will need to find new ways to make money. Enhanced data packages are the obvious first choice

I agree 100% with this. I know people feel like home wired connections will always be unlimited because that's what they've always been, but that is simply not the case.

It makes ZERO sense for an ISP (Cable Co) to let you use unlimited data because you stopped using their cable service just to use their Internet service more.

It's pretty easy to see where they are going also. The recent article I read said something like "our new data cap is so high, only 1% of households ever hit it". So they are treating it like a non-event. What they don't say is that bandwidth usage will be going up over the next decade and what looks like a lot of bandwidth now will turn out to be not enough. They aren't making a short term play, it's a long term play. I'm sure the cable co would like nothing more than to get out of the business of delivering tv channels (and having to negotiate all of those agreements) and just be an ISP.
 
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