Apple TV App Store Gains Categories Section for Better App Discovery

[Icaras]

For those saying you aren't seeing the top charts or categories sections and that restarting doesn't help, make sure you're not just putting the Apple TV to sleep and waking it up.

To restart the Apple TV, go to Settings>System>Restart to do a full restart of the hardware.

One restart worked for both of the Apple TVs I own.

 

[danranda]

Actually, it's the complaints that often keeps companies improving and innovating. If the people don't care about enjoying a better experience, then why should the companies care? :/

Accept that it's quite likely that Apple would have added more ways to browse the apple TV app store without all the whining. It's not like Apple never did this for any of their app stores. Sometimes people need to calm down and stop their self-delusions that their crying is what got Apple to change.

Apple nearly always puts out a product and updates it a few times in about a month of it's release. This was coming all along. These cry babies didn't "make it happen".

 

[Keirasplace]

Great addition, but a bit odd that it wasn't there from the start.

The whole app store experience feels a bit unfinished. There's no easy way to find Apple TV apps in iTunes either.

It's not odd at all, since having the store half empty and not having any data about top anything would give spurious entries.

Actually, it's the complaints that often keeps companies improving and innovating. If the people don't care about enjoying a better experience, then why should the companies care? :/

While that's true; most of the complaints here are inane and/or specious and come from the very few (not even a niche or users, a micro-niche). You know the whole squeeky wheel thing...

If the complaints come from a broader group that's less OCD about the whole thing and more focused on the greater picture; yes, complaints are fine.

As for those supposed complaints forcing to act here, that's beyond delusional and I hope no company on earth would have their software development run like that, and especially not Apple.

 

[macfoxpro]

It is very frustrating! I too don't have either of the new options found the in the Apple TV App Store, and I have just restart the entire machine too. This sucks!

It sounds as if all is lost.
Then again, it could change later tonight or tomorrow.
Your pain must be immense and the struggle seems overwhelming.
Good luck, and remember to always hold your head high, as you will get through this someday soon.
We're all here for you.

 

[DoctorKrabs]

Whoever designed the tvOS UI can teach the iOS design team a thing or two about taste and aesthetics. tvOS and OS X actually use nice drop shadows and lighting effects while iOS is still stuck with some Minimalism Nazi philosophy that makes it look worse (and run worse).

 

[rdlink]

Anyone else get the feeling that one of the big wigs we refer to by first name got really upset and is yelling for these things to put on immediately in the background.

No. More like they had a plan to start with, and categories were not feasible when there were going to be tons of empty categories.

 

[6836838]

Still no updates for the UK. Not even charts. Restart done.

 

[shk718]

I don't know about that. This unit is apparently the product of nearly 4 years since Apple launched the "3." Does it feel like it's got 3+ years of good focus in it? Or does it feel like lots of things are being slung together quickly? I mean, it's great and all that it finally has an app store... and I'm confident third party app coders are going to roll out some amazing things that will make it more useful than ever before... but I'm not sure I can personally view this as fully baked... or close to it. Of course, I'll buy one anyway and look forward to the "5".

i feel the followed the same path they took with the iPhone back in 2007. it was limited but what it did, worked!!!!! SIRI on the apple TV is rock solid! search for anything related in any which way or from to TV or Movies and it'll find it. Video is buttery smooth and looks fantastic on my 4K TV (yes I know ATV4 isn't 4K but still looks great).

 

[rdlink]

Actually, it's the complaints that often keeps companies improving and innovating. If the people don't care about enjoying a better experience, then why should the companies care? :/

Yeah, Because Apple, a company known for refined user experience needs you breathing down their neck to put a decent interface in place...

 

[6836838]

Also Badland page fails to load for the UK store since day one!

 

[rdlink]

This is why I'm waiting for the 4k Apple TV. By that point, Apple will have figured out what they're doing. Being on the bleeding edge of a product transformation isn't always fun.

Well, I personally am having a blast with it. Maybe it's because I see both the fantastic advances over the previous product, and the massive potential that is literally days, not weeks or months away.

But if someone is going to lie awake in bed at night losing sleep and stewing over the fact that they didn't see categories the day the device was released I agree that they probably should wait until the next model comes out. That way they can stew over whatever it doesn't have...

It sounds as if all is lost.
Then again, it could change later tonight or tomorrow.
Your pain must be immense and the struggle seems overwhelming.
Good luck, and remember to always hold your head high, as you will get through this someday soon.
We're all here for you.

I love this. Will you be my Facebook friend?

 

[RockSpider]

Haha fat chance, especially with developers. But I'm sure they'll find something else to complain about in short order.

I'm 100% sure these changes are coming about because people ARE complaining, certainly NOT because people sit there having a love fest with Apple.

 

[TallManNY]

So completely obvious updates are happening in very short order. Shocker.
I'm setting up my Apple TV today when I get home from work. So I guess I will see these.

 

[rdlink]

I'm 100% sure these changes are coming about because people ARE complaining, certainly NOT because people sit there having a love fest with Apple.

Oops. You may want to edit that to put in the sarcasm tag...

 

[Benjamin Frost]

Good to see Apple have finally caved.

It's thanks to the brave soldiers at MacRumors who fight tirelessly for the consumer that these sorts of improvements are made so swiftly.

Let us hope that categories reach the UK device soon.

 

[usurffree]

I'm from a family that has an Apple TV on every set in the homes, four total homes in play, maybe 20+ units. Five new boxes have been bought to this point. I was browsing around in one of the first day units and accidentally went into the NBC app in the downloads section and noticed that "Update" was in place of the "Open" icon. On the other units, the app already went through the update on it's own. I guess there is an auto-update feature I've not noticed yet. You can hit recently updated and notice the update/change log to all apps that have updated.

But the fact that Netflix can make and update to their app now vs. the old way of waiting on the every 4-6 month software update from Apple is a big win for power users.

 

[ErikGrim]

Sorry @busyscott, no common sense allowed here

Common sense isn't.

 

[RockSpider]

Oops. You may want to edit that to put in the sarcasm tag...

Okay, can you say Antenna Gate.

 

[AZREOSpecialist]

Pretty sure the new Apple TV hardware can handle 4k without any problems. Apple can add support via a software update. There is no need to wait because this feature is "missing". It's not missing. It's simply delayed because there is no content to support it.

 

[RockSpider]

I'm from a family that has an Apple TV on every set in the homes, four total homes in play, maybe 20+ units. Five new boxes have been bought to this point. I was browsing around in one of the first day units and accidentally went into the NBC app in the downloads section and noticed that "Update" was in place of the "Open" icon. On the other units, the app already went through the update on it's own. I guess there is an auto-update feature I've not noticed yet. You can hit recently updated and notice the update/change log to all apps that have updated.

But the fact that Netflix can make and update to their app now vs. the old way of waiting on the every 4-6 month software update from Apple is a big win for power users.

Big family, how do you get time to watch TV.

 

[ErikGrim]

Now please fix the sound going from quiet LOUD randomly.

 

[RockSpider]

Pretty sure the new Apple TV hardware can handle 4k without any problems. Apple can add support via a software update. There is no need to wait because this feature is "missing". It's not missing. It's simply delayed because there is no content to support it.

Yeah sure, PHIL.

 

[jpgr15]

Common sense isn't.

 

[VicTheBerg]

I still have a hard time seeing how this version of the appstore is going to be anything other than a pain to search through when more apps start being added. Imagine a year from now, with what, 200 000 or so apps?

I really hope they do some new kind of remote app for the apple tv in the style of the Apple Watch app, where you can customize your homescreen, download apps, and control your tv right from theiPhone or iPad. Someone should do one of those nice mockups for that idea, hopefully get apple thinking about it. Although I would bet that's what they're gonna do anyway.

 

[TrueBlou]

Haha fat chance, especially with developers. But I'm sure they'll find something else to complain about in short order.

Full disclaimer, I am a developer but I've nothing on TvOS yet so makes no difference to me.
But there were more than a fair share of consumers complaining at the lack of decent discovery on the AppStore, not just developers.

Pretty sure the new Apple TV hardware can handle 4k without any problems. Apple can add support via a software update. There is no need to wait because this feature is "missing". It's not missing. It's simply delayed because there is no content to support it.

It can definitely handle 4K playback, without breaking a sweat. I had mine streaming some publicly available 4K videos a month or so ago, just to satisfy my own curiosity.

Obviously it won't output at 4K resolution, but as far as playing it goes, not a problem from a technical perspective.