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Do the newest models have better wifi?

M

maverick22

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 30, 2012
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My parents don’t have a 4k TV. They are using either the first or second generation ATV.

Do the newest gen. ATVs have better WiFi? The router is on the other side of the house, and their older ATV buffers a lot.

Thanks!
 
More than likely they are using the second generation Apple TV (small black box). Yes, the newer ATV (4th Gen, 4k) have substantially better wifi capabilities supporting both wireless AC and MIMO. Upgrading to a newer model may be able to fix the issue but it could also be caused by the location of the router. You said that it is located on the other side of the dwelling. Is it able to be moved to a more central location? also if your parents don't have a substantial internet connection that could also cause the buffering.
 
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As @satinsilverem2 mentioned, I'm curious to know what your parents upload and download speeds are with their ISP. That could certainly play a factor in videos buffering.
 
I believe they have 22mbps down. We tried to get faster about a year ago, but AT&T said that’s as fast as they can get right now.

I don’t know how we could get it at a more central location. I’m sure it’s probably possible somehow, but currently it’s connected to the PC which is at the opposite side of the house.

Thanks for the reply!
 
Yes but most likely no.

If their home access point doesnt support the newer 802.11ac wifi standards. Upgrading to an AppleTV 4 OR 5 wont likely help.

Even then! 5ghz spectrum which 802.11ac requires, has short range, and doesnt go through walls well. ‘Across house’ makes me think even if AP and ATV have 802.11ac, its going to fall back to 2.4ghz 802.11n and you'll be in the same boat.

If their AP is really old with 802.11g... upgrade it to N and you might see imorovement!

1 Find a way to get a cable to AppleTV.
2. Relocate the AP.
3. Get a good mesh network system like Netgear Orbi

Edit: they most likely dont have a 1. The popular hockey puck started with gen2.
Gen2: 720p, 2.4ghz 802.11n
Gen3: 1080p, 2.4hz 802.11n
gen4: 1080p, 2.4hz 802.11n, App Store, 5ghz 802.11ac
Gen5: 4k, 2.4hz 802.11n, App Store, 5ghz 802.11ac
 
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I agree, not enough info. The ATV4 and 4K have 802.11ac, but your parents router would need to be AC as well to take full advantage. 22Mbps is probably minimum for streaming, and if the content is 1080p, maybe the cause.

My parents had ATT DSL at about 22Mbps, and their neighborhood just got some upgrades. At one point, we looked into cable internet service for them which would have been less than the ATT service, but the upgrade occurred before they took action. You might look into cable service at 50Mbps or better, probably be around the same price or better.

If it is due to poor WiFi, a power line Ethernet setup might help. AV2000 units can get pretty decent bandwidth without having to string Cat5e or better patch cables.
 
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They have Uverse Internet. I think that router got installed 2 years ago. I have no idea about what type it is. I’m a dummy with all of the specifics of internet connections and settings.

What I like about Uverse is that it’s very reliable and consistent. I have had Time Warner before, and it was annoyingly inconsistent and had so many issues.

Years ago an installer was going to install HT equipment, and he ended up saying he couldn’t do it due to the narrowness/setup of the attic. I know my mom wouldn’t be up for running Ethernet along the floor.

Not sure what else to do.
 
I really see no reason not to go for the Apple TV 4k at this point. The ATV is a relatively cheap device anyway and price difference is very minimal between the 4k (170,-) and the 3rd generation (150,-). Besides the fact that you'll probably be enjoying updates for a few more years if you opt for the newer model, the industry have just settled on a set of standards (HDMI 2.1, rec.2020, HDR10, DV, Dolby Atmos) for years to come probably. I don't see those standards advancing anytime soon, because they provide a solid foundation for manufacturers do develop on for certainly the next 5 years, and when manufactures are finally able to take full advantage of them, there is no reason to abandon these soon after, because we're really touching the limits of what our human eyes, ears and brains can distinguish.
Even if you don't own a 4k television set and a Dolby Atmos capable sound system right now. If in the future, you have to replace or upgrade your tv or sound system, you can be rest assured that you can enjoy it to it's full capacity with your Apple TV 4k.
 
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niteflyr said:
If you have a long enough ethernet cable, try it just for testing purposes. If that cures the problem, powerline adaptors may be the answer. Something like this perhaps:

https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-Powe...F8&qid=1532997158&sr=8-5&keywords=av2000&th=1
Click to expand...

I bought the TP Link AV1200 because in my new house the router/model is in the garage which is separated from the house by a 350mm thick wall. It's been fantastic and has three Ethernet ports.

As other posters have mentioned, this is a connectivity issues that won't necessarily be solved by buying the latest Apple TV.
 
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