All I'm saying is that it 120fps was a bit of a failed experiment insofar as filmed content goes, and isn't that important. But having the higher frame rate available for games might be handy? Not much of a gamer so feel free to correct me.
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New Apple TV 4K Reviews: A12 Chip is Noticeably Faster, Redesigned Siri Remote is Much Welcomed
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All I'm saying is that it 120fps was a bit of a failed experiment insofar as filmed content goes, and isn't that important. But having the higher frame rate available for games might be handy? Not much of a gamer so feel free to correct me.
Oh it totally is, I have an Xbox Series X and 4K HDR 120Hz gaming is amazing. It’d be cool to have other high frame rate content available, though.
To be clear, some ”smart” TVs include a technology called (if I remember correctly), ACR, Automatic Content Recognition, which literally watches the patterns on the “screen” from the incoming HDMI signal and tries to match that up against known content (for instance anything showing on cable tv right now), to figure out what you’re watching, so it can report that information back to headquarters, so the TV manufacturer can track and monetize you. This is reprehensible, regardless of whether or not they mention it on page 23 of the fine print, it’s basically spyware. Vizio got caught doing this quite some time ago, and as a result, they’re now required to include a toggle (buried) in their settings to turn it off. Not sure about the other manufacturers. It’s definitely worth looking through the TV’s menus.
If your smart TV is connected to the internet and hasn’t been specifically told to cease and desist, it may be reporting on your viewing habits/history, and the Apple TV in and of itself won’t fix that. If you hook up an ATV and disconnect your smart TV from the network, then you should be safe (although note that some smart TVs go so far as to look around for nearby/neighborhood open WiFi networks to use to report back to headquarters, so simply unplugging it may not be enough).
But the Apple TV won’t report on you, and will feed only HDMI signal content to the TV. The apps themselves, of course, know what you’re watching (i.e. the HBO app knows what you’re watching on HBO, the Disney+ app knows what you’re watching on Disney+, etc.)
It would be so much easier if they just made their own reasonably priced TV with integrated speakers. I would love a one product set up with everything built in and no extra boxes or speakers.
Thanks for the response. I'm evaluating a TV upgrade and while I'm not "worried" about my family’s viewing habits, I'd much rather take the Apple approach of being a customer and not the product. Currently we use a Chromecast and the built in Samsung apps, but I would love to strip that out and have peace of mind that we're not consenting to having our every in-home action databased for profit by who knows whom.
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Were the HIG for Apple TV not clear or something? Perhaps Apple needs to update the App Store rules to state that certain back button actions should be consistent for video and if not, those apps will begin to be rejected by X date.
This was more in depth and exactly the type of becoming informed I was looking for. I hate how much corporate spyware has deluged our society without any real say on behalf of consumers (citizens). I'll see once I get the ATV hooked up if there is a way to turn Wifi off of our unit, not just disconnecting from our network. Sheesh.
Thank you very much! I was not aware of that ACR feature. I just turned off that on my TV. I know the best would be to disconnect it from my network but with ACR off and Apple TV box usage it will be ok for me
That's probably true, but some are worse than others. Roku in particular is rapidly becoming an ad platform (they show ads in the user interface, and also have their own ad-based streaming channel), Amazon Fire shows ads, and Google is mainly an advertising company. TV manufacturers now make a big part of their revenue by tracking your viewing habits. All have a strong incentive to collect as much information about you as they can.
They may agree to discuss certain aspects and not discuss other things, none of them say they are free to talk what they want for example.
Really seemed it might be the case on the iPad videos - where I think all of the videos I watched shoehorned a PS5/Xbox controller in and showed it can play some basic games... maybe Apple stipulates they must show xyz.
That’s how I use my Apple TV. My Sony smart TV has never been connected to the internet. It complains about that every few days, but that’s it.
Yeah, and a Porsche doesn't really do anything more than a Yugo, if you think about it.
The user experience alone is a night and day difference, especially compared to the cheap low end Fire devices, which are incredibly clunky in comparison. It also doubles as a Homekit hub, has better apps (try finding something comparable to Infuse on Fire TV), doesn't bombard you with ads, and has the integration with the Apple ecosystem.
95% of people use these things to watch Netflix. You don't need to spend $200 to do that. Especially when almost every single TV these days includes that ability on their own.Yeah, and a Porsche doesn't really do anything more than a Yugo, if you think about it.
The user experience alone is a night and day difference, especially compared to the cheap low end Fire devices, which are incredibly clunky in comparison. It also doubles as a Homekit hub, has better apps (try finding something comparable to Infuse on Fire TV), doesn't bombard you with ads, and has the integration with the Apple ecosystem.
I use mine daily and don't even have a Netflix subscription.
It's not just about whether a device can do something, but also about how well it does it.
Is it expensive? Compared to a Roku stick, sure. But $200 for a device I use frequently over several years is nothing.
Strange. I get similar speeds, connected over Wi-Fi since the Apple TV HD only has a 100Mbps Ethernet port, and while I don't get instantaneous loading, I'd measure the time it takes the thumbnails to show up in seconds rather than minutes...
Just to make sure we're talking about the same thing, I assume you're referring to your iTunes cloud library in the TV app as opposed to a local iTunes library running on a Mac somewhere else in your home?
That's definitely a valid reason to have Wi-Fi on — especially since the Apple TV still can't turn on/off via a HomeKit routine (you can turn it on/off with Siri, but that's it). However, you don't need the TV to be able to get at the internet for this, so it's still a good idea to block it at the router if you don't use any of its other online features.
I've been wondering for the past couple years what Apple could possibly add to the existing Apple TV 4K to make it better... turns out nothing. People keep saying the 120 Hz support will be great for games, but come on, it's an Apple TV, not a gaming console. The GPU in it is less powerful than the one in the previous model, so it's a terrible gaming device. The only things that intrigue me are the dedicated power button and scrubbing circle on the new remote.
If your router supports blocking/pausing outbound connections, you can even leave Wi-Fi on and just block its access at the router. Many modern routers allow for this, sometimes under the heading of "parental controls" — just treat your TV as if it were one of your kids 😏
This can also help to circumvent the logic that some TVs use to sniff around for other open Wi-Fi networks. Most only look for other Wi-Fi networks when they're not connected to one, not if they're connected and simply can't access the internet.
Yup, in which case you can buy the new remote by itself for $59. That's what I'd be doing if I already owned an Apple TV 4K, but in my case I'm coming from a 2015 Apple TV HD, so it's worth the full upgrade.
Yeah I was mostly joking. Though you do have a solution vs no solution
Yeah, but given the timing, Apple really should have had the forethought to put the U1 chip into the remote.
Honestly, just going to rtings* and searching for your tv has a good chance of showing their settings for calibration. No, it won’t take into account per panel differences but in my experience they aren’t that far off. Using their settings on my TCL RokuTV gave me HDR that is no longer too dark and got rid of the grey tone. There is basically zero need for Apple’s calibration at that point and in some cases it makes the color profile worse.
* I have zero affiliation with rtings. I don’t even have an account.
What? TV connected to the internet? How is that a good idea? Who could possibly be benefiting from that? Ye Gods... the very thought of it!