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New Siri Remote Doesn't Have U1 Chip and Won't Work With Find My

That’s really quite interesting, I looked up how high the new “high framerates” were for dolby vision on the Apple Tv. Looks like 60hz is as high as it goes across the board.
This refresh of the Apple Tv is the first since 2017! But the features of the release leave me wondering if it’s going to be seeing another refresh to M1 chips once M2 launches. It almost feels like this long awaited refresh is a stopgap, a test platform for the new TV OS. A14 being slowly dwindled out of stock just in time for M1’s to be put to pasture.
Alternatively, the remote may be the first of many. Perhaps we will be seeing more Apple Tv accessories and peripherals as Apple Tv moves into having it’s own ecosystem of yet released Airplay-3 surround sound enabled pods and woofers, possibly even an Apple Branded Amplifier/DAC or Soundbar. Echoing back to some earlier Apple ipod docks. At the moment Apple music doesn’t have a dedicated end point, the likes we had with the Airport Express. So there’s clearly some room to grow, and Apple loves the music space.
I did find it a bit disappointing that the only port is HDMi. Spdif or Optical out would have been a welcome feature for my personal home audio uses.
I feel a dedicated Airplay 2.0 receiver would be a great way to allow first time mac users to affordably experience more of the Apple ecosystem. Maybe digital ouputs on homepod minis could serve that purpose in future revisions. But the overal feel of this release for me is one of even more anticipation, and I feel we may see even more advancements in Apple Tv in the near future. Famous last words from a guy who’d been anticipating a refresh was around the corner for over two years now! I’m so happy it’s finally here! The screen calibration feature using the phones camera is sooooo cool! I think a find-my remote upgrade is already in works. I really like the new remote’s design too. Woo!
 
Macintosh IIvx said:
How frequently do people lose their remotes and keys? Honestly I've never been unable to find my remote for more than about 10 seconds. It'd take longer to launch an app than the couple seconds to check around the couch, there it always is.
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Keys? Not much anymore as I always put them back in the same spot when I get home. Apple remote? Oh all the GD time. I lost it in my couch for an entire year before finding it when I had to move the furniture for a deep carpet cleaning. I used the remote app during that time so it was not a huge loss, but it still happened and my story is one that is shared by many. Not including a U1 chip and Find My support was the only real miss on this product. I'm still getting one, but it's still a notable omission.
 
At least it's business as normal in the woefully disconnected from the mothership department of Apple that is AppleTV.
Don't worry, Apple will sell you a Hermes leather case for your ATV remote with Air Tag.
 
I don't know how well that would work from a tech perspective. The remote is relatively small with only a small portion of it having an RF window to the outside. That window needs to be used for communicating with the TV. They could make the device bigger and make the bottom half plastic, but I don't think they would like how that would look.
 
I'll pony up $60 for the new remote. Not thrilled about it but we are using a 3rd party and its just OK. That being said, I would have dumped the ATV for a Firestick or Chromecast but they are just not as snappy and the PQ is not as good. The remote on the FireStick is about perfect.
 
Macintosh IIvx said:
How frequently do people lose their remotes and keys? Honestly I've never been unable to find my remote for more than about 10 seconds. It'd take longer to launch an app than the couple seconds to check around the couch, there it always is.
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I literally taped a Tile sticker to the current ATV remote in an effort to stop losing it, only to have my preschooler pry it off and lose the damn remote again. So, yeah, this would have been a really cool feature.
 
parsonsmike said:
I literally taped a Tile sticker to the current ATV remote in an effort to stop losing it, only to have my preschooler pry it off and lose the damn remote again. So, yeah, this would have been a really cool feature.
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It would be nice if they put a Tag shaped notch onto the bottom of the remote. Make it a nice flat place to glue a Tag onto it.
 
sirdir said:
Too bad. The remote and the pencil both need the U1. I have lost my 2nd gen pencil in my home and haven't been able to find it in about a year. And I've looked…
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The 2 things that I lose most often (because my child has access to them) are my remote control and my Apple Pencil. It drives me insane when both items are not where I last left them because someone else used/moved them. I was REALLY hoping to have Airtags support for both. I think the remote should have that functionality built in and I think I would pay a premium for a pencil that has support as well. Keeping me from having to tear my couch apart to find the stupid things is invaluable to me.
 
theheadguy said:
Does it seem odd to you that maybe people have kids? Kids move and lose things.
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THIS!!!!

I rarely misplace things but I can’t say the same for my children and occasionally my better half. Making it easier to find misplaced things would be so nice.

I would KILL to have U1 support built in to an AirPods case. When the AirPods are in the case, they don’t show up on Find My. If you leave the AirPods out of the case then they can make noises and all that jazz but the are incognito when inside the case. This never made any sense to me.

My wife misplaced 2 separate sets of AirPods inside the house and we couldn’t get them to show on Find My. They were eventually found but it wasn’t easy.
 
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We've NEVER lost our ATV remotes (and we have 5 of them in 5 different rooms). We put those silicon rubber sleeves over them that makes it practically impossible for them to slip between the cushions. 4 bucks (or less) and problem solved.

But, for our more frequently used Apple TV's we'll probably get the new remote just to have the improved functionality.
 
Apple are normalising losing stuff. Even in these articles it's like Airtags will be the solution for carelessness now.

Only going to lose it down the back of the sofa anyway.
 
MVMNT said:
Apple are normalising losing stuff. Even in these articles it's like Airtags will be the solution for carelessness now.

Only going to lose it down the back of the sofa anyway.
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Seems like Bloomberg if anyone set the expectation. Same news source that, without evidence, claimed that all the big tech companies' servers were compromised by Chinese spying chips.
 
Velli said:
It doesn’t need U1, it needs a way to ping, like you can ping your phone from your watch. Apple made a very funny video about things getting lost in the couch, with a very funny cameo of an iPod Nano, and then doesn’t have a solution for the one thing that gets lost in the couch most often? Someone should be banging their head against the wall right now.
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Very well stated.

The irony of what they were showing us versus what they released as a new remote is somewhat breathtaking
 
beanbaguk said:
Apple needs to solve bigger problems like backlit keyboard (which matters), a more ergonomic mouse (which matters)
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lmfao
I just about spit out my drink.

You think a backlit keyboard and more ergonomic mouse are not “first world problems”
 
turbineseaplane said:
I'm sure many will make excuses for Apple, but there is none here.

This is sloppy and not acceptable.

You design and release a new remote - a device that is frequently "lost" around the house - and don't absolutely include it in the U1 "locate me" plans?

I'm sorry - just terrible on Apple's part.
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Not sloppy, but sly. Apple knows that one of the most common and repeated frustrations with any remote is misplacing it and having to search like a mad person for it. This makes the AirTag the ideal solution for this issue. Why build in this functionality when you can upsell the AirTag and make even more money on a wildly overpriced remote? It's classic Apple money making at its finest.
 
Onelifenofear said:

Beoremote One - Accessories for televisions | B&O

Beoremote One - Accessories Accessories. Orchestrate your music and media with a single remote control and make everything play beautifully and just the way you want it.
www.bang-olufsen.com www.bang-olufsen.com
£300

Harmony Elite is £500... if you can find one. The idiots at Logitech have stopped making Remotes... despite having NO competition.
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I'll sell you mine for 500 quid!!!!
 
Onelifenofear said:
The idiots at Logitech have stopped making Remotes... despite having NO competition.
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It's a business decision.

Logitech is making more money selling speakers, microphones, webcams, and other accessories to streamers. That's the hot new market. And of course keyboards and mice.

There is less of a market for people having 5 different remotes in their living room... now with TVs having built-in apps and no one having DVD players anymore. And soundbars also eliminated having a separate AV receiver. Plus with cord-cutting... a lot of people don't have cable boxes either.

It's a different world now than when Harmony started 20 years ago.

:p
 
wigby said:
Did you miss the part where Apple had a guy climbing inside his couch only to find his lost keys? Then they went on to sell keychain holders for AirTags. It’s a key finding gimmick.
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I wouldn’t usually challenge this but it’s obvious the couch skit was done to demonstrate the degree of accuracy in which you can find your lost items and keys generally go everywhere on a person showing that if you do lose your keys (out in the world) you can find them with that same degree of accuracy. Apple did not create this product or network for you to be able to track every conceivable item that you may misplace one day, but by all means attach air tags to your Siri remote, your lighter, your favourite coffee mug & and your wife if you can’t keep track of where these things end up 😜
 
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