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The touchpad isn't the problem, it's that the remote is too thin making it difficult to hold and use, it's also hard to grab without accidentally touching the touchpad, and it's hard to figure out which way is up in the dark (exacerbating my previous point) since it has a symmetrical shape. I love all the technical parts of it, Lightning-charging, Bluetooth, microphone, touchpad, it's all genious... it just needs to be a little easier to hold.

There's one thing I would add actually. Gyroscopic cursor a la LG Magic Remote. It is SO ridiculously intuitive. LG puts about 100 too many buttons on their remote, but that functionality is absolutely amazing and I hope Apple adopt it for the next remote iteration.

I've used the lg gyro remote. It's nice, but sometimes I have to recalibrate it because the remote went too off the edge and now my cursor is completely offset from where exactly I'm pointing at. Fine for me, but I think lot of people won't get that. Also I had to ask my brother how to turn that cursor on.
 
I’m personally a fan of the remote, I just wish it had a TV power button as well as a mute button. I know you can turn off the Apple TV but with my setup it’ll turn off my Apple TV and my receiver but my TV will stay on. If I turn off the TV first, everything shuts off as expected

I also personally think it’s stupid that I have a silicone case on my remote but it makes it much easier to hold and the bright color allows me to find it easily. Never lost it in a couch cushion, it’s to grippy
 
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original remote is fine. people complaining are simply afraid of change. touch pad is far better than tapping directional buttons many times.

only thing Apple needs to do is to remove animations that block the remote input. i find it extremely idiotic i have to wait for the slow dumb fade-to-home animation or the multitasking animation to finish before my remote is usable.

Wow. Because people cannot stand the size, slickness, feel and a touch pad that is too sensitive and too big they are "afraid of change". Honestly, one of the most ridiculous takes I've seen on this site in awhile, and that is saying something.
 
The original remote is mostly fine ... but I have never managed to reliably skip ahead without using my phone’s remote app
 
original remote is fine. people complaining are simply afraid of change. touch pad is far better than tapping directional buttons many times.

only thing Apple needs to do is to remove animations that block the remote input. i find it extremely idiotic i have to wait for the slow dumb fade-to-home animation or the multitasking animation to finish before my remote is usable.
Afraid of change? That’s laughable at best.
 
My only complaint about the current gen Apple TV remote is that it’s far too easy to bump stuff while keeping the slippery remote from sliding off of a leg or a couch. There needs to be a lock switch on the side to prevent unintentional gestures and button pushes.
 
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I don’t have anything against the ATV remote, but I don’t use it because my Harmony Elite controls everything. Went from three remotes, four if you include the PS4, to one.
 
For those defending the AppleTV remote:

Just like how video games have situations that leverage either digital or analog input, the AppleTV UI also has occasions that could leverage either digital or analog input.

When I’m moving one step to the left or right, up or down, give me analog directional buttons (D-pad).

When I’m forwarding/reversing through a time bar, allow me to slide using the touch pad, or advance/reverse 10 seconds using directions buttons.

You can “sort of” do this today by clicking to the left/right side of the touch pad, but this misfires about 10-20% of the time, and registers as a normal click, and then it is determined to think it’s a normal click for the next 5-10 clicks.

Yes this means the remote would need to be a bit larger, but this simple change would make the remote 10x easier to use.

Apple’s obsession with making things smaller to the point it affects usability is becoming ridiculous.
 
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Tap the edge of the remote to do a one step in that direction. problem solved

That's actually an entirely different behavior.

Sometimes it is implemented as a short scroll, you are right about that,
but other times it will act as a 'scroll and tap'.

I'm using a local VOD provider whose 'edge tap' is actually switching between channels (like CH+).
 
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Had an Apple TV 2rd gen for 4 years. Researching my upgrade I first thought people are over-reacting. Got my Apple TV 4K three months ago. Felt like I got a new TV, super happy. But alas, the remote... really is uncontrollable! I too think it's almost unusable.

Meamwhile my friends bought a super big Samsung TV, the slightly bent and very slim, black Samsung remote is amazing. Far better than what I saw from Universal Electronics here, and of course infinitely superior to Apple's. I hope Apple will copy soon!
 
The ATV is far too small and slippery - it’s a bad combo.

I love my new LG CX OLED and wish the magic remote worked to control the ATV. I’ve tried with no luck, and it’s frustrating.
 
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Functionally the Apple TV remote is fine, but its form is poor.

One of these helps:
71OqmONCyTL._AC_SX679_.jpg


Solves these issues for me:
  1. It’s asymmetrical - easy to pick up and orient in the dark.
  2. Thicker - easier to hold and harder to lose down the sofa cushions
  3. Has TV power, input and channel change buttons - I rarely watch live TV, but when I do the buttons are right there.
 
sorry, but it beats all traditional remotes. I can do many things faster than this new remote can. even more so if Apple removed the animation blocks.
Not even close. The Apple TV remote is atrocious. Whoever designed it clearly hated disabled people or anyone with fine motor control issues. Not only that, it's awful even for people without issues. You can't use it accurately and reliably. They need to go back to buttons, no question about it.
 
Several years ago, the Channels app (an Apple TV app that works with the Silicondust TV receivers) implemented an ingenious way to invoke the “Mute” feature by giving the Siri remote a quick and rigorous shake - no dedicated button required. This magical feature works 100% of the time and is very Applesque in its ingenuity, fluidity, and simplicity.

I asked the Channels app developers if they had patented the feature, and they said that they weren’t going to, inviting others, including Apple themselves to implement this idea system wide on the Apple TV. I then contacted Apple and encouraged them to implement this feature system-wide, which would solve 1/3 of all complaints about the Siri remote. Apple, in their infinite wisdom, completely ignored my suggestion as well as the appeals of the thousands of their users for a “Mute” feature to be implemented.

Apple think that they know better what we, their customers, need and what we don’t need. Accept this as a fact and make your future technology choices with this knowledge in hand.
 
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“deeply unpopular ‌Apple TV‌ Remote” a few whiny complainers does not make deeply unpopular. 2) Lots of us love the remote, not a bajillion tiny keys to find, just a simple elegant interface and easy to control. 2) you can use almost any remote in its place, if that is what you prefer

hey, you prefer other remotes, totally fine. Just don’t make up false narratives
 
Not even close. The Apple TV remote is atrocious. Whoever designed it clearly hated disabled people or anyone with fine motor control issues. Not only that, it's awful even for people without issues. You can't use it accurately and reliably. They need to go back to buttons, no question about it.
Not even close, the appletv remote is awesome! It’s ok if you don’t like it, I really don’t care, but why so emotional, it’s a remote! And you can use your existing remote for your tv instead anyway. Ummmmmmm! Take a yoga break
 
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Several years ago, the Channels app (an Apple TV app that works with the Silicondust TV receivers) implemented an ingenious way to invoke the “Mute” feature by giving the Siri remote a quick and rigorous shake - no dedicated button required. This magical feature works 100% of the time and is very Applesque in its ingenuity, fluidity, and simplicity.

I asked the Channels app developers if they had patented the feature, and they said that they weren’t going to, inviting others, including Apple themselves to implement this idea system wide on the Apple TV. I then contacted Apple and encouraged them to implement this feature system-wide, which would solve 1/3 of all complaints about the Siri remote. Apple, in their infinite wisdom, completely ignored my suggestion as well as the appeals of the thousands of their users for a “Mute” feature to be implemented.

Apple think that they know better what we, their customers, need and what we don’t need. Accept this as a fact and make your future technology choices with this knowledge in hand.
There is an easier way on the Apple remote. Click it also pauses the movie - brilliant
 
original remote is fine. people complaining are simply afraid of change. touch pad is far better than tapping directional buttons many times.
Have you been watching a show then decide to pick up the remote to pause it? If you pick up the Apple remote the wrong way, even if careful to not touch the surface, but only the sides/edges, the Apple remote detects your hand and decides to do something that a touch/swipe on the corners of the remote would do. Now it's maddening to get back to your show.

A simple thing like a raised surface around the touch surface, or not making it edge-to-edge would stop something that happens every single time.

Plus, apps like Philo, it's interface is bad.... I'd rather click a button 20 times to fast-forward than swipe 20 times. You actually have to swipe to move forward 10 seconds. So you need to swipe right about 20 times to get through a commercial break.
 
There is an easier way on the Apple remote. Click it also pauses the movie - brilliant
There’s even a more brilliant way - press the TV button and turn it off.

You understand the difference between muting and pausing, right? Or do you not understand the difference? Like muting during a commercial or muting during a phone call while you want the video to continue with automatically invoked close captions on mute?

Thanks for a snarky fanboy response, though.
 
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