Where's the New Apple TV?

[vjl323]

They must be busy figuring out which port they can charge for and create a new SKU out of...

For the uninitiated: All AppleTVs should have ethernet, period.

What the.....? So I checked and...wow. Just wow.

I have the first generation Apple TV [the one with hard drive!], and one of the smaller ones [2nd or 3rd gen]. Once the ones came out with the horrible remote, I just held on to my 2nd/3rd gen until 2021 and grabbed my first tvOS powered Apple TV, with ethernet, because they've always had that port.

Your comment made me check Apple's website and sure enough, in 2022, while I was hiking the AT, they released a new one that had 2 sub-models - one with and one without ethernet. Why? Seriously, why? I get it that not everyone has a wired connection near their TV, but the aspect of including that port costs Apple pennies - just keep it in there and make one product, or worse case, make 2 sub models, with the onboard storage being the *only* thing that changes.

Whomever is in charge of the Apple TV hardware/software wise really isn't doing a good job - this device could be a gaming console, and even if they wanted to *really* push Apple Arcade, they'd still have free/paid games that could run on it. Release an Apple-designed game controller and make that a separate purchase or package 2 up in an Apple TV with extra storage, and charge a premium.

Sorry, rant over. I just can't believe they did that in 2022. Fully agree - all AppleTVs should have ethernet. EOL.

 

[artifex]

2026 is hopefully the year I switch to Home Assistant, but definitely waiting on the next ATV first to see what improvements it will have. Was hoping a much-improved Siri would come to the next Homepod minis, because I have a couple Amazon Echo products I'd like to replace as well, but sounds like that's not happening.

P.S. Glad MR has UGreen as a sponsor. I've been buying more of their accessories lately, and hopefully this leads to more promos and discounts.

 

[dampfnudel]

There won’t be console gaming no matter what chip it has. Apple doesn’t care about that type of gaming, at all, and game producers aren’t going to support it.

If you want a console, get a console.

What about “console gaming” available for the iPhone? The next generation Apple TV will get that by default with the A19 Pro. As for ‘get a console’, I have a PS5 and really don’t care about gaming on the next Apple TV if I decide to get it. Unless there’s some exclusive game available for it.

 

[bebarhood]

Any chance they delayed the release so they can have an HDMI 2.2 output and Dolby Vision 2 /HDR10+ Advanced?

I know I am dreaming here 😅

 

[iSayuSay]

On the flip side I feel lucky to own 2 gens of longest-in-the-tooth Apple TV LOL. My first was the original Apple TV 4K which was released in 2018, and only get minor facelift in 2021. Then I upgraded to the latest ATV 4K back in 2023 with USB-C Siri Remote and A15 chip, it hasn't been updated ever since.

 

[Macmelman]

Not everything needs to be updated frequently. The current generation AppleTV is still the best streaming box on the market, with the added bonus of some games. There really is no need to push for an update. Are there some quality of life improvements needed? Yes. But do we need to update the thing every year or two? Not at all.

TEG

Are people still using this? my smart TV does essentially the same than my Apple TV. I haven't used it in years

 

[Macmelman]

Do you really need a A19 to open Netflix?

Do you really need an Apple TV to open Netflix when every TV set nowadays has the App built in (and you can download any apps Apple TV offers)?

 

[Macmelman]

Apple TV was first released when TVs were not capable of much. Now it basically is a fancier version of opening streaming apps which all TVs do. They need to reinvent it or I believe it won’t last long.

It is a completely obsolete gadget. I have a 2018 4K version and I haven't used it in years with my smart TV that does exactly the same. It will disappear as the iPod did once every phone out there did the same.

 

[Macmelman]

New Apple TV: Where is it?

It's not coming.

Well, it is, but you're looking in the wrong place.

Apple renamed Apple TV+ to just Apple TV, adding to the brand confusion between the service, the app and the box — all with the same name. I believe the Apple TV (the box) is being rethought to have its functions integrated into Apple's broader Home strategy.

What we currently know now as a TV box will be integrated into the new HomePods running homeOS. Every HomePod in your home will be capable of running the tvOS front end, AirPlayed wirelessly to any TV in any room.

While not every TV has AirPlay, virtually every brand of TV in the last 5 years has sold with or retroactively added support for AirPlay. Older TVs will have the last gen Apple TV or Apple may sell an AirPlay Stick.

Steve Jobs speaking about the Apple TV at All Things D said that it's hard to compete with FREE. Cable companies and now ISPs offer these free TV boxes. I think Apple is about to solve that by building it into their most successful Home device that people actually do buy: the HomePod mini which already runs a variant of tvOS without the UI, audioOS soon to be renamed homeOS.

But why make it so complicated? You can stream directly into your TV using the TV apps, no need for an extra connection. Everybody has a smart TV these days.

 

[Macmelman]

Really? When the current Apple TV is by far the best streaming box on the market

Considering it is several years old, that tells you the general interest there is in this type of products. Nobody uses them anymore

 

[Macmelman]

Same here. Got a brand new 4K tv, wondering if a new Apple TV would improve image quality, especially as Netflix only provides HDR10+ to AV1 capable devices - the 3rd generation does not, the 4th generation might. So I'll just wait. The first gen 4K still works fine. The 2015 HD version upstairs does not, so I'd gladly shift the first gen upstairs and have a the 4th gen 4K (or 8K?) at the main TV.

Why don't you use the built in Netflix app in your TV? Why do you need another device?

 

[Macmelman]

Or they could just leave the low-end/home market to Amazon. At this point, Apple seem unlikely to be able to make their usual premium offering here. Amazon Fire sticks sell for around £20-30 on sale and work quite well, so a $99(+tax) device would need to be very special to make any kind of impact.

There definitely is a market for streaming sticks - Smart TV interfaces are generally poor and the hardware can be slow and can't be upgraded. I actively look for TVs/monitors that don't have "smart" features - better value and work better. But as I said, Amazon has the market pretty well cornered.

I have three smart TVs at home, and I have a 2018 4K Apple TV. There is not instance at all in which the Apple TV works better than any of the three smart TVs, including one that was $300 a couple of years ago. Streaming apps don't require huge capabilities and current TVs are more than enough to run them flawlessly. And Apple TV hardware can't be upgraded either (not even by Apple apparently). I haven't used my Apple TV in years. It is one more device to switch on to end up watching Netflix or whatever streaming service I use. It has become completely redundant.

 

[David Hassholehoff]

Not everything needs to be updated frequently. The current generation AppleTV is still the best streaming box on the market, with the added bonus of some games. There really is no need to push for an update. Are there some quality of life improvements needed? Yes. But do we need to update the thing every year or two? Not at all.

TEG

I don’t want to buy a new device for the same price it was when it was released three years ago.

So yeah, they should refresh them more frequently. Or lower the price like most other companies. (And we both know that’s not happening.)

As for needing the upgrade, my current Apple TV (3rd gen) and my parents’ ones still works, but they’re nearly fourteen years old now. We are seeing some compatibility problems with them. (Them more than me as they used apps that were recently deprecated.) Still, fourteen years viability for these devices is both impressive and cheap!

 

[ipedro]

But why make it so complicated? You can stream directly into your TV using the TV apps, no need for an extra connection. Everybody has a smart TV these days.

Have you used those built-in smart TV apps? Built-in smart TV apps are often painfully slow, with terrible UI and in many cases have unskippable ads either in the apps or in the OS itself (looking at you Samsung) — or both. The first thing I do when I buy a new TV is turn off its OS and plug in an Apple TV.

It's very much the same reason many people these days will not buy a car without CarPlay. They don't want to deal with companies who don't know how to build a good UX.

 

[erihp]

Not to mention (since it was actually already mentioned in this thread), they're watching what you're watching and selling that data to anyone who pays for it.

No thanks!

 

[fischersd]

Currently, the Apple TV supports apps like FaceTime and zoom, but I believe that for most people, having to park your own smartphone next to it is too much of a hassle. I am thinking that if a new Apple TV were to support webcams, it would be something along the lines of what the Switch 2 has done. Have a usb-c port where you can connect a webcam that's either mounted to a stand, or at the top of your television. I guess it would also allow Apple to sell an additional accessory?

It's a shame that Apple didn't include a USB-C port with the current ATV 4k - it would have allowed them to add WebCam support with a TVOS upgrade. (though, that doesn't drive additional sales).

Looking forward to them adding WebCam support for the Apple TV - can finally use my TV for video calls, as we should have had a decade ago (well, some of us did by connecting our Mac Mini's to our TV's) If I upgrade my M2Pro Mini I may just make it part of my HTPC setup as I did with the 2012 i7 some time ago.

And give us keyboard support and a full Safari browser....so we can use it as a HTPC.

 

[erihp]

It's a shame that Apple didn't include a USB-C port with the current ATV 4k - it would have allowed them to add WebCam support with a TVOS upgrade. (though, that doesn't drive additional sales).

Looking forward to them adding WebCam support for the Apple TV - can finally use my TV for video calls, as we should have had a decade ago (well, some of us did by connecting our Mac Mini's to our TV's) If I upgrade my M2Pro Mini I may just make it part of my HTPC setup as I did with the 2012 i7 some time ago.

And give us keyboard support and a full Safari browser....so we can use it as a HTPC.

Many people who use this Facetime on TV feature do so with that old iphone sitting in a drawer for this purpose already.