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Why buy an  TV?

writevli

writevli

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 7, 2013
48
25
Brussels, Belgium
Not sure if it’s just FOMO, but modern 4K TVs have built-in apps like Netflix, Prime and tv+. I also use my PS5 for gaming and occasionally YouTube.
With a sound bar connected in optical, that’s 2 remotes and 1 HDMI port used.

From first glance, it’s seems quite annoying to have another remote and use up another HDMI port on the TV. Or is there a niche I’m missing?
 
I will need my memory refreshed on this one for sure, but years ago when they shipped that (or similar) remote with iMac and Mac Mini it could be used to bring up an app that would allow you to get to your iTunes library, playlists, and showing the album art, etc… At the time it seemed to be incomplete and was a bt buggy, but i also thought about how cool it would be to see something like that on (at that time in its infancy) the iPhone, and iPad to manage music output into different rooms within a smart home…

But thats a good question - what function dos the Apple TV provide thats not already included in Apple TV app that is loaded on the various Apple OS’s? - and even run’s on some of the smart TV OS’s out there??

And does anyone recall what i am talking about with that remote of the time and its functionality, and in particular, the application it used on the Mac to interact with iTunes? It was more than just opening up iTunes - it had its own UI and functionality and the buttons on the remote were programmed to do certain things within the iTunes environment.
 
TightLines said:
And does anyone recall what i am talking about with that remote of the time and its functionality, and in particular, the application it used on the Mac to interact with iTunes?
Click to expand...

I believe you are thinking of Front Row

en.wikipedia.org

Front Row (software) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

I've had an Apple TV since before there were smart TV's and originally got it to easily access my large iTunes library of ripped DVD's. I couldn't get anything better than sub-megabit DSL and there was no cable in my rural location at the time. So I accumulated lots of DVD's, eventually ripped about 1200 of them and put them on a Mac Mini.

Not familiar with how smart TV's support the Apple TV app. But I'm assuming they don't have the "computers" app that lets you access a shared iTunes library on a local Mac. That would be a deal-breaker for me.
 
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Boyd01 said:
I believe you are thinking of Front Row

en.wikipedia.org

Front Row (software) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

I've had an Apple TV since before there were smart TV's and originally got it to easily access my large iTunes library of ripped DVD's. I couldn't get anything better than sub-megabit DSL and there was no cable in my rural location at the time. So I accumulated lots of DVD's, eventually ripped about 1200 of them and put them on Mac Mini.

Not familiar with how smart TV's support the Apple TV app. But I'm assuming they don't have the "computers" app that lets you access a shared iTunes library on a local Mac. That would be a deal-breaker for me.
Click to expand...
Exactly - thank you very much for that. I knew had recollection of that remote before the Apple TV. I do miss those times and innovation/creativity - while it wasn’t really ready for prime time, it was well one its way and i felt at the time it could be the focal point and manager of the home‘s entertainment infrastructure.

Thanks again for the memory refresh… its very much appreciated!
 
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TightLines said:
I will need my memory refreshed on this one for sure, but years ago when they shipped that (or similar) remote with iMac and Mac Mini it could be used to bring up an app that would allow you to get to your iTunes library, playlists, and showing the album art, etc… At the time it seemed to be incomplete and was a bt buggy, but i also thought about how cool it would be to see something like that on (at that time in its infancy) the iPhone, and iPad to manage music output into different rooms within a smart home…

But thats a good question - what function dos the Apple TV provide thats not already included in Apple TV app that is loaded on the various Apple OS’s? - and even run’s on some of the smart TV OS’s out there??

And does anyone recall what i am talking about with that remote of the time and its functionality, and in particular, the application it used on the Mac to interact with iTunes? It was more than just opening up iTunes - it had its own UI and functionality and the buttons on the remote were programmed to do certain things within the iTunes environment.
Click to expand...
My Samsung 65” QLED has the  music app, AirPlay and TV+ app which is rarely use. But yes, Front Row was the “bomb” before to display home media to clients/family.

Today I just ask the HomePod for music and share vacation videos via AirPlay. For the rest, SamsungOS or PS5 handle the Netflix, YouTube, etc
 
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writevli said:
it’s seems quite annoying to have another remote
Click to expand...
It totally depends on what you do with your devices. On my main TV, I have game consoles, Bluray player, and an expensive soundbar, each with their own remote, but all of my remotes stay inside my TV stand cabinet with the exception of my Siri Remote. The Siri Remote is used 99.9% of the time with my set up. It automatically controls my soundbar volume, and turns my soundbar and TV on and off.


TightLines said:
what function dos the Apple TV provide thats not already included in Apple TV app that is loaded on the various Apple OS’s? - and even run’s on some of the smart TV OS’s out there??
Click to expand...
Apple does a really crappy job explaining the benefits of the Apple TV, and if they spent even a fraction of the time and advertising on the Apple TV as they do with ATV+, I think more people would use it.

First, there is a lot more to the Apple TV and tvOS than the Apple TV App. Actually, I don't even use the Apple TV App, and have the "TV Button" on the Siri Remote go to my home screen instead of the TV App.

There are apps on tvOS that are not on other platforms, so that alone might be a reason to go with an ATV. One of my favorite apps is Coubicle TV. That isn't on any other platform AFAIK.

Updated apps and OS. Some Smart TVs are known to have only a couple years of updates of their apps. The most common apps on the ATV are still getting updates since the launch of tvOS in 2015.

I used my ATV as a hub for HomeKit. I think you can also use HomePods as a hub as well.

Casual games, and not just Apple Arcade. The majority of gaming I do now is on the ATV. They are very casual games, but still fun. The HW is capable of modern AAA games, I am sure Apple could make the ATV more of a gaming device if they wanted.

The ATV travels with me. When I go on a trip, I take my ATVs with me for overnight stays. Try to do that with your TV, I am sure one could, but it doesn't travel as well.

Integration with other Apple devices. While most modern TVs can connect to iPhones via an app, the Apple TV has everything built into it. You can also control your ATV via an Apple Watch, which is helpful to quickly pause a show I am watching if I am away from the remote. AirPods connect easily and quickly. Setting up a new ATV with super easy with an iPhone, and involves very little effort from the user.

This goes along with the last one, but you can easily calibrate the color of your display that the ATV is connected to using an iPhone's camera and the tvOS Color Calibration tool.

That is just a few things.

Now with that said, I can completely understand why someone wouldn't think the Apple TV is worth the expensive price tag especially since Apple doesn't ever advertise the Apple TV and show why it is such a great device.

Even if Apple did advertise it more, I still think many would choose cheaper devices like a FireStick or the built in apps of a Smart TV versus the ATV if they just plan on using it for streaming.

The ATV is capable of being much more than just a streaming device, but due to many things Apple has done (or not done) with the platform, that is what most people associate it with, just an overpowered, but overpriced streaming box.
 
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My 60 inch Sony Smart TV cannot play Hulu or Netflix shows for more than 2 minutes before needing to be reset. My Apple TV works flawlessly
 
I use the ATV to play music from my library through my home theater system. I used to have a direct conecton from the iMac to my receiver. Now I use the ATV 4K. My old ATV is in my bedroom and I use the same way.
 
writevli said:
My Samsung 65” QLED has the  music app, AirPlay and TV+ app which is rarely use. But yes, Front Row was the “bomb” before to display home media to clients/family.

Today I just ask the HomePod for music and share vacation videos via AirPlay. For the rest, SamsungOS or PS5 handle the Netflix, YouTube, etc
Click to expand...

I also have a Samsung 65" QLED but prefer my ATV. It does a great job of tracking the shows you watch and lets you know when a new ep is up, it syncs across all apple devices. We have 2 TV's, 3 iPhones, 2 iPad & 2 Macs. My Samsung remote also works on the ATV so if this is your big hurdle, consider it jumped. 😁 It's actually a pretty good universal remote once you get used to it. Works on my TiVO also.

I had the HD version since launch and then added the 1st gen 4K when it launched. Both still work perfectly. tvOS is much more responsive even though it's a few years older than the TV (2019 model) and also updated more frequently.

Additional plusses: easier to choose which Sonos speakers through the house to use, automatically connects to headphones/AirPods, a MUCH better interface for navigating, more apps that are frequently updated for improvements, not tracked by Samsung.

A really nice feature is that if the show is playing in multiple apps (Network app, Hulu, Spectrum/Cable app, etc) all those choices are available to you. Great for when you're doing a search and don't know where to watch something! Except Netflix because they didn't want to join the party.

But everyone has their own viewing habits so to each their own!
 
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One big thing I use my AppleTV for these days is Apple Fitness+. I think you can now AirPlay Fitness+ from an iPhone or iPad and still see the metrics (I could be wrong though).

I generally also prefer the interface to most tvOSes that I’ve used. I’m also firmly in the ecosystem so it makes sense for me to use another Apple device which syncs with everything else than have something completely separate which may not.
 
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It’s a great hub for HomeKit and Thread devices too along with being a fast loading system for streaming.

Agree with others Apple really does a poor job highlighting everything the little box can do
 
Everything juicy box said but also personal experience - had a Samsung QLED and while the TV itself was great, the interface was dreadful compared to Apple TV's. Slow, glitchy, disorganized. I regularly had to restart it because when I used HBO max and then turned it off, when I woke it back up it would stay on the HBO loading screen forever.
 
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for me even tho you are right, the color reproduction of the Apple TV seems better than the TV native app (LG OLED) and or the Xbox series X or the PS5, that does it for me, and the ability to play sound trough my headphones too.

and im one of the 0.5 % out there that likes the remote, yeah that one the gesture one
 
Apple Fitness integration is a killer feature for me = I am not sure if it's an artificial constraint that other airplay enabled TV's "can't" show the metrics when running an Apple fitness program streamed from your iPad or iPhone but I did find it worth the cost right now. The interface is nice and better than a Roku in my opinion, but probably not worth the price if you have a TV with a built in Roku or for most people who just want to get to their streaming apps and move on. I know I have 3 TV's in my house and I use 2 built in Roku's and an Apple TV on one where it's just for where I exercise.
 
I bought an ATV in 2013 and an ATV 4k bought a few months ago. How many version of ATV are there?
 
maccompaq said:
How many version of ATV are there?
Click to expand...

There have been six (so far)

Screen Shot 2022-08-18 at 10.55.16 AM.png


Identify your Apple TV model - Apple Support

Learn how to identify your Apple TV by its model number and other details.
support.apple.com support.apple.com
 
I mainly use my Apple TV 4k for two reasons:
1. Much more responsive and quick compared to the UI in the Samsung TV that I have (don't remember model but I believe it is a 2020)
2. Color, The default setting options IMO are terrible, and I do not want to constantly adjust based on what I am watching. The Apple TV does a good job at color rendition, and I can keep the TV in settings for PS5 when needed
 
So there are a few reasons:

Most modern smart TVs are limited to a few streaming apps. An Apple TV has access to hundreds of curated, high quality apps

The Apple TV gets updated more frequently and will be supported for longer.

I can control my Apple TV with my iphone, ipad or Apple Watch.

I can use my HomePods as the audio output for my Apple TV

With an Apple TV remote/ios on device remote it’s easier to navigate and to enter things such as passwords and search for things.

Better Siri support for hands free playback

The Apple TV is compatible with other Apple services such as Apple Arcade, Apple music, iCloud photos and Apple fitness+.

Not all smart TVs support Airplay. The Apple TV always supports airplay.
 
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There's no Smart TV, streaming box, or stick, that has as clean of an UI as Apple TV.

Apple TV has the best versions of apps. Yes, expensive flagship TVs also have the best versions, but they run above $1k. Budget and many mid-range TVs have crappier versions of any given app, which in most cases are laggy.
I have recent flagship Samsung and Sony Bravia smart TVs. And as expensive as they are, they still have bugs every now and then.

Multitasking on smart TVs is almost non existence. If I change an input source, go into full screen menu, or accidentally press a hotkey on the TV remote. Then the streaming app I was watching would have to reload again. On Apple TV I can leave the app, click on another app (like settings or weather), then come right back to the streaming app I was watching without it reloading.

Bluetooth experience has been the best on Apple TV. My Samsung TV can be very picky with BT headsets, some will lag, some will play choppy. On my Sony TV, there's one BT headset I have that just won't work at all with it, it's one of my favorite headsets too. Everything BT I've thrown at the Apple TV works flawlessly.
 
Just scanned the posts....did not see these (apologies if they are already listed):

• With 2 ATVs, you can sync them so that the screen options/layout are the same. Add an app to ATV1, it magically gets added to ATV2.

• Easy to control and synchronize with home pods, decent front end for Music. I have a nice sound system on the TV, so adding it to whole-house coverage with home pod minis is worth $ to me.

• The screen savers are excellent and mesmerizing.

• Modern TV with HDMI ARC means one remote (that I like). No separate remotes for audio or TV.
 
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