Apple reveals 4K and HDR plans in iTunes, hinting revamped Apple TV may arrive soon

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  • Reply 21 of 94
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,093member
    Could anyone with a 4th gen Apple TV (or access to one without having to drive an hour) tell me if you can set timed access on it? It’s absolutely mystifying to me why every single other Apple product can be set to automatically shut off at (or after) a given time, but not the Apple TV. That’d be my only reason to get one, and I’d get one immediately if it was the case.

    I'm actually surprised you asked this question.  Name one Apple product that "shuts off" at any given time.  I know they all go into sleep mode, but not literally shuts down.

    AppleTV also has a sleep mode.  I know this since I have one.  Are we missing something here?
    sansanantksundaram
  • Reply 22 of 94
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member
    lkrupp said:
    Hopefully the revamp extends to using a new design for the awful remote control
    Nonsense. I find the Siri remote easy to use and have n ever had any issues with it.
    Except Siri can't do everything. Actually using the remote is a huge pain in the ass. The voice control may be decent, but the rest just makes for a non so great experience. The touch surface is far too sensitive and just plain awkward to use. Why can't they have a pointer, kinda like a Wii remote, or an LG remote does? Its like Apple doesn't have a clue as to how to make an input device. They suck as making mice and always have and now this. About the only thing they can make is a pencil. 
    anantksundaram
  • Reply 23 of 94
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member

    lkrupp said:
    Can we settle an ongoing argument about 4K streaming? How much bandwidth is recommended for reliable 4K streaming? I have seen figures of around 20mbps. Now what is the average bandwidth available in the U.S. right now? I myself have a 12mbps DSL line so I am assuming 4K streaming would be useless to me, especially if other devices were consuming bandwidth online at the same time. And while we're at it my DSL line is 1mbps upstream. Using an online bandwidth calculator I figured it would take 120 hours to upload 50GB of my Photos library. This makes cloud computing a non-starter for me and I assume millions of others.
    I think its time to upgrade your internet service...
    anantksundaram
  • Reply 24 of 94
    I highly cali said:
    I've slowed down on buying movies because of this. How much will Apple/studios charge to upgrade our content? Upgrading our library for free would be awesome and simple.

    A new Apple TV with 4K gaming will be amazing and convince a few gamers to buy.
    I'm pretty sure no company ever allowed HD update when SD was getting phased out.  I highly doubt Apple of all company's will ever allow upgrading existing content. They'd rather have you slowly rebuy all your titles again in 4K. Also, you got the movie studios that also want every dime out of ya.  I doubt its gonna happen. 
    edited July 2017 stompy
  • Reply 25 of 94
    jcs2305jcs2305 Posts: 1,337member
    pujones1 said:
    I'm so ready for this update. I hope it comes with Dolby Vision. That way we have both software and hardware solutions. I'd be willing to pay more for the option. They should definitely add more features too. 
    Thank you for mentioning Dolby Vision. I didn't know what it was so I did some searching around and educated myself. From what I have read it's fantastic!




  • Reply 26 of 94
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    sflocal said:
    Name one Apple product that "shuts off" at any given time.  I know they all go into sleep mode, but not literally shuts down.
    Oh, what's it called… It's under Energy Saver in OS X; I think it's called "Sleep Schedule." I have our basement iMac (iTunes "server") automatically sleep at night and wake up in the morning (because we never use it then), but I can't do the same with the Apple TV. I'd like to have it auto-sleep, regardless of user input at the time.
    AppleTV also has a sleep mode.  I know this since I have one.  Are we missing something here?
    I'm sure it's my fault; I'm not describing it correctly. I just want the same scheduling for automatic sleep scheduling (bypassing user inputs and not contingent on a period of inactivity first) on the Apple TV as in OS X.
  • Reply 27 of 94
    Cool. Maybe in another 5 years or so when my TV goes, it will get replaced with a 4K model.

    If there is one thing I couldn't be more indifferent toward, it is 4K content in the living room. 1080p is more than good enough from 10 ft. away.
    edited July 2017 bonobobwatto_cobramobird
  • Reply 28 of 94
    sanssans Posts: 58member
    sflocal said:
    Name one Apple product that "shuts off" at any given time.  I know they all go into sleep mode, but not literally shuts down.
    Oh, what's it called… It's under Energy Saver in OS X; I think it's called "Sleep Schedule." I have our basement iMac (iTunes "server") automatically sleep at night and wake up in the morning (because we never use it then), but I can't do the same with the Apple TV. I'd like to have it auto-sleep, regardless of user input at the time.
    AppleTV also has a sleep mode.  I know this since I have one.  Are we missing something here?
    I'm sure it's my fault; I'm not describing it correctly. I just want the same scheduling for automatic sleep scheduling (bypassing user inputs and not contingent on a period of inactivity first) on the Apple TV as in OS X.
    So what you are wanting is to hard set a time for when the Apple TV goes to sleep? 
    tallest skil
  • Reply 29 of 94
    sanssans Posts: 58member
    Cool. Maybe in another 5 years or so when my TV goes, it will get replaced with a 4K model.

    If there is one thing I couldn't be more indifferent toward, it is 4K content in the living room. 1080p is more than good enough from 10 ft. away.
    For me, it has nothing to do with the 4K resolution. It's all about the HDR (Machkovech, Sam. "High Dynamic Range, Explained: There’s a Reason to Finally Get a New TV." Ars Technica. Ars Technica, 05 Dec. 2016. Web. 28 July 2017).
  • Reply 30 of 94
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,166member
    Sweet. In addition to 4K it should have HDR, Dolby vision and most importantly of all, a drop in price.

    $99 headline price would goose sales considerably and I expect still have very good margins.
  • Reply 31 of 94
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    daven said:
    It would be nice to have a cable and tv tuner in the update with DVR capability where allowed. Something like this:

    https://androidtvbox.eu/wetek-play-set-top-box-atsc-tuner/

    But that would be asking too much of cable companies to give up their lucrative ancient box top rental business. Actually, cable companies could do the same as they did with cable modem rentals. If you rent from them, $12 a month. If you bring your own, $12 a month 'access' fee. Can you see why I dropped cable?
    That's what we wanted a decade ago. I'd set my sights on internet based TV subscriptions, not a built-in TV tuner.
    StrangeDays
  • Reply 32 of 94
    I'm not complaining since I only have a 1080p HDTV but it's about time for those who do. I'm only saying this because it seems Apple is definitely behind all the other major and minor companies who make streaming video boxes. All the other streaming box companies had 4K support around a year ago. I'm sure there will be plenty of anti-Apple factions out there who will claim Apple is too late to the 4K party, as usual. I may be wrong but it just seems odd why a company with Apple's tremendous resources falls behind companies putting out $50 Android streaming boxes. How much could a 4K decoder chip cost? a couple of bucks? Apple falling behind Roku and Amazon in terms of hardware doesn't make much sense to me.
  • Reply 33 of 94
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    lkrupp said:
    Can we settle an ongoing argument about 4K streaming? How much bandwidth is recommended for reliable 4K streaming? I have seen figures of around 20mbps. Now what is the average bandwidth available in the U.S. right now? I myself have a 12mbps DSL line so I am assuming 4K streaming would be useless to me, especially if other devices were consuming bandwidth online at the same time. And while we're at it my DSL line is 1mbps upstream. Using an online bandwidth calculator I figured it would take 120 hours to upload 50GB of my Photos library. This makes cloud computing a non-starter for me and I assume millions of others.
    If you're only at 12Mbps then I assume that you've had to wait in the past for iTunes Store HD content to queue up before you could start playing it. I know that many years ago that 1080p Apple events would need a few minutes to download before I could play them, but even if it takes 2x as long why does that matter when we're talking about downloading content from the iTunes Store? You start it when it's ready to be played. I've started or finished downloads from hotels, coffee shops, trains, commercial jets and everything else in between. Just because I couldn't stream any HD video, much less 1080p, from Gogo's airline WiFi, doesn't mean I didn't utilize their service for grabbing HD content. Of course, for a home-based device your expectations may be different, but if you have a 12Mbps and need 20Mbps for the content you either need to plan ahead, ignore 4K for now, or get faster internet.

    But even if you stick with 1080p content for yourself you'd still benefit from HDR if your TV supports it and you access Netflix and Amazon content. And if they also offer HEVC for 1080p (or lower resolution) content you then better your ability to stream content. On top of that, supposing HEVC means you can convert your local H.264 content to save disk space.
    edited July 2017
  • Reply 34 of 94
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    lkrupp said:
    Hopefully the revamp extends to using a new design for the awful remote control
    Nonsense. I find the Siri remote easy to use and have n ever had any issues with it.
    Overall it's great, but I wish they'd at least update the Siri remote SW so that it's smarter about how it's being touched. It's too easy for the side of the leg or arm to cause it to react. Occasionally, yet still far too often, I want to jump back 10 seconds and it seems to go back several minutes. Honestly, it's a minor issue since you can use the old style Apple TV remote, any programmed remote, and the iOS Remote app.
    edited July 2017 cali
  • Reply 35 of 94
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    macxpress said:

    lkrupp said:
    Can we settle an ongoing argument about 4K streaming? How much bandwidth is recommended for reliable 4K streaming? I have seen figures of around 20mbps. Now what is the average bandwidth available in the U.S. right now? I myself have a 12mbps DSL line so I am assuming 4K streaming would be useless to me, especially if other devices were consuming bandwidth online at the same time. And while we're at it my DSL line is 1mbps upstream. Using an online bandwidth calculator I figured it would take 120 hours to upload 50GB of my Photos library. This makes cloud computing a non-starter for me and I assume millions of others.
    I think its time to upgrade your internet service...
    My upgrade options are limited. That's why I was asking about the average.  Wikipedia/Akamai says it was 12.6 mbps in 2016 so I have an average connection that would not support 4K. That's why I question the clamor for 4K steaming content.
  • Reply 36 of 94
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    lkrupp said:
    macxpress said:

    lkrupp said:
    Can we settle an ongoing argument about 4K streaming? How much bandwidth is recommended for reliable 4K streaming? I have seen figures of around 20mbps. Now what is the average bandwidth available in the U.S. right now? I myself have a 12mbps DSL line so I am assuming 4K streaming would be useless to me, especially if other devices were consuming bandwidth online at the same time. And while we're at it my DSL line is 1mbps upstream. Using an online bandwidth calculator I figured it would take 120 hours to upload 50GB of my Photos library. This makes cloud computing a non-starter for me and I assume millions of others.
    I think its time to upgrade your internet service...
    My upgrade options are limited. That's why I was asking about the average.  Wikipedia/Akamai says it was 12.6 mbps in 2016 so I have an average connection that would not support 4K. That's why I question the clamor for 4K steaming content.
    I'd bet the average bandwidth for an Apple TV + owner of a UHDTV are higher, but it's a moot point when we're talking about iTunes Store content.
  • Reply 37 of 94
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member

    macxpress said:
    lkrupp said:
    Hopefully the revamp extends to using a new design for the awful remote control
    Nonsense. I find the Siri remote easy to use and have n ever had any issues with it.
    Except Siri can't do everything. Actually using the remote is a huge pain in the ass. The voice control may be decent, but the rest just makes for a non so great experience. The touch surface is far too sensitive and just plain awkward to use. Why can't they have a pointer, kinda like a Wii remote, or an LG remote does? Its like Apple doesn't have a clue as to how to make an input device. They suck as making mice and always have and now this. About the only thing they can make is a pencil. 
    Well that's your opinion only. I find the remote totally acceptable. I also find the wireless Magic Mouse to be great. I have gotten used to all the touch based features and use them all the time. So I reject outright your opinion that Apple sucks at most everything you claim it does. 
    fastasleepStrangeDays
  • Reply 38 of 94
    danvmdanvm Posts: 1,409member
    cali said:
    I've slowed down on buying movies because of this. How much will Apple/studios charge to upgrade our content? Upgrading our library for free would be awesome and simple.

    A new Apple TV with 4K gaming will be amazing and convince a few gamers to buy.
    I don't think that 4K will do something for the ATV as a gaming device.  Sony, MS and Nintendo already control the market, and looks like it will be this way for many years.  
  • Reply 39 of 94
    zoetmbzoetmb Posts: 2,654member
    coldpizza said:
    You currently cannot upgrade from Standard Def to HD in iTunes so I doubt you'll be able to from HD to 4K. The studios would argue you can't upgrade physical formats like DVD so why should you be able to with Digital. For $5 a movie I would upgrade everything in my collection to 4K which is over 100 movies. But I guess the studios don't want my money.
    Most UHD Blu-rays also come with an HD disc and many HD Blu-rays included a DVD.  So the upgrade was already there.  And Warner Bros. did have a program to upgrade DVDs to Blu, but I forget how much it was.  IIRC, they even allowed you to select a different Blu-ray than the DVD you were sending back.  But I don't think there's a similar program to upgrade to UHD.  

    The fact is that most UHDs are created from 2K DIgital Intermediates anyway, so it's a bit of a farce.  
  • Reply 40 of 94
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 2,707member
    Hopefully the revamp extends to using a new design for the awful remote control
    Interesting comment. 

    Ive thought has been one of the better remotes/interfaces I've used in digital smart boxes. But I have no experience prior to the latest gen. 

    Curious to know what you've found to be its shortcomings. 

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