2021 Apple TV 4K Review: Seeking a blockbuster, given a Band-Aid

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 65
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    What a crappy update. I waited 3.5 years for this sh**. Minecraft leaving Apple TV was enough but then a bunch of other high quality games left the tvOS Store shortly after. My best PAID games are GONE. Ducktales, a game that ran on NES (1984) left Apple TV!!!!!

    Apple TV has been the worst gaming experience ever and I’ve owned turds like Virtual Boy and Gamecube(2001) which would absolutely ANNIHILATE Apple TV if it were released in 2021.
    nhughessupadav03patchythepiratedysamoriamike54elijahg
  • Reply 22 of 65
    2.5 of 5? lol. I just upgraded from an ATV HD and love this thing. It does circles around my new Vizio set's media OS (including the Apple TV+ app bundled in it). The in-TV OS is so atrocious my partner refused to use it. 
    May be, you have to READ the article and then comment on it! The last few paragraphs in the article clearly mention about why 2.5 out of 5.
    nhughesBeatsaknabielijahg
  • Reply 23 of 65
    Beats said: Correct me if I’m wrong but Arcade games have to still support iPhone 6S. So you can have an M1 device but the games are still iPhone 6S quality. 
    That's not how it works. Apple Arcade games scale the graphic quality to the level of SoC being used, similar to how PC games work. The 6S would just be the base configuration, meaning the lowest hardware that can run the game. Everything above that would get corresponding boosts to performance/quality relative to the SoC being used. The games will load higher res textures, use more polygons, use more advanced lighting and atmospheric features, etc. the higher you go in the processor pyramid. 
    edited May 2021 nhughesdysamoriawatto_cobra
  • Reply 24 of 65
    Everyone was hoping for a M1 but we got the three year old A12 instead. I guess Apple was afraid people would hack it to run MacOS.
    edited May 2021 nhughesdysamoriaelijahg
  • Reply 25 of 65
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,152member
    iadlib said:
    In a completely baffling move, the new 2021 Apple TV 4K does not include support for spatial audio with the AirPods Max or AirPods Pro.

    It’s not a “completely baffling move” if you do a little research or someone takes the time to fact check an article... Apple’s implementation of spatial audio requires gyroscopes and accelerometers on both the headphone side and the device side in order to compare the difference and modify the audio coming from your AirPods Pro/Max. 

    Clearly the AppleTV doesn’t have or need such sensors.   Implementing spatial audio would require a modification of some kind in the methodology that Apple uses to achieve the effect, perhaps acoustic mapping from the HomePod lineup or some other method. It does support traditional (higher quality) surround sound on your headphones though. 
    Apple could develop a software trick where you hold your iPhone close to the centre of your TV screen (just like the colour calibration) and the ATV could remember where the TV is for spatial audio.  It oud be pointless putting an actual chip in the ATV as it would not be located where it needs to be.
    dysamoria
  • Reply 26 of 65
    Roverv8iRoverv8i Posts: 1member
    For me it’s about a consistent experience throughout my home. So, after trying to live with an mixed environment. AppleTV, Roku, and Samsung ( also used to have a Firestick) I am moving it all to AppleTV. I like the consistency of up next being the same on all the TV’s. I do not use Netflix as much as I use to, so it lack of participation does not bother me. One thing I like that I do not believe the other devices can do is once it knows you are watching something it shows up in up next when the next episode is available even in a different app. I was watching the first 5 episodes of a CW show that was available for a limited time on HBO. When the 6th episode came out this week it showed up in up next. When I clicked, it told me I needs to install CW then I was able to watch. This way you don’t have to think so much about what you are watching or even what app you need to go into. The AppleTV seems to work best when you learn to take advantage of both the app Home Screen and AppleTV app Home Screen. Learning the best work flow as it were. The Roku keeps everything separate and the Fire TV’s curated view is cumbersome when you need to get to the app view. AppleTV gives you both choices. I would like to see a review that looks not at a device but at the user interfaces of the major boxes and TVs. 
    Beatswatto_cobra
  • Reply 27 of 65
    viclauyycviclauyyc Posts: 849member
    Does anyone have any idea how to export the digital audio signal from ATV?

    My receiver can’t correctly decode the 4K HDR signal, so I am only able to use 4K SDR. But when I connect the ATV directly to my 4K tv, Vizio M75, the tv can and work as Dolby Vision display, I don’t even need to do colour calibration. However, the tv only has a optical out which connected to my soundbar. 

    So anyone know a way for the ATV to output a separate audio signal? My receiver don’t even have Airplay. Do I need to get a HDMI splitter? But does it even support HDMI 2.1 and Dolby vision?

    Thanks 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 28 of 65
    nhughesnhughes Posts: 770editor
    viclauyyc said:
    Does anyone have any idea how to export the digital audio signal from ATV?

    My receiver can’t correctly decode the 4K HDR signal, so I am only able to use 4K SDR. But when I connect the ATV directly to my 4K tv, Vizio M75, the tv can and work as Dolby Vision display, I don’t even need to do colour calibration. However, the tv only has a optical out which connected to my soundbar. 

    So anyone know a way for the ATV to output a separate audio signal? My receiver don’t even have Airplay. Do I need to get a HDMI splitter? But does it even support HDMI 2.1 and Dolby vision?

    Thanks 
    Something like this should work, with caveats (it downgrades to HDMI 2.0 instead of 2.1, which means no 120fps content if Apple ever enables it).

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FR4771P/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_MVFNSZ55JEEVC281VK7Z?tag=reality
    viclauyycBeats
  • Reply 29 of 65
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,273member
    Suffice to say that I think Neil’s way off on this (very unusually), based on his disappointment about his console hopes. Don’t know if he’s heard, but privacy is the new hotness. Which streaming box doesn’t collect data to show you more ads? Hmmm. Which one isn’t owned by a company that makes its revenue off collecting your data? Oh yeah.

    Which one gives you a year of an excellent streaming service free? Which one gives you Apple Arcade? Which one has the best interface, and now (finally), the best remote? Which one has ALL the services, and isn’t fighting with Google or Amazon at the moment? Oh, and which one will feed all your TV’s sound from any HDMI inputs to your HomePods?

    Personally I think the Apple TV is CHEAP for what it gives me. I turned off the smarts on my data-collecting, ad-inserting Roku-based TV and let Apple TV handle it all. I’m sure it’s not the perfect experience for everybody, but it’s the best value on the market, if you value privacy and security.
    dysamoriarundhvidBeatswatto_cobra
  • Reply 30 of 65
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,247member
    Thank you AppleInsider for a fair review. 
    muthuk_vanalingamneoncatdysamoria
  • Reply 31 of 65
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,247member
    2.5 of 5? lol. I just upgraded from an ATV HD and love this thing. It does circles around my new Vizio set's media OS (including the Apple TV+ app bundled in it). The in-TV OS is so atrocious my partner refused to use it. 
    It depends how you look at it.
    I have a TV with Apple TV+ built in. That’s a much better integration (one remote, one system) than what AppleTV has to offer as a standalone product.

    It otherwise fails as a game console (poor GPU, poor content offering). It fails as a streaming stick (too expensive). So what on Earth is it? To support people without a newer smart TV?


  • Reply 32 of 65
    CheeseFreeze said: It otherwise fails as a game console (poor GPU, poor content offering). 
    The GPU in the A12 can output games at 4K. That's obviously better performance than the current Switch and the original PS4 and Xbox One. And the fact remains that the iOS/iPadOS ecosystem doesn't support $60-$70 game pricing. Even if Apple put a PS5/Series X level SoC in the ATV, you wouldn't be seeing ports of current console games to iOS/iPadOS. The economics are the barrier, not the GPU. 
    tenthousandthingswatto_cobra
  • Reply 33 of 65
    mike1 said:
    I'll be picking one up. Moving my current 4K ATV to a bedroom and retiring an ATV3.
    Not needed yet, but this will give me Thread support centrally located in my Home. A bit of future benefit there.
    I upgraded.  I have a second gen Apple TV, which works perfectly fine, but this new one feels much better to me.  In addition to replacing my aging, no longer updatable iPad as a HomeKit Hub, a 4K TV will shortly be added to my set up.

    Couldn't care less about gaming (PCMR) so that isn't a consideration.

    But to me, the most attractive feature of the Apple TV over some of the others is an absent one.  There's no "I am the product" eco-system supporting it.
    dysamoriaBeatswatto_cobra
  • Reply 34 of 65
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Beats said:
    What a crappy update. I waited 3.5 years for this sh**. Minecraft leaving Apple TV was enough but then a bunch of other high quality games left the tvOS Store shortly after. My best PAID games are GONE. Ducktales, a game that ran on NES (1984) left Apple TV!!!!!

    Apple TV has been the worst gaming experience ever and I’ve owned turds like Virtual Boy and Gamecube(2001) which would absolutely ANNIHILATE Apple TV if it were released in 2021.
    If you think the GameCube was a turd then I have no interest in your views on any game console.
    neoncatfastasleep
  • Reply 35 of 65
    No doubt Apple’s data shows that virtually everyone who both owns an Apple TV and is interested in gaming also owns a console, along with an assortment of other gaming devices of various vintages. People tend to have collections of them. Not to mention a computer.

    I mean, the clue is right there in the name, it’s a “TV” first. In my experience, it does that quite well. Can it be better? Of course, but that always true. 

    I think it’s possible Apple Silicon will mean the processing power of the leftover silicon in the Apple TV will nonetheless increase exponentially, to the point where they will move beyond Arcade, but that won’t happen until after the transition is complete.
    edited May 2021 fastasleepwatto_cobra
  • Reply 36 of 65
    jwdawsojwdawso Posts: 389member
    Another Neil article where he has no clue who AI and Apple customers are. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 37 of 65
    rezwitsrezwits Posts: 878member
    Everyone was hoping for a M1 but we got the three year old A12 instead. I guess Apple was afraid people would hack it to run MacOS.
    Dude, but the thing is, the AppleTV is a very SOLE focused design.  You don't do have like 4 or 5 things on an TV running.

    Like pretty much you navigate, then LAUNCH, then the TV just completely focuses on say playing a 4K show, (1080 zoom 4x, 720 zoom 9x), or launching a game and boom game time and that's all.  The A12 and whatever chip in the future that is 2 years behind will ALWAYS be adequate for the TV ecosystem.

    Now if you were multi-tasking, editing video, etc, then sure you would want an M1.
    But that's such over kill.  I mean for $60 fo an an M1 MacMini?!? that's an TV4K in disguise?
    You're NOT gonna get that EVER!

    Laters...
    viclauyycwatto_cobra
  • Reply 38 of 65
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,858administrator
    jwdawso said:
    Another Neil article where he has no clue who AI and Apple customers are. 
    If you, the reader, think AI "core" readers are the "typical" Apple user, you're really mistaken in that regard.

    For instance, if you think that, then you think that nearly the entire Apple user base wants a Mac mini tower, with PCI and PCI-E storage. The reality is, almost nobody outside the "core" AI readership gives a single crap about it. In fact, most prefer thin and light everything, instead of the constant cry that we get here for a shitload of ports, and thick to support that.

    Reviews like this have to appeal and apply to the larger audience, and not just the AI "core." Related to this, we've turned off comments on tips, because of ridiculous comments like "Why did you write this, this is obvious" -- when it really isn't to most.

    The AI "core" is 30% of our total readership, and dropping, as Apple's reach grows and we grow in readership. We're not abandoning that core, but there is zero chance we're going to ignore the other 70%.
    edited May 2021 muthuk_vanalingamtenthousandthingsdysamorianhughesAppleZulufastasleeprundhvidCloudTalkinsdw2001dewme
  • Reply 39 of 65
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    2.5 of 5? lol. I just upgraded from an ATV HD and love this thing. It does circles around my new Vizio set's media OS (including the Apple TV+ app bundled in it). The in-TV OS is so atrocious my partner refused to use it. 
    I refuse to use it in ours, as well. It’s objectively & OFFENSIVELY bad. It makes me want to SCREAM that our society puts up with products that are THIS OBJECTIVELY BAD.

    It also makes me feel like the slippery slope logical fallacy isn't a fallacy in this context, because I’ve been watching the computer industry push quality to THIS point where some products are unusable without the patience of a Dog damned SAINT, and even then (the Disney+ app wont play video at all).
  • Reply 40 of 65
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member

    Beats said:
    On the 2017 version of the Apple TV 4K, playing NBA 2K21 Arcade Edition as part of an Apple Arcade subscription, textures on the player's jerseys are so low resolution that I'm convinced it must be a bug of sorts. Upon setting up the new 2021 Apple TV 4K, I launched NBA 2K21 Arcade Edition to see if there were any improvements. The menu and game seemed to load faster, but those low-res eyesore textures were still there.

    ...you do realize Apple's device doesn't alter textures in a developer's game, right? That's on them to do.

    No one gets this. Apple Arcade is just sh** in general. Apple is gonna get crushed by gaming services very soon if they don’t take this segment seriously.

    Correct me if I’m wrong but Arcade games have to still support iPhone 6S. So you can have an M1 device but the games are still iPhone 6S quality. 
    This IS a weird requirement.

    Don’t worry, I’m sure the 6s will be abandoned this year. It’s the one I’m using right now and its performance is miserable even without having updated past iOS 12.x. I can’t stop feeling like there’s some mechanism actively making it worse, Minh by month, just to drive me to buy a new phone (mostly the keyboard behavior; I assume this is due to web services, because how could it develop lag without software updates???).
    Beats
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