“This fall a bunch of new streaming video devices launched, including the new Apple TV, Roku 4, the second-generation Amazon Fire TV, and new Google Chromecast dongles,” Lauren Goode writes for The Verge. “On the surface (and even under the hood), these top living room contenders share a lot of the same features, with the exception of 4K video support. Which means the best experience really comes down to the interface, the app ecosystem, and available content.”
“It was a tough call this year, but one new streaming-video device nudged its way past the others,” Goode writes. “The best streaming box you can buy this year is the new Apple TV. It might not be the cable-killer some were expecting, especially considering that Apple had waited two years before updating its “hobby-box” in any significant way. But Apple has made improvements to Apple TV in all the right places, and has wielded the power of the iOS ecosystem to wrestle into the top spot.”
“There are some very obvious downsides to Apple TV, though. For one, Amazon Prime Video isn’t available through Apple TV, so if you’re a paying Prime subscriber and you watch a lot of video through this service, then this will be a big source of frustration for you,” Goode writes. “And, at $149 for the base model (32 gigabytes of storage) and $199 for the top-of-the-line Apple TV (64GB), it’s one of the more expensive options.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The App Store is powerful enough to propel even the largely-unfinished-but-full-of-promise Apple TV to the top of a cluttered heap of cheap also-rans. We await future tvOS updates with bated breath.
SEE ALSO:
How to take screenshots of the Apple TV – November 17, 2015
Why Apple TV doesn’t need 4K Ultra HD video – November 12, 2015
Apple TV and the 4K Ultra HD conundrum – October 8, 2015
Amazon embarrasses Apple with new 4K Fire TV box or something – September 17, 2015
Amazon unveils $100 Fire TV box 4K video support, Alexa voice control – September 17, 2015
With the all-new Apple TV, Apple changes the game, yet again – September 14, 2015
Analyst: Apple TV streaming service on the way, could cost at least $40 a month – September 14, 2015
Local media streaming app Plex coming to Apple TV – September 14, 2015
What Apple got right in Apple TV’s user interface – and what needs work – September 11, 2015
New Apple TV has the potential to do for television what iPhone did for mobile phones – September 11, 2015
Apple preps to conquer living room with all-new Apple TV – September 11, 2015
Hands-on with the all-new Apple TV – September 10, 2015
Gruber: Apple TV will define how all TVs will work in a few years – September 10, 2015
Here’s how much RAM is inside Apple’s iPhone 6s/Plus, iPad Pro and new Apple TV – September 10, 2015
New Apple TV sounds great, but where’s the 4K? – September 10, 2015
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Remote App = No
Remote that wont shatter on impact = No
Open App System = No
Amazon native App = No
Adult Content = No
4K support = Hell No
Affordable = No
Apple Music support = limited
Siri support = very limited
Buggy = yes
Overpriced = Hell Yes!!!!!!!!
This is the best streaming box available 😳
(Cue laughter)
Another Tim Cook f*cked up launch special. Never a boring moment with this guy!
Wow! I would like to meet you. You must have given lessons to Christ in a past life. Your obvious perfection shows us that you should be Emperor of the World and that our greatest example of near perfection (Apple) is a mere stain on the sole of your shoe.
I know how you did that: down vote me repeatedly (20X in 45 seconds) by using that browser trick. You are pathetic.
And he keeps going with its rating hack!!!
So lovely little kid. He must be overjealous not being able to afford a damn Apple product…
The voting scores disappeared for me when I added NoScript to my browser, and I couldn’t be happier. It’s worthless anyway. It’s not like low-rated posts are hidden like on Reddit.
——RM
Reality: stray from the topic much?
Uh, I guess your handle is meant as sarcasm then. Yeah, Right is…well, right!
What a pity…
Overprice? Gee you are new to Apple my friend or have a real shitty job…
Ho, sorry, you still live with your parents… With their 4K TV…
Move along troll… Young troll I should say… Or paid troll… Na, you would be able to afford at least the ipod shuffle…
Shut up idiot homophobe.
The cueing of laughter made this so much more dramatic and epic.
I was almost with you until you listed the lack of an Amazon app. You know damn well that’s not Apple’s fault. Amazon is being a petulant little bitch. Fsck off, obvious troll.
——RM
Even though I don’t like saying, I do wish Amazon Prime was on my new ATV4.
I wish Siri search was good for all channel apps too, not just HBO, Netflix, iTunes store.
I still want to know how my new ATV4 new how to adjust the remote to work with my TV. It just happened automatically, not with programming. Other universal remotes I have used in the past required some kind of setup.
Your TV uses HDMI-CEC which allows devices connected through HDMI to control the TV
Oh ya, I also wish the App store on the ATV would not show apps/channels I have already installed on the device. Don’t show me what I already installed, just show me items I haven’t.
What app store behaves like that? Are you upset that it doesn’t work like that on the iPhone?
——RM
Let’s take a closer look at what they said:
“…these top living room contenders share a lot of the same features, with the exception of 4K video support…”
Since they have all the same features except 4K video support, we name the winner to be the one without 4K video support.
Makes sense to me…NOT!
Or perhaps, like the vast majority of us who do not have, and do not plan to have, 4K TVs, the feature is absolutely irrelevant when it comes to rating a product. If you have a 4K TV, then (a) it’s a factor that you, and only those like you, should take into account, and (b) you likely have more money than sense.
I just don’t get the obsession with 4K. As soon 4K becomes ubiquitous, they’ll start pushing 8K, and we’ll get all the same arguments and complaining over again. Keep chasing that bleeding edge, videophiles.
If the original Apple TV was a success without 1080p, the new one will do just fine without 4K.
——RM
(LOL, my PC tried to correct “videophiles” to “pedophiles”!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFYoz-ginj8 Austin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v-_FX4gUyE UrAverage
I understand Iphone, Ipad, Mac, Apple Watch being voted the best but not this.