Apple TV 4K experience?

[Renegade]

Anyone using the Apple TV HD or 4K version? How has been the experience and long term usage feedback. Is the storage used for anything else besides the app? If not then whats the use for a 64GB version.

Edit - Most importantly, can we connect 2 bluetooth earphones and push audio on both simultaneously?

 

[superczar]

Anyone using the Apple TV HD or 4K version? How has been the experience and long term usage feedback. Is the storage used for anything else besides the app? If not then whats the use for a 64GB version.

Edit - Most importantly, can we connect 2 bluetooth earphones and push audio on both simultaneously?

Unless you want to stuff it with games, just get the 32GB variant

I have been using both the ATV HD and ATV4K for the past many years
Both are significantly faster than any streamer - and I have tried several

It is by far the best streamer I have used and I won't switch from it to any other option available currently.
However, I won't still recommend it to most users unless 2 or more of the below is true:

a) You need proper ATMOS support for Netflix and Prime ...This alone makes it worth the price to me at least but it may be non consequential to many
b) You use AirPods - in which case audio switches seamlessly between phone/ tab/ laptop/ TV + audio can be shared between two pairs - and while I have tried non AirPods BT headsets (which obviously works fine for 1 pair), I don't think audio sharing works with other BT headsets
c) You want the convenience of having the remote available directly within your iPhone swipe down menu

If not for the above , the 3X premium over say fire stick 4K is not worth it just for the faster UI

PS: I feel (but this is subjective) that the ATV does a better job at rendering HDR over the fire stick and in general runs more stable than FS (which itself is very stable esp compared to bug fest boxes like Mi 4k)

 

[Renegade]

Actually I am thinking of upgrading my 10+ year old TV. It was a Samsung LA40C530 or something that Gannu had recommended way back then. Still runs fine and I don't know what will I do with it if I get a new one.

Anyway, so I know that most new TVs will come with their smarts but I would rather get a Fire Stick or an Apple TV, simply coz I don't trust any of the TV UIs. My current fire stick, which also is 4 years old, is extremely slow by today's standards and feels like running Windows on a non-SSD laptop. Also I have had poor experience with its remote. So wanted to check how is the competition doing. Now I have been in and out of the apple ecosystem and am planning to dive back in this year, so naturally this comes as a valid option.

I don't intend to own Airpods coz I think they are simply not worth it. The OnePlus wireless buds connects just fine with the macbook and phone. Its a shame that I won't be able to connect two buds with the ATV 4K even though it supports BT 5. My most usage would be on headphones and I have stopped watching TV lately simply coz it makes a lot of noise and disturbs others.

 

[msankadi]

Have you considered Nvidia shield pro, I have seen that as the defacto streamer suggested everywhere without restrictions.

I would never go for such expensive streamers as I got a nuc for about 15k with 7th gen i3 and I don't think any streamer apple or Nvidia will be as fast especially with ssd and 16 gigs ram, plus unlimited control

 

[raksrules]

I would recommend Fire Stick 4K. It is plenty fast and I don't think it's remote suffers from the drain issue. It is cheaper than Apple tv and being android you can Install 3rd party apps too for content consumption.

I have several apple devices but still haven't considered Apple tv as I personally don't see the worth and also I have got immensely used to fire stick and use apps that will never be there on apple tv.

 

[superczar]

Actually I am thinking of upgrading my 10+ year old TV. It was a Samsung LA40C530 or something that Gannu had recommended way back then. Still runs fine and I don't know what will I do with it if I get a new one.

Anyway, so I know that most new TVs will come with their smarts but I would rather get a Fire Stick or an Apple TV, simply coz I don't trust any of the TV UIs. My current fire stick, which also is 4 years old, is extremely slow by today's standards and feels like running Windows on a non-SSD laptop. Also I have had poor experience with its remote. So wanted to check how is the competition doing. Now I have been in and out of the apple ecosystem and am planning to dive back in this year, so naturally this comes as a valid option.

I don't intend to own Airpods coz I think they are simply not worth it. The OnePlus wireless buds connects just fine with the macbook and phone. Its a shame that I won't be able to connect two buds with the ATV 4K even though it supports BT 5. My most usage would be on headphones and I have stopped watching TV lately simply coz it makes a lot of noise and disturbs others.

TV UIs have gotten better - but are still some distance away from a good dedicated streamer.
Looking at your usage scenario, +1 to @raksrules suggestion of a FS 4K .. it offers 90% of the ATV at a much lower cost.
The new Fire TV box is supposed to be better / faster but haven’t used it

If however spending a +10K is ok in the bigger scheme of things, the ATV is still worth buying IMO.

Have you considered Nvidia shield pro, I have seen that as the defacto streamer suggested everywhere without restrictions.

I would never go for such expensive streamers as I got a nuc for about 15k with 7th gen i3 and I don't think any streamer apple or Nvidia will be as fast especially with ssd and 16 gigs ram, plus unlimited control

I have also heard good things about the nvidia - but the pricing/availability/warranty equation in India make the ATV a much easier choice over it. All the more so if user is already on ios or mac os
(Unless one has to mandatorily sideload ahem apps)

Also, While some people still swear by HTPCs, having used all sorts of HTPCs extensively in the past, i would never go back to them over say a FS 4K, let alone ATV.
Purely as a streaming device, the ATV (and very likely the nvidia too) is significantly more convenient - and snappier to use than any kind of HTPC

 

[red dragon]

Get the Fire Stick 4K. I don't have the latest one, but the last year one works perfectly fine. Even when my life revolved around 100 percent Apple, never thought of Apple TV as Fire stick works perfectly fine.

 

[Renegade]

I would never go for such expensive streamers as I got a nuc for about 15k with 7th gen i3 and I don't think any streamer apple or Nvidia will be as fast especially with ssd and 16 gigs ram, plus unlimited control

I am no more a build it yourself person. I like compact purpose built devices with convenience and aesthetics. So that absolutely rules out HTPCs for me.

I would recommend Fire Stick 4K. It is plenty fast and I don't think it's remote suffers from the drain issue. It is cheaper than Apple tv and being android you can Install 3rd party apps too for content consumption.

I have several apple devices but still haven't considered Apple tv as I personally don't see the worth and also I have got immensely used to fire stick and use apps that will never be there on apple tv.

The only apps that I use on Fire TV or elsewhere are Hotstar, YouTube, Netflix and Prime Video. Haven't felt any need to sideload anything and don't know how to do it either.

As you or someone else pointed out in the earlier thread, Amazon dumped us with a faulty Fire TV batch which had remote drain issues. A responsible company would have offered a discounted replacement. Amazon did not even acknowledge it. We are used to such treatment here in India though.

Looking at your usage scenario, +1 to @raksrules suggestion of a FS 4K .. it offers 90% of the ATV at a much lower cost.
The new Fire TV box is supposed to be better / faster but haven’t used it

If however spending a +10K is ok in the bigger scheme of things, the ATV is still worth buying IMO.

I am leaning towards the ATV purely coz of the ecosystem. Otherwise it will surely be a FS 4K. Not considering anything else.

Does FS support dual bluetooth earphones? Don't want another device just to be able to do that.

 

[superczar]

I am no more a build it yourself person. I like compact purpose built devices with convenience and aesthetics. So that absolutely rules out HTPCs for me.

The only apps that I use on Fire TV or elsewhere are Hotstar, YouTube, Netflix and Prime Video. Haven't felt any need to sideload anything and don't know how to do it either.

As you or someone else pointed out in the earlier thread, Amazon dumped us with a faulty Fire TV batch which had remote drain issues. A responsible company would have offered a discounted replacement. Amazon did not even acknowledge it. We are used to such treatment here in India though.

I am leaning towards the ATV purely coz of the ecosystem. Otherwise it will surely be a FS 4K. Not considering anything else.

Does FS support dual bluetooth earphones? Don't want another device just to be able to do that.

Don't think FS supports that either.
I haven't explicitly tried but don't recall seeing any option to choose multiple audio sinks over BT.


A) One thing to keep in mind : A big draw of the ATV over the competition is ATMOS support on all streaming services - that most of the competition cannot do or does so with workarounds .
The shield did not have that (although the newer model may - not sure)

B) OTOH, the ecosystem advantage would include:
- a truly functional screencast that rarely if ever glitches/ slows down
- Integrated cloud sync photo library - if you view/are inclined to view photos on your TV
- may seem like a small thing , but having the remote/ keyboard available directly on phone without needing to open an app (I find this very useful.. no need to search for TV or streamer remote ever)
- Extremely bug free experience.. The device can be literally left running for months other than auto restarts at OS update
- one click Audio routing if using AirPods

A and B together definitely make it worth the price for me - B alone may or may not be enough depending on your priorities

 

[Renegade]

- may seem like a small thing , but having the remote/ keyboard available directly on phone without needing to open an app (I find this very useful.. no need to search for TV or streamer remote ever)

This small thing is such a big impact item. I absolutely hate it when I have to launch the fire TV app, then wait for it to detect the fire TV devices, then select the only one that I have, then wait for it to connect and then finally be able to press the centre button. All this coz I want to pause the video.

 

[booo]

i have both apple tv and nvidia shield pro. i got shield pro just because it is supposed to run plex server. that plex sever never runs properly and i gave up debugging it.

i have dolby vision tv and the picture quality is way better with apple tv compared to shield. shield’s picture quality always looks like over saturated and a bit washed out.

Shield always crashes mid movie when watching 4k content. the picture goes cosmic microwave background and i have to restart tv. doesn’t happen with apple tv.

cant comment on atmos because i have 5.1 system only. i think i will order the new one because i want to play some apple arcade games now. also i hate the remote and end up using my phone all the time.

btw, my friend uses apple tv for all of his subscriptions. he has every subscription i could imagine.

 

[superczar]

This small thing is such a big impact item. I absolutely hate it when I have to launch the fire TV app, then wait for it to detect the fire TV devices, then select the only one that I have, then wait for it to connect and then finally be able to press the centre button. All this coz I want to pause the video.

I know exactly what you are saying.
Might as well not have the phone remote at all when one has to go through so many hoops.

Most geeks however discard such seemingly small niceties when they do a “feature to feature”comparison and hence my guarded comment
In fact every single India forum post on streamers recommends shield - which I could never quite understand - esp given the local price
till it hit me that it offers more such so called features!

something similar with chromecast that I noticed.
One rarely uses screencast - but you still want it work when you do want to use it.
With android and CC, it’s quite often hit/miss and requires the CC or phone (or both) to be restarted
eventually you just don’t use it any more

i have both apple tv and nvidia shield pro. i got shield pro just because it is supposed to run plex server. that plex sever never runs properly and i gave up debugging it.

i have dolby vision tv and the picture quality is way better with apple tv compared to shield. shield’s picture quality always looks like over saturated and a bit washed out.

Shield always crashes mid movie when watching 4k content. the picture goes cosmic microwave background and i have to restart tv. doesn’t happen with apple tv.

cant comment on atmos because i have 5.1 system only. i think i will order the new one because i want to play some apple arcade games now. also i hate the remote and end up using my phone all the time.

btw, my friend uses apple tv for all of his subscriptions. he has every subscription i could imagine.

so its not only me then.
I have also felt that the ATV yields a better PQ.
Its too much work to do a back to back comparison so I haven’t really bothered but your comment does validate my offhand observation

Edit: One caveat on the bug free experience.
This holds true for all apps I use except hotstar..
For some reason, the hotstar app has a hard time keeping watched time stamps in sync / accurate
Also, it does freeze once in a while and requires an app restart

 

[djdgr8]

A) One thing to keep in mind : A big draw of the ATV over the competition is ATMOS support on all streaming services - that most of the competition cannot do or does so with workarounds .
The shield did not have that (although the newer model may - not sure)

What speaker system are you using for atmos?

 

[superczar]

What speaker system are you using for atmos?

I have 2 Atmos enabled setups
1 uses Focal Aria 926/900 speakers coupled with a Denon X3500 and Crown Integrated Amp
The other uses a really old set of KEF iq5 series coupled with a Marantz SR6010 and a Marantz PM17 Integrated Amp

 

[msankadi]

This small thing is such a big impact item. I absolutely hate it when I have to launch the fire TV app, then wait for it to detect the fire TV devices, then select the only one that I have, then wait for it to connect and then finally be able to press the centre button. All this coz I want to pause the video.

You can install yatse on your mobile and it set to auto open when you have kodi or fire stick running. No need to manually open an app.

 

[pauldmps]

A 20k Apple TV doesn't make sense when you have cheaper 3-5K Fire TV & Mi TV boxes that does the same. I guess Apple TV would be a bit faster and smoother but that's where the difference ends.

 

[desiibond]

A 20k Apple TV doesn't make sense when you have cheaper 3-5K Fire TV & Mi TV boxes that does the same. I guess Apple TV would be a bit faster and smoother but that's where the difference ends.

That makes all the difference. Have mi 4k at moms place and airtel xstream box android TV at my home. Both were fast but within a month, they lag so much that it is a major pita to use them. If apple TV can remain lag free for year or two, better pay more and get that one.

 

[booo]

That makes all the difference. Have mi 4k at moms place and airtel xstream box android TV at my home. Both were fast but within a month, they lag so much that it is a major pita to use them. If apple TV can remain lag free for year or two, better pay more and get that one.

User experience (UX). i just want watch tv and relax. can’t be bothered to debug it. i get paid at work to debug stuff.

 

[raksrules]

That makes all the difference. Have mi 4k at moms place and airtel xstream box android TV at my home. Both were fast but within a month, they lag so much that it is a major pita to use them. If apple TV can remain lag free for year or two, better pay more and get that one.

I use fire stick 4K at home and also have 1080p fire stick in addition to my onida 42 inch fire tv edition tv and none of them have slowed down at all. Fire sticks are 2 years plus old and onida tv is more than a year old. These have never been resetted too.

 

[djdgr8]

I use fire stick 4K at home and also have 1080p fire stick in addition to my onida 42 inch fire tv edition tv and none of them have slowed down at all. Fire sticks are 2 years plus old and onida tv is more than a year old. These have never been resetted too.

The new ui is horrendous. I wouldn't say I had issues with my stick but you can definitely feel the polish not being there. Not end of the world and not worth the 4x price increase but for some people it might be worth it just to reduce friction during leisure time. Absolute first world problems.