Why I Pre-Ordered the New Apple TV 4K
I've been waiting for the new Apple TV for what feels like over a year, so when Apple announced the new Apple TV 4K, I pre-ordered it. Unlike the HomeView, this one was an easy call for our house.
Here's why I bought it, where it's going, and what I'm hoping it fixes.
Why I pre-ordered
We have an older Apple TV 4K in the living room, and that's the main TV for the whole house. I've wanted to upgrade that setup for a while.
The plan is simple: the new Apple TV takes over the living room, and the older one moves to the playroom. Nothing goes to waste, and the room we use most gets the best hardware.
Quick facts
The new Apple TV 4K (4th generation) costs $299 and is in stores November 13. Pre-orders are open now.
Chip: A19, with up to 50% faster CPU and up to 2x faster graphics than the last model
Siri AI (beta): conversational, full-screen search with follow-up questions while you watch
Hands-free Siri: three far-field microphones, so you don't need the remote
Smart home hub: Apple Home, Matter and Thread; doorbell alerts show up on the TV
Gaming: Apple Arcade and App Store games; works with PlayStation and Xbox wireless controllers
Home theater: Dolby Vision and HDR10+; surround setup with HomePod mini 2 or HomePod pairs
Siri Remote: now works with Find My
Sources: Apple TV 4K, Apple Newsroom
Where it's going
The new Apple TV goes in the living room, the heart of the house. It joins:
Lights: Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box behind the TV
Sound: Sonos Arc Ultra
That setup already does a lot. The Apple TV is the piece that ties it together, so I want it to be the fastest, most reliable part of the system.
The smart home angle
It becomes our main home hub. The new Apple TV will be the main Apple Home hub for the house. It also adds another Thread border router, which should make our Thread network stronger.
Apple Home controls on the new Apple TV 4K. Image: Apple
Gaming. This is something I'm curious about. With the faster chip, the Apple TV could be a real casual game console. I have some extra PS5 DualSense controllers I can pair with it. I'm interested to see how this plays out, and I'm hoping some good games show up.
Apple Arcade on the new Apple TV 4K. Image: Apple
Siri AI vs Gemini
Honestly, not a big deal for me here. The kids use Siri on the Apple TV more than I do, so I'm curious whether the new Siri actually makes a difference for them. It's not a deal breaker either way.
(If you read my HomeView post, Siri was a bigger concern there, because that device would replace our Google Homes.)
My hopes and concerns
The price. $299 seems crazy for an Apple TV. But not crazy enough to scare me away, I guess.
What I'm hoping for:
A faster and smoother experience, both in the menus and when we're watching something
A better Apple Home experience, with more reliable connections to our Matter devices. Our Thread devices rarely give us problems, so the issue is Matter. It's a big hope, but fingers crossed.
Fewer of the hiccups we deal with on the older model
If it lives up to the hype and lets the family do what we do without those problems, it'll be worth it.
What's next
Mine should arrive around November 13. I'll post a hands-on follow-up after setup: speed, gaming with the PS5 controllers, and whether it makes our Apple Home more reliable.
Until then:
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