Apple TV 4K Review: What can you do with an Apple TV 4k?

Now that we are stuck at home during these COVID-19 quarantine times, the TV has become a major part of our lives.

So how do we make the most out of it?

Well, you may consider upgrading your TV to the latest Apple TV 4K and start enjoying the best Ultra HD television experience.

Apple TV 4K promises to deliver great 4K quality HDR content, customizable tvOS interface, and of course, the ability to pair with your iOS devices, among other cool features.

In this detailed review, we look at some of the best features of Apple TV 4K, its pros and cons, and why it’s currently the best buy if you want to stream 4K content.

For:

• Comes with Atmos and Dolby Vision support
• Great 4K HDR content
• Clean and simple tvOS interface
• Simple and easy to navigate home screen
• It comes with a responsive remote
• Ability to pair with other Apple devices

Against:

• Comparatively pricier but delivers value for money
• Lacks digital or USB ports
• Siri may sometimes be glitch or inaccurate

Apple TV 4K Overview

The 4th generation of Apple TV delivered a competent performance with excellent Siri navigation and a host of great features.

Two years later, Apple Inc. launched the Apple TV 4K with more upgrades on everything you loved or hated in the previous Apple streaming box, such as 4K and HDR capabilities. Apple TV 4K is so far the best streaming device you can get if you are an Apple user. It’s the best buy if you want 4K HDR quality streaming.

Some of the major improvements you’ll get in the new Apple TV include a more attractive and customizable interface, enhanced voice search via Siri, and better integration with other Apple devices. Apple TV 4K also comes with ultra high definition (UHD) and high dynamic range (HDR) to give you a more affordable and better way to watch movies and TV shows with the best resolution possible.

Bring Apple’s Powerful Hardware to Your Living Room

The first thing you’ll notice about the latest Apple TV 4K is the sheer power Apple put in their latest TV version to get everything done right. Apple 4K comes with a powerful A10 Fusion chip like the one used in iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

So, what does the more powerful chip bring on board? Well, for starters, it delivers 4 times the graphical capabilities of the previous Apple TV model. The enhanced chip also means that this set-top box gives you the best 4K HDR/Dolby audio and visual quality for your favorite movies and TV shows. It also means that your apps and movies will load smoothly and effortlessly as well.

 

In terms of sound quality, the Apple TV 4K is loaded with the best audio hardware, including Enhanced AC3 (Dolby Digital Plus 7.1) and AC3 (Dolby Digital 5.1). The device runs on tvOS 12, which comes with Dolby Atmos support and gives you excellent home cinema audio quality.

• Support for 4K Resolution at 60fps

The latest version of Apple TV 4K supports 4K resolution at 60fps, which means that you get high-quality resolution and seamless, uninterrupted TV streaming experience.

Live streams do indeed come to life with the Apple TV 4K. Keep in mind that to enjoy such high-quality streams, you’ll need a compatible 4K television and a compatible cable to handle the signal.

There are very few movies available at 4K 60fps, but you can still record movies at 4K 60fps using iPhone X and iPhone XS and play them on your TV via the Apple TV app.

• Get Up to 64GB Storage.

In terms of storage, there are two versions of Apple TV 4K, namely 32GB and 64GB. With 64GB, you can store all your favorite apps and content and still have a lot more storage to spare.

Your choice of storage depends on how you plan to use your Apple TV device. However, if you are only interested in watching Netflix and streaming movies, the 32GB version should be sufficient.

• Enjoy Fast Connectivity Speeds

Another great thing about the Apple TV 4K is its speedy connectivity. The 4K Apple TV comes with 802.11ac Wi-Fi complete with MMO to give you 2.4 GHz and 5GHz dual-band connectivity.

If you prefer a tethered connection, you have a more improved Gigabit Ethernet, an upgrade from the 10/100 Mbps Ethernet wired connection available in the previous Apple TV version. However, the new Apple TV 4K doesn’t come with the USB port at the back found in previous models.

So, what are the benefits of this faster connectivity? Fast connectivity means that you’ll not suffer buffering and other connectivity problems when streaming 4K footage as long as you have fast Internet speed. You need a fast broadband connection with speeds of at least 25Mbps to enjoy 4K streaming.

• A More Elaborate, Compact, and Lightweight Design

The design in the new Apple 4K version evolves from the small black box of the previous version to a more elaborate, compact, and lightweight box. It measures 4.0 x 4.0 x 1.3 inches, which is small enough to conceal behind your TV without affecting the overall appearance of your entertainment unit.

It’s an elegant looking device with a neat clutter-free design. It features a power port and an HDMI port. It has an Ethernet port but still works perfectly with Wi-Fi.

The only issue we noticed is the absence of an audio port, which would have been quite handy in enhancing your audio experience. Otherwise, it comes with everything you need in smart TVs.

• Easy Navigation Via a Clean Highly Customizable Interface

The Apple 4K has a neat and attractive interface with highly customizable menus. It’s quite easy to navigate between different services and apps.

The home screen and menus have a gorgeous appearance and design, unlike those found in some of its major rivals, such as Amazon Fire TV and NVIDIA Shield TV. Apple uses large, neat, movable icons for all the apps located on the home screen.

You can easily locate and access your favorite content without any guesswork. All apps can be accessed from the home page. You can even drag and drop app icons in any order you want or create folders for similar apps if you so wish.

How About Performance?

One of the key differences between the Apple TV 4K and its predecessor, as well as other smart TVs, is the latest version’s ability to play videos in 4K and HDR quality, thanks to its A10X Fusion chip.

4K resolution gives you the highest video quality while HDR ensures that you get a vibrant color palette for all the videos you watch. The pictures are crystal clear and sharper, and the audio is simply awesome.

Apple TV 4K runs on a more improved OS, the same operating system used in the standard Apple TV. It has a better universal search. If you are a subscriber of Apple Music, be prepared to enjoy endless music content in high-quality audio. The 4K Apple TV also comes with a faster A10X processor, which makes it easy to navigate through the interface and load your favorite apps faster.

However, keep in mind that to stream 4K HDR content, you need a powerful Internet connection with at least 25 Mbps download speed. The good news is that most homes have 25 Mbps in their standard Wi-Fi network. With the Apple TV 4K, your streams may take a few seconds before full 1080p HD, and 4K HDR kicks in. The time it takes to stream 4K HDR depends on your Internet connection strength.

Enjoy a Diverse Range of Content Selection

One question asked by most people about Apple TV 4K is whether it works on any TV. Yes, it does work on any TV that has an HDMI port. And what channels can you watch on Apple TV 4K?

When it comes to Apple TV, we think of content in terms of apps, not channels. With all the available apps today, you can watch almost everything from Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Now TV, BBC iPlayer, and ESPN, just to mention a few popular ones.

One area where Apple excels at is their navigation of streaming content. Netflix has always been available in all versions of Apple TV, but you always search for other services straight from the home screen or simply ask Siri to find anything you want.

The latest Apple TV version comes with a 4K HDR room in its iTunes movies app, which makes it easier to find any content you’re interested in. Better still, all the movie titles you have previously bought in FHD quality will be upgraded to 4K HDR automatically.

There’s also the Watch Now section that shows you a list of shows you have previously watched or been watching lately. Apple TV remembers where you left off in the previous show regardless of the content’s origin or source.

When you’re up to date, the show disappears from the Watch Now list, and only appears again when a new episode is available. With an ever-growing library of content, the Apple TV 4K HDR is one of the best buy options in smart TVs.

Easy Navigation Via the Siri Remote

Apple TV 4K comes with a lightweight and beautifully designed remote. The remote has a solid construction. It has a comfortable, tactile, brushed feel with round edges.

Keep in mind that it has a touch-sensitive pad that will instantly register an input from the slightest quiver. However, the remote is accurate and is a more improved version of the previous model, which most people noted had a slight inaccuracy issue, especially when playing games.

The Siri remote works great, but we noted that it might take some getting used to achieve 100% accuracy. For instance, when you search for content that’s available on multiple sources such as Netflix, iTunes, or Amazon Prime, Siri will always prioritize the free version.

Overall the Apple TV 4K remote is simply awesome. You can download apps, restart a movie, or simply flip back to the settings with a simple tap on the Siri button rather than navigate using your fingers.

Enjoy Easy Access to Apps, Live Sports, and Games

The new 4K Apple TV is not all about watching movies only. Like its predecessor, it gives you full access to everything available on Apple TVOS App Store, including all the available games and apps.

It gives gamers a better and bigger screen experience since it can easily be connected to your iPad and iPhone. It’s an app-enabled device that can be used with any iPad-compatible Apple TV app.

If you’re in the US, you can watch a wide range of sports through the new Sports tab on the Apple TV app. The iPad-compatible Apple TV app has a wide variety of sports, including live games, replays, leagues, and plenty of information on what’s coming up and what happened in the world of sports. Unfortunately, the service is only available in the US so far.

Apple TV 4K Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Great integration with the iOS ecosystem. It works as an extension of your mobile device on a larger 4K HDR screen.
• Supports Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos for most apps, including Netflix, which is often limited to just 5.1 audio and HDR10 on most streaming devices such as Roku.
• Apple TV 4K has the best voice search functionality we’ve seen so far
• An attractive compact and lightweight design
• It comes with an elegant, more refined, and easily customizable interface.

Cons:

• The remote is a bit finicky. Its touch-sensitive swipe pad located at the top is sometimes too sensitive or not sensitive enough to register commands depending on the settings you choose. It may overact or under-act when navigating up/down or left/right to access apps or to adjust settings.
• The Apple TV 4K has a Twitch app, but compared to other similar devices such as Roku, Apple’s Twitch app has a somehow inferior performance. It doesn’t use the standard video player and, as a result, lacks transport controls. You’ll have to fit-pinch content when live streaming, rewinding, or fast-forwarding video-on-demand content.
• Apple TV 4K doesn’t come with VP9 decoding, which means that you won’t get 4K HDR for YouTube videos.

Our Verdict on the Apple TV 4K

If you’re in the market for the best Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos experience at a more affordable price, then the Apple TV 4K is your best option.

The new set-top box isn’t just the best buy but a more upgraded version of the standard Apple TV with the ability to stream high-resolution 4K HDR content seamlessly. It certainly ensures that you have at your fingertip an even larger HD library of 4K HDR content in iTunes and other content sources.

The new 4K Apple TV is also a great option for those who already have Apple devices. It’s compatible and pair-able with your iPhone and iPad via dedicated apps. Gamers will also love the fact that they can easily play games on their iOS devices on a larger screen.

Apple TV 4K also boasts of better search functionality than its predecessor. Siri still works perfectly on the new Apple TV version even though it takes some time to get used to it.

We also loved the fact that the new Apple TV version comes in both 32GB and 64GB versions with enough storage for all your apps and content. The set-top box has more upgraded hardware to ensure faster connectivity, crystal clear video streaming, and great sound quality.

Compared to other popular models such as Roku and Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV 4K has a better and more easily customizable drag and drop interface. It makes it quite easy to organize and access your apps on the home screen. Navigation via the remote or Siri is also a breeze.

However, we’ll not fail to point out that the latest Apple TV is not without its share of a few faults. It is super-sensitive remote can be a bit finicky and may overshoot or undershoot when navigating up/down or left/right. It also lacks a USB port at the back, and Siri shows a few glitches at first.

Apple TV 4K is a bit pricier than other models but delivers value for money, especially if you want the best 4K HDR streaming experience at a budget. It has all the must-have technology you need on smart TVs.

We don’t know how long we’ll be stuck indoors under self-quarantine, but the best you can do for yourself is to ensure the time is well-spent by upgrading your TV streaming experience.

We highly recommend the new Apple TV 4K as the best buy if to enjoy high-quality 4K HDR movies and shows in these extended indoor times.