10 Things I Love About the Apple TV 4K After 18 Months

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I can’t believe it’s been 18 months since we completely gave up on Sky (the UK’s only – and vastly overpriced – satellite TV network) and went all-in with the Apple TV 4K.

As you might be aware, I’m the guy who once suggested that Apple should cancel its little hockey puck TV streaming device. I’ve since admitted that I was an idiot for airing that opinion, and have committed to making the Apple TV the central entertainment hub in our lounge.

I’ve stuck to my word and I’m now a massive advocate for the Apple TV. Because it is, quite simply, brilliant.

Over the last eighteen months, there are 10 things (conveniently) that I’ve realised both my girlfriend and I love about this little black box of awesomeness.

1. Up Next

One of the biggest things I worried about during the full-on switch to our Apple TV 4K was letting go of the Sky Guide.

As much as I was fed up with the huge bill issued by Sky each month, there was never any doubt about its technical prowess. It’s a brilliant TV system – particularly when navigating your way around the myriad of channels on offer.

Without that, we’d feel lost – right?

Nope.

tvOS has a screen dedicated to what you’ll probably want to watch next – called ‘Up Next’. Obviously. The premise is simple: it lists the next episode of each show you’re currently watching, in order of (I think) how recently you watched the last one.

It’s convenient, intuitive, and has one other massive benefit.

2. The absence of channel hopping

You can’t channel hop on the Apple TV. And, as it turns out, this is a wonderful thing.

This was something else I was concerned about during the switch from Sky. We all know what it’s like to while away a few minutes (or hours) mooching through the channels in an effort to catch something worth watching.

The problem with that is the time wasted in doing so and the inevitable crap you end up settling on. To do this on the Apple TV, you’d have to go in and out of each streaming app and switch between the live feeds of each channel.

It would take forever.

So, instead, you settle on whatever’s in Up Next or head straight to something that everyone on Facebook has told you to watch.

I needn’t have worried.

3. The video quality

Grab yourself a Dolby Vision compatible TV, buy an Apple TV 4K, connect them together and thank me later.

4. The lack of fiddling (on Apple’s behalf)

We’ve already established that the absence of channel hopping on the Apple TV results in a more productive viewing experience, but it’s the lack of fiddling on Apple’s behalf that has really impressed me.

tvOS hasn’t received any huge updates for quite a while.

I’m glad that’s the case.

Apple is often criticised (by myself and other members of the tech press) for not moving beyond safe iterations of its operating systems. On devices like the iPhone, that can be frustrating as we watch Android march ahead with what is, subjectively, a far more playful, interesting, tweakable mobile operating system.

But when it comes to the Apple TV, I’d rather they leave it alone. Too much fiddling, and the user experience would quickly become frustrating. We’re creatures of habit, and TV viewing needs to remain consistent if we’re to enjoy it. Apple appears to be aware of this.

5. The audio

Just like the video quality, the audio on the Apple TV 4K is stellar. It supports all of the codecs and standards that matter in the living room, and I’ve never had an issue with its compatibility with my relatively ancient Onkyo surround sound receiver.

What has really impressed – and surprised – me, though, is what it can do for Apple Music listening sessions. With most new music and a surprisingly large chunk of back catalogue stuff being recorded in surround sound, the Apple TV is one of the best places on which to hear immersive music.

I’m not lucky enough to have a Dolby Atmos setup in my living room, but I do have plumbed-in 5.1 surround sound, and it never fails to put a smile on my face when I hear every channel being put to use while browsing through Apple Music playlists.

6. The remote (when we can find it)

We all know that Apple has endured a pretty torrid time with the Apple TV remote design.

That is, until now – because the current version is damn near perfect.

There’s one thing missing, which I’ll reveal later, but everything else about this tiny little remote control hits the mark. It feels great in the hand, the choice of buttons is spot on, and it can take a surprising amount of bashing if you’ve got small kids (although our niece did successfully kill the first one by attempting to eat it).

It even has USB-C charging.

7. The screensavers

I appreciate this probably isn’t doing much for the environment (or our bank balance) but I must admit that we leave the TV on a lot more than we used to.

This hasn’t been a conscious decision, and we’ve never really spoken about it as a family, but I’m pretty sure the main reason we do so is because of those beautiful 4K drone screensavers to which the Apple TV switches during periods of inactivity.

Shot from high above – and below – some of the world’s most beautiful locations, these screensavers show what the Apple TV is capable of regarding video quality. They also beat the massive expanse of black nothingness that comes from turning your TV off, hands-down.

Sorry, Mother Nature.

Fun fact: since the release of macOS Sonoma and its own drone screensavers, tvOS has been updated to include the new footage our Macs are now treated to. And it’s rather lovely.

8. How quickly it has been adopted in our house

My girlfriend has zero interest in technology. For her, it’s a platform on which to get things done. Despite this, she’s not afraid of it, doesn’t detest it, and will more than happily adopt it without fuss – if it isn’t a pain in the arse.

This is why the HomePod and the utterly useless Siri only lasted a few weeks in our house. But it’s also why the Apple TV 4K has quickly become a permanent fixture.

tvOS is, clearly, intuitive enough to embed itself firmly within the busy lives of non-techy people. This once again comes from the absence of over-updating on Apple’s behalf, the brilliance of the aforementioned Up Next screen, and the availability of content.

This is the key to the living room for tech companies, and Apple has nailed it.

9. Apple TV+ content

If you’re yet to check out the shows and movies on Apple TV+, you’re missing out.

Apple is clearly investing heavily in the production of homegrown content for Apple TV+ and it really shows. Ted Lasso, Hijack, The Morning Show, Slow Horses, and Severance are just some of the utterly brilliant shows we’ve watched so far.

When Apple’s subscription TV service launched nearly four years ago, I, like many others, wondered if it would stick. Even with the might of Apple’s marketing and budget machine behind it, could Apple TV+ really compete with the likes of Netflix?

Absolutely. And then some.

10. Ecosystem tie-in

As I’ve said many times previously, I am welded to the Apple ecosystem. This is mainly because of the ability to copy and paste content between my Mac and iPhone (no, really) but there are some other benefits.

Chiefly, this relates to the Apple TV. Via that little black box, I can access my entire music library, sift through memories in Photos, and share stuff from my iPhone and iPad via AirPlay.

I’m yet to use my iPhone as a webcam for big-screen FaceTime calls, but that’s another example of why Apple’s walled garden is a rather nice place to be. The fact I can so easily use my AirPods Pro with the Apple TV 4K (and enjoy the brilliance of Dolby Atmos without waking the entire house) is the icing on the cake.

What I’d like to see next

As noted earlier, I don’t want Apple to fiddle too much with tvOS – or the Apple TV hardware itself. This thing is damn near perfect.

However, there are a few improvements that could be made.

Firstly, that remote – for as lovely and efficient as it is, we’re always losing it. The fact that it isn’t findable on the Find My network is utterly stupid. It needs to be on there, and be as easy to find with your iPhone as an AirTag.

Secondly, we folk in the UK have been robbed of full integration with Sky TV. Other countries have their main cable or satellite services built into tvOS, and I feel that it’s the one big thing we’re missing over here. I’m sure it’s down to red tape and board meetings, but someone needs to pull their finger out.

Lastly, if Apple has plans for the Apple TV (or a similar device with, oh I don’t know… an embedded display) to turn into a full-on home assistant, I’m all for it. But for that to happen, Siri needs to improve – massively.

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