Apple TV 2015 edition – review roundup

Apple TV was a “hobby” for the company for a long time, but after selling more than 25m units, Apple is getting serious about its set-top box in 2015.

The new version of the device runs new software – tvOS – and can download apps and games, all accessed using a new Siri-enabled controller. But is the hype – “the future of TV is apps” – correct, or will Apple TV struggle against cheaper rivals like Amazon’s Fire TV and Google’s Chromecast?

The Guardian is not one of the publications chosen by Apple to receive a sample of the new Apple TV ahead of its launch, so has not yet reviewed it. Here is the pick of early review verdicts.

BuzzFeed’s John Paczkowski wrote a very enthusiastic review:

“Apple says the future of TV is apps. That may or may not prove true, but after a couple days with the new Apple TV, it’s a compelling argument. Turns out custom-building a TV from a broad palette of apps that includes everything from pay TV channels and games to travel accommodation services and Periscope is a great way to get exactly the TV experience you want – or close to it, anyway.”

Although he did admit to not having actually used any of the competitors:

I have no idea really whether Apple’s new Apple TV is better or worse than rivals like the Roku 4 and the Amazon Fire TV, but I think I can definitively say that it is far superior to the old Apple TV.

The Wall Street Journal’s Geoffrey Fowler thinks that the new Apple TV is a glimpse at the future for television:

“What makes apps better than channels? For starters, you can pay for just the ones you want. And they’re interactive, so content can be tailored and you don’t have to just accept whatever happens to be showing live.

A TV built around apps also ushers in new problems. How do you navigate a 65-inch iPhone? Every app is its own world, which can make it harder than the old channel-up button to get to what you want to watch. And some of the best shows and live events like sports aren’t available on apps at all. The new Apple TV hasn’t totally nailed these challenges.”

Mashable’s Christina Warren noted that rival devices like Fire TV and Chromecast are much cheaper, but suggested people who are deep in to Apple’s ecosystem will relish it:

“If you’re part of the Apple ecosystem already, I think it’s a worthy consideration. Still, if you don’t have a household full of Apple gear, the appeal of the Apple TV isn’t quite as strong. That’s not because of the content available, but because $150 for a set-top box – even a great set-top box – is going to be a hard sell for a lot of people.

But if you are an existing Apple TV owner and you are ready for a new set-top box, the new Apple TV is a no-brainer. Without a doubt, this is a great set-top box with best-in-class universal search and fantastic voice support.”

CNET’s David Katzmaier also pointed out the price difference, but suggested there is plenty of potential:

“The new Apple TV is not perfect. It costs more than comparable devices – always my main gripe about Apple products. It lets you play plenty of games, but titles originally designed for phones and tablets aren’t necessarily as appealing on a big screen, and most work best with a third-party game controller. And it galls me that the Apple TV remote is so good, I’d have to keep it around in addition to my system-mastering Harmony rather than consigning it to a drawer like my other clickers.

My main issue though is lack of a real app for Amazon Video, my second-favourite streaming video service after Netflix. I don’t know who to blame, Amazon or Apple or the streaming gods themselves…”

Yahoo Tech’s David Pogue agreed that Apple TV has potential, but warned it has plenty of bugs in this iteration:

“Apple points out that Apple TV runs a 1.0 operating system, called tvOS. It promises to squash these bugs very quickly. Indeed, a couple of those bugs have disappeared in the last 24 hours.

It also blames some of the bugs on the app makers. For example, that “Who’s in this episode?” thing work only in iTunes and Netflix shows, which explains why it doesn’t work in the Fox app.

All of that is fine, but you have to wonder: Why is Apple still frantically squashing bugs three days before the product ships? (The answer is, no doubt, ‘Because we can’t miss the holiday season, no matter what.’)”

The Verge’s Nilay Patel noted that it’s early days, with most apps “just gigantic phone apps” while features like Siri can be frustrating:

“Limitations are everywhere. Only a small handful of apps work with Siri search right now – iTunes, Netflix, Hulu, HBO, and Showtime – so finding something in, say, the ESPN or CBS apps isn’t possible. Siri can’t find you a funny YouTube video, which seems like a shame. Tim Cook says a Siri search API is coming, but I get the feeling Apple wants Siri search to be a differentiator for the more premium services, so we’ll see how wide open that API is when it gets here. And once Siri drops you into a streaming app from that universal search, it’s a free-for-all – they all have different interfaces and recommendation engines, and none of them talk to each other.”

Patel’s colleague Walt Mossberg warned readers off the “future of TV hype” but was nevertheless impressed:

“As good as Siri has become, it feels limited on this device. It needs to work on all or most of the apps, not a few. It doesn’t even work in the Apple Music app. And it’s odd that it can’t handle all the queries that it can on an iPhone, or speak to you.

I don’t know when, if ever, Apple will reinvent TV. But this isn’t the moment. I can say that, if I were buying a streaming box right now, this is the one I’d buy, if only for the promise of lots of apps.

By making the set-top box a part of its giant app and services ecosystem, the company is moving Apple TV into a future that’s much broader and bigger than Roku’s or Amazon’s.”

The New York Times’ Brian Chen confessed to being “blase” about gadgets generally, but excited about the Apple TV’s evolution:

“All the extra features have now put Apple TV in a position to become a powerful apps and games console, not just a box for streaming movies and TV shows.

Even for those more basic elements, the device is better at streaming video content than less expensive products from Amazon, Roku and Google, all of which I tested over the last month. While the new Apple box has flaws, it also has a cleaner interface for finding things to watch and a niftier remote control – not to mention more compelling apps and games.”

Refinery29’s Christina Bonnington was also very positive:

“The prospect of an App Store for the Apple TV (or any set-top box) has always seemed meh to me. What else do I need beyond Netflix and HBO Now? Turns out, I didn’t realise what I was missing until I had a chance to taste it. If you don’t have a cable or satellite subscription, you get a huge variety of content – even from network broadcast stations – that’s easier to find and navigate than using a browser on your laptop. The Apple TV also becomes a home for networks that haven’t yet found a home on traditional TV.”

Have you picked up a new Apple TV on launch day? The comments section is open for your early thoughts on it – or, indeed, if you’ve been using one of the rival devices and have views to share on how Apple TV will compete with them.