Siri is now integrated in Apple TV and according to a new report it will get support for Apple Music on the set-top box next year. Apple TV doesn’t support 4K streaming as do the latest devices from Amazon, Roku and Nvidia.
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Whether you get excited about the Apple TV as a gaming machine depends on your taste in games and whether you find a favourite in the App Store.
The features most likely to stand out are voice control with Siri, apps, and the range of content that Apple has and will continue to assemble. Local affiliates of major networks provide another important venue for promotion, and Greenwald notes that it’s no accident that the major broadcast networks have withheld Apple TV apps until they could confidently include livestreaming of their local affiliates.
“Obviously, games also are going to have a lot of appeal, as they open up the Apple TV to be something for the entire family”, Abramson said. The system gives users the ability to use their voice to scour multiple video platforms for a particular TV show or film, and while streamers from Amazon, Roku (and even Google’s new Chromecast) sport the feature as well, Siri’s quick wit could give Apple an edge.
Yet the TV, which starts at $149, has a few advantages over other devices: People are accustomed to spending money on entertainment, and they will be engaged for longer, said Danielle Levitas, a senior vice president at research firm App Annie. She predicted that the apps will be lucrative for developers who reimagine their work for the big screen, rather than simply converting iPhone apps. “(An Amazon spokesperson told BuzzFeed News the company “doesn’t have anything to share” on the topic.) Which means presumably I’ll be streaming Season 2 of Transparent from my phone to my TV come December – a bummer because Prime Video is my second-favorite feature of Amazon’s membership service, right after two-day shipping 30-pound bags of dog food to my front door”. Users can use the app to pool photos and videos from their iPhones, creating slideshows on the spot.
Madefire set out to redefine reading on Apple TV. Wolstenholme said he enjoys sharing stories on the app with his young children.
“When you have so much content available in the world today – and on Apple TV – the way you want to find it is by talking” to your TV, not by typing, Cue said.
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The new Apple TV puts Siri in your lounge room and finally grants you access to the App Store. Eventually, it will become the new standard for HD TV. The universal search functionality will show you what you’re looking for and whether it’s available through iTunes, Netflix, or other services. Even if the new model is more expensive than other streamers on the market, it is also very interesting and pleasant to use. If you just want to get the odd casual game up on the big screen then AirPlay mirroring to the old Apple TV might suffice.
