Apple TV Product Review: Siri Becomes The Remote Control Of Your Dreams

By Michael Gowan Twitter @zebgowan
Published Nov. 24, 2015, 9:00 a.m. ET

“Go back 30 seconds.”
“Who are you talking to?”
“No one.”
“No, really. Who are you talking to?”
“Um, the TV.”

Welcome to the future of watching videos: You say it, and your streaming box does it. All the latest streaming boxes have voice search of some sort. But only Apple TV has Siri.

Apple’s recent update to its streaming box brings plenty of new features, including an app store and a fancy touchscreen and motion sensitive remote, but Siri is what made the box stand out for me. Beyond finding shows and movies to watch, you can tell Siri to skip ahead or skip back, or just say, “what did he say?” and it will rewind 15 seconds. That’s slick.

Unlike Roku and Amazon, Apple decided to skip 4K resolution—the next-generation HD with quadruple the pixels—with this version. But Apple’s never been one to adopt a technology before its ready for mass appeal. It does 1080p just fine, and that’s enough for most of us. Even without the horsepower for 4K, the Apple TV feels plenty fast, launching videos on Netflix within seconds.

The new Apple TV also adds gaming—you can use the remote to play, or buy a Bluetooth game controller if you’re really going to dig in. It’s now an all-around entertainment machine that rivals Roku and Amazon, and has the potential to be better than either, depending on the apps that become available.

Photo: Apple

WHAT’S BEST

Besides Siri, the Apple TV has several other features that are worth your while.

  • Hungry for apps: The new Apple TV actually boasts an entirely new operating system called tvOS. With that comes an app store similar to its iOS and Mac App Stores. Right now you’ll find plenty of streaming video apps, and a few games. Expect the number of games to increase quickly.
  • Integrated Apple: If you subscribe to Apple Music, the Apple TV is the only streaming box that you can use to play your tunes. It also syncs beautifully with your iCloud Photo Stream. And you can look at your pictures while you listen to your music. It all comes together in one box.
  • Suave remote: The new remote took a lot of getting used to, but I’ve decided it’s an advantage. It’s a huge improvement over the previous Apple remote, which was overly simplistic, and the motion sensor makes it a pretty good game controller. I had to learn how to work with the touchscreen, but after a few days I became pretty nimble.

WHAT’S WORST

  • Set up: Do yourself a favor: before you start downloading apps, go to Settings > General > iTunes and App Store > Password Settings and allow free downloads without a password. Otherwise you’ll have to enter your password every damn time you download an app, and the unit doesn’t come with any installed. Typing in my password using the touchscreen remote was more frustrating than folding 1,000 fitted sheets.
  • Price: The Apple tax is definitely in effect here. The Apple TV comes in two models: 32 GB at $149 and 64 GB at $199. Only people who plan on playing a lot of games or storing a lot of videos need the 64 GB model. But even the 32 GB unit is more than the $130 Roku 4 and the $100 Amazon Fire TV.

WHO SHOULD BUY ONE?

If you are all-in on Apple—Macbook, iPhone, Apple Music, iCloud, Apple sticker on your car—the Apple TV is the streaming box for you. Its close integration with Apple services and iTunes makes it a seamless experience. Plus, Siri is but useful and fun to have on your TV.

But if you’re platform agnostic, don’t subscribe to Apple Music, and could care less about iCloud, the Roku 4 (read our review) is a better streaming box at this point. It’s fast, slightly less expensive, and has even more channels. But I think the potential of Apple TV is greater than the potential of Roku, even without 4K capabilities. If you’re on the fence, it may be worth waiting a few months to see what new apps become available.

RELATED: ROKU 4 PRODUCT REVIEW: BETTING ON A 4K FUTURE WITHOUT HAVING TO SACRIFICE THE PRESENT

Michael Gowan impatiently waits for somebody—anybody!—to stream the complete Moonlighting series. You can follow him on Twitter @zebgowan.