Apple TV 4k vs Apple TV 4 Gen

By Seanoevil, 5 December, 2017

Forum
tvOS and Apple TV Apps

Hi All,
With Christmas fast approaching, I am considering upgrading my trusty old Apple TV 3rd Generation to a newer model.

I am unsure, however, whether to upgrade to the shiny new 4K version or to save a few $$ and pick up a 4th Generation model instead.

The cost difference between the two models is significant, so I am wondering whether the improvements in the latest version warrant the extra expenditure. Being fully Blind, the 4k resolution is of no interest to me, but I can't help but wonder how much better the system runs on the improved chip set.

I would appreciate hearing from anyone with experience of the two units or anyone who has thoughts on the Apple TV line-up.

Cheers,

@SeaNoEvil00

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Comments

By Matthew on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

I've had the fourth gen for around a year now, and have not noticed any decrease in speed when upgrading to 11.

By Seanoevil on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

Hi Matthew,
Thanks for the response. It's encouraging to know that TVOS11 runs well on the 4th Generation.

Have a happy day,

@SeaNoEvil00

By sockhopsinger on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

It is not really noticeable the difference running the new TV OS. I do have to say though that navigation since updating to the newest OS is not as cut and dry as it used to be. Perhaps if you get a chance you might go to the Apple store nearest you and see if you can play around with an AppleTV running the latest and greatest.

By That Blind Canuck on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

I too find that navigation on the Apple TV 4, since the TV OS 11 is not as intuitive as it once was. I am not sure what Apple has done exactly but I did prefer how navigation used to be before TV OS 11. I did though send several emails to Apple Accessibility letting them know and hoping that perhaps it was probably a glitch, but besides the usual auto-reply message, haven't heard anything back. I really hope that Apple may decide to return the navigation back to how it used to be, I found it a lot easier and logical then the way they got it now.

By sockhopsinger on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

The thing is that when you start up your AppleTV, if it defaulted to the same navigation setting you were last using, it would be okay. However, the one it defaults to, and I think it's landmarks, makes absolutely no sense!!! It is a lot clunkier than it needs to be because of landmarks.

By That Blind Canuck on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

I am not sure if I remember correctly, but I believe that back before TV OS 11, we had a Navigation item on the rotor and when on this item, navigation worked as you would expect, and work well. Don't get me wrong, I can still use my Apple TV with a little bit of headaches, but the method in which to navigate the OS, well I find it more cumbersome then before. You used to be able to navigate up/down or left/right, but now it seems that you can only navigate left/right, or change the rotor to vertical navigation in order to go up/down, but you keep having to change from app to app, while before, you didn't have to change anything in order to easily navigate the interface. Again, why does Apple think this is better I don't even know. I did tell them my thoughts and opinions on this change and asked them politely if they could consider changing it back. But like I said, it's not that this change doesn't make the Apple TV not useable, just makes it a little more challenging to navigate, and I would think the same would be for the Apple TV 4K.

By Seanoevil on Friday, December 22, 2017 - 22:57

Hi All,

Thanks for your continued responses. It looks like I may have a steep learning curve navigating the TVOS software.
However, what I am specifically interested in is the Hardware differences between the two models.

As a Blind user, is there any benefits in purchasing the latest 2017 4K model over the 2015 released Apple 4th Generation?

For example, will I notice snappier VO response from the upgraded Chip set?
How about loading times for Apps, etc. ?
Are there any other hardware widgets or gadgets in the 2017 4K version that make this a compelling choice?

Many thanks for your continued discussion.

@SeaNoEvil00