New Apple gear is on the way for the home after Apple announced its first smart display with a speaker and screen, but that wasn’t all the company showed this week.
There was also an updated Apple TV, a gadget that is seeing some updates, but not all of them are positive.
You probably won’t be surprised by the new model’s name: it’s still the Apple TV 4K, but it’s also the new Apple TV 4K, with Siri set to improve things.
While the current model sports Siri already, the new version will be more like what’s currently found in iOS 27, with Apple Intelligence working under the hood and able to decipher what you actually mean. Not just showing you a list of movies with someone, but responding to queries that might be more generic, such as asking where things were filmed, what movies won awards, and whether a programme is suitable for a 15 year old member of the family.
And you mightn’t need to hold the remote to do so.
Apple says the new hardware includes three far-field microphones, so you can go hands-free using the whole thing, even when something is being played.
New microphones are only part of the package making this work, with the A19 processor working under the hood, the same processor found in the iPhone 17, a move Apple says will make the system faster overall. Meanwhile, the remote also gets support for precision finding when using Apple Find My, turning your phone into a sort-of personal locator provided it’s a recent iPhone.
While the hardware changes bode well for apps and games in the future, not to mention finding ways to make AI maybe useful at the TV level, the one change we’re less enthused by is the price, which is now a lot higher than we could have respected the Apple TV to get.
Much like how Apple raised prices earlier this year across iPad and MacBook models, and then also increased its low-cost iPhone to cost more upon the launch of its iPhone 18 Pro models, so too has Apple bumped the cost of the Apple TV 4K. And it’s not a small bump.
The new Apple TV 4K will cost $449, up from the $299 price tag of the previous 64GB Apple TV 4K and the $399 price of the 128GB model. The new version will only come with 128GB, so there’s no small model, and also sees upgrades including Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, though little else has actually changed.
But it does mean that if you decide to jump into the world of the Apple TV (the device, not the service), or even opt to upgrade, you’re likely paying more than you might expect. Possibly much more.
It’s a curious change, and one that is likely attributable to the world of AI and the price pressures it applies. However, it also comes amidst competitors in this space across smart TV interfaces, Google’s TV gadget, and Amazon’s low-cost alternatives.
The Apple TV 4K has always been a bit of a premium gadget by comparison, and this new price really keeps it there, but if you don’t want to spend the nearly $500, there are certainly options, and the apps — which are the main obstacle for any smart TV system — are pretty much found across all of them.
With the new Apple TV 4K (which is officially the 4th generation model), you can expect to find the $449 update in stores from the middle of November. And if you still want to save money, you might want to grab one of the 3rd-gen models before the 4th arrives.
