Having solely simply launched a brand new model of its Apple TV streaming field late final 12 months, it appears to be like like Apple is already laying out plans for a quick-fire successor to the very best streaming gadget round.
In accordance with a report from serial Apple leaker Mark Gurman for Bloomberg (opens in new tab), the corporate is readying an upgraded Apple TV field with a boosted processor that’s set to go on sale early in 2024.
The brand new mannequin is about to retain the identical design of the Apple TV 4K (2022). That noticed the introduction of a barely smaller fan-less kind issue, in addition to USB-C charging for its distant, and as much as 128GB of storage, with the gadget powered by Apple’s latest A15 Bionic chip.
Other than the quicker chip, the replace doesn’t seem like a big one, with Gurman stating that the brand new mannequin received’t assist 8K streaming as some had predicted for the subsequent iteration of the gadget.
The report additionally doesn’t verify whether or not the brand new Apple TV will sport a full-bandwidth 48Gbps HDMI 2.1 port – it unclear whether or not the port on the present mannequin will ever be able to this, though it helps the eARC function of HDMI 2.1.
The report additionally claims Apple is planning to launch a brand new gadget which mixes Apple TV performance with TV-optimized HomePod audio system and a built-in digital camera, with work on the brand new product line stated to be delayed. At the least the brand new HomePod 2 will preserve folks going for now.
Evaluation: What’s being added right here?
With a brand new, extra highly effective Apple TV having simply landed earlier than Christmas, Apple’s reported plan of following up with a contemporary mannequin early subsequent 12 months – all with no killer new function, no less than in keeping with Gurman – appears considerably pointless.
The additional processing energy of a brand new CPU could give video games a minor enhance, however when it comes to its core use, we’re unlikely to see any enchancment on the present mannequin, which already supplies the slickest efficiency and greatest picture high quality of any of the present streaming packing containers on the market.
We’d wish to see a full HDMI 2.1 port added, or a UWB chip within the Siri distant to finish these irritating hunt-down-the-side-of-the-sofa-for-the-thing moments. However even with these wise additions, it doesn’t add as much as a compelling cause for an improve, particularly if you should buy the distant individually (as we hope you’d be capable of).
Whereas the transfer to launch a blink-and-you’ll-miss-the-updates new mannequin seems questionable, in some ways it presents excellent news for current Apple TV house owners. The choice confirms Apple’s assist for the platform (not one thing that’s at all times felt obvious due to the latest lack of serious updates to tvOS), whereas it additionally means older Apple TV fashions received’t seem outdated compared.
In the event you’re out there for the present mannequin, you may try our listing of the very best Apple TV offers.