Apple TV 4K

What hackers pick instead

• Nvidia Shield TVA long-supported Android TV box that plays local 4K media well with audio passthrough and app freedom, though its 2015-era chip lacks newer codecs and the interface shows ads.113recommend
• Apple TV 4KRecommended for smooth, simple streaming, fast hardware, long software support and a privacy-friendly business model, though critics cite missing audio passthrough and a higher price than before.93recommend
• Roku streaming playerPeople recommend Roku for its slick interface and phone remote app, but critics most often cite home screen ads and viewing data tracking.20recommend
• Amazon Fire TV StickPeople recommend it as a cheap way to add streaming and sideloaded apps to an older TV, with the Fire TV Stick 4K Max as the top model; critics mainly object to ads and data collection by Amazon.19recommend
• Roku streaming devicePeople recommend it for a consistent, fast, clean interface and a cheap price; the main caveat is ads and settings changed after updates.14recommend

Every quote

The 40 most detailed of 565 comments. Each links to the original.

1. Offline smart TVs are great. As long as they support wake over CEC, they are close enough to a dumb display connected to an Apple TV.

   Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”

2. Had to go back to a set-top box - to use the same apps I have built into the TV - just because Apple won't spam me with this shit.

   Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Schizophrenia sufferer mistakes smart fridge ad for psychotic episode”

3. its so much better though. android junk UI and TV OS are so bad I will happily pay the Apple TV price just to get the remote

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Apple announces significant price increases for MacBooks, iPads, more”

4. Once you've set it up you won't even need two remotes: your Apple TV, or whatever, will turn the TV on and off for you

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Floppy disks turn out to be the greatest TV remote for kids”

5. CEC on the appleTV remote will turn all 3 on, and long pressing (power button on appletv remote) will turn all 3 off

   Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Fix HDMI-CEC weirdness with a Raspberry Pi and a $7 cable”

6. It's my primary tv interface and while expensive it beats all the built in primary interfaces shipping in tvs today.

   Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “PS5 Relapse Exploit”

7. HDMI CEC works pretty well to discard the garbage TV smarts and replace it with something Android-based, Apple TV

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “How Did TVs Get So Cheap?”

8. I hated how some time ago they started showing trailers at the start of a show, with no option to turn this off.

   Mixed · Nov 2025 · in “Samsung Family Hub for 2025 Update Elevates the Smart Home Ecosystem”

9. the single biggest benefit of AppleTV over any other streaming OS is that it’s genuinely a fast user interface

   Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “New Apple TV 4K”

10. It’s a great solution for those who just want to browse and watch content without distracting ads everywhere.

    Recommends · Feb 2026 · in “Nvidia's 10-year effort to make the Shield TV the most updated Android device”

11. Another device might not give the free reign for all shitty malware like they do. Apple TV for one wouldn't.

    Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “LG to Ban Residential Proxies from Smart TV Apps”

12. With CEC enabled, that one remote will control power and volume for the TV and any connected audio devices.

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Nearly Half of LG Smart TV Apps Contain Residential Proxy SDKs”

13. Very fast and yes Apple gets some of your info but it's not getting resold to advertisers and 3rd parties.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Nvidia's 10-year effort to make the Shield TV the most updated Android device”

14. any time it makes a network call (which it does for damn near everything) it can take some amount of time

    Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “Floppy disks turn out to be the greatest TV remote for kids”

15. this is actually a really friction free option if you can stomach buying two devices for the same purpose

    Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Apple introduces the new iPad Air, powered by M4”

16. the device itself is fine, but the Apple TV apps are mostly terrible and often very laggy/poorly written

    Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “Floppy disks turn out to be the greatest TV remote for kids”

17. All streaming is done via AppleTV, which is a platform I trust infinitely more than LG/Samsung/whatever.

    Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]”

18. It's the only streaming device I've used that doesn't seem to constantly try to upsell random garbage.

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “LG TV's new software update installed MS Copilot, which cannot be deleted”

19. Well supported and quality apps, good connectivity options, enough horsepower for hardware decoding

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “LG TV's new software update installed MS Copilot, which cannot be deleted”

20. We use none of the features that came with our Smart TV, and stream through an Apple TV instead.

    Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “Weird Al Yankovic Pulled Out of AI Ad Deal: 'I Can't Be the Poster Boy for AI'”

21. The AppleTV is already in a similar tier to modern consoles, as far as specs and benchmarks go.

    Mixed · May 2026 · in “Linux gaming is faster because Windows APIs are becoming Linux kernel features”

22. I’ve been blissfully unaware of the TV vendors’ bad software and invasions of privacy for years

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Apple to beat Samsung in smartphone shipments for first time in 14 years”

23. Disconnect the TV from internet and use a solution like Apple TV for apps you would like in TV.

    Recommends · Nov 2026 · in “Ask HN: Which TV do you recommend for privacy?”

24. I've hooked up apple tv to override the crappy subsidized smart tv built ins that spy on you.

    Mixed · Dec 2025 · in “Microsoft Copilot AI Comes to LG TVs, and Can't Be Deleted”

25. For a couple years I have been noticing regular new glitches in the Apple TV interface accumulating faster than old ones disappear.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Last Week on My Mac: Losing confidence”

26. They won’t actually let you delete the Apple TV app, but if you move it out of the top row you will never see the ads.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”

27. The Apple TV barely has any storage or memory, it’s already massively overpriced compared to any other set-top box.

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Apple announces significant price increases for MacBooks, iPads, more”

28. Apple also advertises their own TV shows through notifications, which I view as an even worse breach of etiquette.

    Criticizes · May 2026 · in “I'm So Tired of Ads”

29. I get regular full screen promotions/ads to subscribe when all I want to do is listen or watch my bought content

    Criticizes · Mar 2026 · in “Hisense TVs add unskippable startup ads before live TV”

30. The TV app is baked into the device and is automatically focused if you press up too many times on the remote

    Criticizes · Jul 2026 · in “Read This Before You Buy That TV Streaming Stick”

31. I have these insane bugs where my apple tv will connect to my mbp even tho my mbp has blutooth disabled.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Last Year on My Mac: Look Back in Disbelief”

32. WiFi and worsening slowness woes with the Google TV/Chromecast pushed me into buying an Apple TV, and it is the single Apple product that I would glowingly recommend

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

33. It's nice being able to use the password manager on my phone rather than have try to enter some long complicated password a letter at a time.

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Roku LT Operating System open source distribution”

34. Apple TV, Android TV or other devices are perfectly capable and better integrate with mobile and other devices in your network.

    Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “LG denies TV spying claims, says tracking and snooping concerns 'not true'”

35. It would be a horrible user experience if it didn’t keep track of the series I’ve watched and where I was in shows

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”

36. Makes it much easier to watch new seasons of shows I've watched without having to manually remember and find them.

    Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “Netflix Viewers Are Abandoning Shows After One Season”

37. Apple TV has a search function that allows you to find a film or series irrespectice of whatever service it's on

    Recommends · Aug 2026 · in “Twenty-five years ago it was cryptography, today it's model weights”

38. basic consumer hardware that a lot of people have, that you can provide for them at a reasonably low cost

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “VPN location claims don't match real traffic exits”

39. The Apple TV app was meant to improve that situation but without buy-in from all the streaming providers

    Mixed · Sep 2026 · in “Disney+ and Hulu raise prices by up to 13 percent after doubling profits”

40. unlike most streaming services Apple TV will download purchased media via different countries or VPNs

    Recommends · Feb 2026 · in “Halt and Catch Fire: TV's Best Drama You've Probably Never Heard Of (2021)”