Updated April 26, 2023

Introduction to Apple TV Features

Apple Inc. has developed a digital media player device which is referred to as Apple TV. Apple TV features support gameplay and hence can be considered a micro-console. This is an entertainment device capable of receiving digital data from multiple sources such as service providers (Internet or Cable TV service), external drives, etc. These digital data can then be streamed to the TV for playing on the screen, giving a better TV experience. It has an operating system called tvOS developed by Apple Inc. tvOS is wholly based on iOS.

Apple has started working on TV, referred to as iTV. This entertainment device can be operated using the Apple Remote. The pre-orders for Apple TV began on January 9, 2007.

Apple has dropped the iTV name for Apple TV due to trademark rights held by ITV, a British broadcast network company. Hence, Apple named iTV devices like Apple TV and had trademark right for the name.

Apple TV features provide several online services besides entertainment, such as AOL On, Beats Music, CBS News, Flickr, HBO GO, Hulu Plus, iTunes Radio, iTunes Store, Netflix, Vimeo, YouTube, and even more for Apple TV (4^th Generation).

Apple TV is an HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) compliant device source. You can use this HDMI port the same way as regular TV’s HDMI port. It gives a better viewing experience as compared to other TV. This device can be operated using the Apple Remote control device, along with Apple TV. Alternatively, you can run it from iOS devices such as iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, or Apple Watch via Wi-Fi using an iTunes Remote app. This app can be downloaded free from the App Store.

Different Generations of Apple TV

There were several different apple tv generations right from its initial release. The Apple TV 4th generation is the latest release and will be available from November 9, 2015. This TV has tvOS 9.0.1 operating system in it.

We have discussed in detail the features of each apple tv generation below:

1. 1st Generation

Apple started shipment for the Apple tv first generation on March 21, 2007.
It had a 40 GB hard disk, which was extended to 160 GB on May 31, 2007.
It has a memory of 256 MB.
Its dimensions are 28mm*197mm*197mm (h*w*d format).
It weighed about 2.4 lb (approx. 1.1 kg).
It was priced at US $ 299.00.
The operating system was 3.0.2 and is based on Mac OS X 10.4.
It has an Intel Pentium U processor.

2. 2nd Generation

Apple started shipment for apple tv 4th generation on September 1, 2010.
Earlier, it had an 8 GB hard disk, which was not user-accessible but for caching only.
It has a memory of 256 MB.
Its dimensions are 23mm*98mm*98mm (h*w*d format).
It weighed about 0.6 lb (approx. 0.27 kg), significantly less than 1st Generation.
It was priced at US $ 99.00.
The operating system was 6.2.1 and is based on iOS 7.1.2.
It has an Apple A4 processor.

3. 3rd Generation

Apple started shipment of Apple TV’s third Generation on March 7, 2012.
Earlier, it had an 8 GB hard disk (not user-accessible but for caching only), the same as the 2^nd Generation.
It has a memory of 512 MB.
Its dimensions are 23mm*98mm*98mm (h*w*d format).
It weighed about 0.6 lb (approx. 0.27 kg), the same as that of the 2^nd Generation.
It was priced at US $ 99.00, which is the same as that for the 2^nd Generation.
The operating system was 7.2 and is based on iOS 8.3.
It has an Apple A5 processor.

4. 4th Generation

Apple started shipment for the 4^th Generation of Apple TV on October 26, 2015.
It has 32 or 64 GB storage, depending on the model.
With 2GB of RAM, it dramatically outperforms its predecessor.
It has a dimension of 33mm*98mm*98mm (h*w*d format).
It weighed about 0.9 lb (approx. 0.41 kg).
It was priced at US $ 149.00 for the 32 GB model and US $199.00 for the 64 GB model.
The operating system is tv 9.1, which is based on iOS.
It has an Apple A8 processor.

Apple TV Features

Given below are the features mentioned:

1. Experience

It provides an experience that you’ve never experienced. It can be frustrating on the existing TV remote if you are looking for the next film. Countless buttons on the Remote create more confusion. This completely avoids Apple TV news. Apple tv first generation Remote bypasses those confusing remote buttons with just a simple swipe of your thumb. You can see entertainment options laid out right before you. The design of this experience aims to create a feeling of direct interaction with the Apple TV screen, despite it being on the opposite side of the room.

Apple TV Remote has a glass touch surface that provides a fluid and precise experience. The touch surface is such that what your finger does on the Remote is precisely and immediately reflected on your screen. The best thing about Apple TV remote is that you never have to search for a button to press.

With Apple TV remote, you can use your thumb to swipe, scroll, select, and quickly navigate around your screen. This avoids endless clicking of arrow buttons to find what you want.

You can perform the following operations with Apple TV remote:

Multidirectional navigation: Move your thumb in any direction, and the action is mirrored on your Apple TV screen.
Click anywhere: Click anywhere on the glass Touch surface to select.
Precise time-scrubbing: Swipe quickly with a sweeping motion to fast-forward and rewind across large amounts of time. You can swipe with smaller, more precise movements to go almost frame-by-frame.

The screen of Apple TV has been designed with the use of parallax. This makes film posters visually come alive. The clean design of Apple TV makes you feel like you’re interacting directly with your Apple TV screen.

You can quickly bounce between apps while watching the movie. Double-click the Home button on the remote, and you’ll see the list of apps used most recently (shown in image 4). This helps quick navigation between apps without returning to the Home screen.

Apple TV features allow you to customize your Home screen. You can move the most-used apps to the top row of the Home screen for faster access (shown in image 4). For example, when you add Discovery Channel to your mix and select the icon, shortcuts to Discovery Channel content will appear above. Now, single-click on the title to watch Discovery Channel.

Apple TV features have got new cinematic screensavers. When your Apple TV is idle for a specific time, it displays aerial HD videos of stunning locations, including New York City, San Francisco, London, Hawaii, and the Great Wall of China.

2. Entertainment

It gives you access to the most riveting entertainment content through apps. You can enjoy super hit films on iTunes, search for your favorite sport, and breaking news, search for gifts for your kids, any educational programming content, music concerts, and much more.

It makes it easy to catch all the latest entertainment on iTunes.You can rent or purchase recent box office hits and cinema classics. Films are usually available on the same day as their DVD release. You can get instant access to streaming services like Redbull TV and Qello and full-season sports subscriptions from MLB and NHL.

3. Games and More

With more giant screens, Apple TV will redefine the gaming experience to an entirely new level. Beyond amazing games, you can expect a unique experience, such as booking travel accommodation from Airbnb, shopping from GILT, etc.

Popular games such as Guitar Hero, Skylanders Superchargers, Geometry Wars 3, Galaxy on Fire, Rayman Adventures, Crossy Road, Beat Sports, Shadowmatic, etc., are available on Apple TV. You can also use iOS devices such as iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and Apple Watch to play the game on Apple TV (shown in image 5).

You can also use the Apple TV remote to play games. This is because the Apple TV Remote doubles as a dynamic games controller, with the Touch surface acting as a virtual directional pad. It even has a built-in accelerometer and gyroscope. If you are playing exciting games such as multi-player tennis, a Remote Loop (sold separately) keeps your remote tethered during gameplay (shown in image 6).

4. Music and Photos

Your personal content library (music, photos, and videos) is available on Apple TV. You can listen to millions of songs, including your complete personal music collection, on the best speakers in the house. Beats 1 radio will bring the world of music to your living room with great DJs such as Julie Adenuga, Zane Lowe, and Ebro Darden. You can even watch behind-the-scenes videos posted by your favorite artists on Connect.

Apple TV features make it easy to share all your photos and home videos from iCloud, impressively displaying them on your HDTV. This is a great way to turn your life’s best moments into the life of the party. Watching your home videos on your Apple TV HDTV makes reality television entertaining.

With Airplay, you can wirelessly stream content on your iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, or Mac to your HDTV. Peer-to-Peer AirPlay allows guests to share content directly from their Mac or iOS device to their TV, even without learning your Wi-Fi password or connecting to their home network. AirPlay mirroring allows you to display the screen of your iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, or Mac on your HDTV. The big-screen Apple TV immediately reflects when you perform gestures such as tap, swipe, pinch, or play something. Image 9 shows the AirPlay logo, and Image 5 shows AirPlay in actual use.

5. Technical Specifications

Below are detailed technical specifications of Apple TV:

Apple TV Set-top box has 35mm*98mm*98mm (height*width*depth format) dimensions and weighs about 425 grams.
Apple TV Remote has 124mm*34mm*6.3mm (height*width*depth format) dimensions and weighs about 47 grams.
It comes with two size capacity variants, i.e., 32 GB and 64 GB.

Apple TV Remote has the following features:

Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology
IR transmitter
Accelerometer and gyroscope
Lightning connector for charging
Rechargeable battery provides months of battery life on a single charge (with typical daily usage)

Apple TV set-top box Ports and Interfaces details:

HDMI 1.4
802.11 ac Wi-Fi with MIMO
10/100BASE-T Ethernet
Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology
IR receiver
USB-C for service and support
Built-in power supply

It has an A8 chip processor with 64-bit architecture.

System requirements for Apple TV are mentioned below:

iTunes purchasing and renting and Apple TV Home Sharing require an iTunes Store account.
Requires 802.11 wireless, apple tv Ethernet network, or broadband Internet access.
Wireless video streaming requires 802.11 a, b, g, nor ac.
Requires acceptance of the software license terms.
This device requires an HDMI cable, which must be purchased separately.

It supports H.264 video up to 1080p, 60 frames per second. Apple TV supports stereo audio in .mp4, .m4v, and .mov file formats. Apple TV also supports MPEG-4 video up to 2.5 Mbps, 640*480 pixels, and 30 frames per second.

Apple TV features support a wide range of audio formats such as HE-AAC (V1), AAC (16 to 320 Kbps), protected AAC (from iTunes store), MP3 (16 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, AIFF and WAV, Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital Plus 7.1.

It supports photo formats such as JPEG, GIF, and TIFF.

It is compatible with high-definition TVs with HDMI, whereas the Remote is compatible with the new Apple TV (4^th Generation)

A variety of accessibility features of Apple TV help you get the most out of your new Apple TV. Persons With Disability (PWD) can use Apple TV with ease. Apple TV has features such as VoiceOver, Zoom, Bold text, Increased contrast, Reduce Motion, Closed Caption, and SDH support, Accessibility shortcuts.

The new Apple TV features are designed to be BFR-free, PVC-free, and meet ENERGY STAR 4.1 requirements. In contrast, Apple TV Remote is designed with Arsenic-free glass, BFR-free, PVC-free, and Recyclable aluminum enclosure. These design features make the products have a reduced environmental impact and are easy to recycle.

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