Four years have passed since the last release of a new Apple TV, and according to speculation, a new model is set to appear next month.
The author notes that this is good news because his current second-generation Xiaomi media box, released in 2023, often freezes and experiences issues maintaining a stable Wi-Fi signal, which hinders the use of streaming services like Netflix. Meanwhile, the older Apple TV model continues to work quite well, making the anticipation of a new version very appealing.
It is believed that Apple plans to introduce a range of new products in October. Although attention will likely be focused on products such as the announced iPhone Duo and updated MacBook Pro laptops, the Apple TV remains an overlooked device that is in urgent need of an upgrade.
The last update to the Apple TV was in 2022 with the release of the 3rd generation 4K model. Before price increases, the base 64GB version cost R2,999 at iStore, and the 128GB version cost R3,599. Currently, the 64GB Apple TV sells for R4,199, and the 128GB for R5,249. It is expected that the new models will cost about the same, but this is not guaranteed.
However, the most significant news is the imminent release of the new model. The existing Apple TV model uses the A15 chip, which was also used in the iPhone 13 series. Furthermore, when the Apple TV 4K 3rd generation was released in November 2022, the A15 chip was already over a year old.
This means that buying an Apple TV today is throwing money away on a chip that is almost five years old. Reports suggest that the new Apple TV will be equipped with the A19 or A19 Pro chip, which was first used in the iPhone 17 lineup last year. There is also a high probability of an increase in the base storage capacity. For all these reasons, purchasing the 3rd generation Apple TV 4K at this time makes no sense.