Apple Releases tvOS 13.4 for Fourth and Fifth-Generation Apple TV Models

Too bad it doesn’t include a new remote.

Am I the only one here who actually likes the Apple TV remote? It’s small, thin, light, makes for smooth and quick scrolling / scrubbing, and isn’t crowded with tons of useless buttons I will never use.

You're expecting new hardware from a software update?

Sarcasm. Noun. “the use of irony to mock or convey contempt.”

I like the Apple TV remote.

I am only compelled to mention this at all because of the constant need for some to rag about it. It is like they get pleasure from doing so. Even in articles about software updates.

In fact I just got a new TV on the weekend and gave Mrs Entropy the unasked for pleasure of my rant about the clunky remote’s button proliferation, random location of functions and indeed, it reminded me of Jobs’ intro of the iPhone and the problems of keyboards. It is inelegant compared with the Apple TV remote.

And here is a tip. Use a decent modern HDMI port and you can even control the Apple TV with that badly thought out remote that comes with your TV. And then you clowns can forget about whinging.

Too bad it doesn’t include a new remote.

Too bad it doesn’t include a new remote.

You're expecting new hardware from a software update?

No, I personally like the Siri Remote too. Since I do all of my TV viewing through my Apple TV and have HDMI-CEC setup for power and volume control, it's actually the only remote I use 99% of the time (I have a Harmony One sitting by the TV that hasn't been picked up in years).

Really, wireless charging and a sort of "Find My" feature are the only things on my wish list for the Siri Remote, although I do have to admit it's a bit unintuitive and tricky to explain when friends and family come over to visit and want to use it.

I find the control layout nearly ideal (and, like you, use it 99% of the time), but the chassis needs to be more ergonomic - it's so flat, thin, and smooth that it's difficult to pick up off a table without focusing on the task, and human hands weren't built for rigidly rectangular objects. And it's difficult to orient in the hand without looking to see which end is which.

I have mine in an old (sadly long discontinued) Griffin Survivor Play case, which makes it more grippy, more rounded/ergonomic, and so it sits a little higher up off the table so it's easier to pick up (the cheap, thin, loose-fitting knockoffs currently listed on Amazon are not nearly as good). And I have Apple's Remote Loop attached - not to use as a wrist strap, just as a "tail", to make orientation in the hand, without looking, easier (it also makes finding it if it ends up under a pillow a bit easier). Keep the same control layout/operation, but make the ATV remote a little more ergonomic and grippy, and it'd be perfect.