Deals: Apple TV HD With New Siri Remote Drops to Record Low Price of $129.98 on Amazon ($19 Off)

What am I missing?

Apple TV+ is available on Firesticks ($39.00), and come with many Smart TVs preinstalled. Why would I buy the Apple TV Hardware?

Maybe Spatial Audio, SharePlay, Audio Sharing, Shared with You, iOS Remote app, Privacy, Software updates, the new remote, Apple Fitness+ integration, HomeKit, AirPlay 2.0.

JCJohnson said: ('https://forums.macrumors.com/goto/post?id=30159194')
What am I missing?

Apple TV+ is available on Firesticks ($39.00), and come with many Smart TVs preinstalled. Why would I buy the Apple TV Hardware?

Maybe Spatial Audio, SharePlay, Audio Sharing, Shared with You, iOS Remote app, Privacy, Software updates, the new remote, Apple Fitness+ integration, HomeKit, AirPlay 2.0.

On top of that - the UI on the AppleTV is not the best, granted, but it is miles ahead of any other. The smart TV interfaces are atrocious and user-hostile.

And there are reports all over of tracking pixel on the TV streams and questionable privacy policies of the TV makers or Amazon, or whatever. I refuse to have my TV actually connected to the internet.

I understand Apple's push to have ATV+ on more devices, but please -please - please do not EOL the AppleTV box.

I swear the new iPod click-wheel is as bad as the glasspad. Maybe it's YouTube. Maybe it's just me.

You tube is one of the few apps that work better with the old remote but overall the new remote is way better

The only compelling distinction between this device and its competitors is being able to view photos and videos from your iCloud library on a large screen. Apart from that -- it's just too expensive.

I'd always felt this way too, but...

I've owned Rokus, Amazon Fire devices, Smart TVs and a couple of other Apple TVs over the years, but I just set up the new Apple TV 4K this weekend, and daaaamn, Apple did get it RIGHT this time. Granted, I've always preferred the layout of the Apple TV home screen to that of the Roku and Amazon (which seem designed to push MORE apps/media at you rather than to allow you to enjoy the ones you already have), but on this new device, the entire experience is now buttery smooth. Transitions, menus, startup, shutdown, app selection -- it all just works better on this edition.

YMMV, but I'm a huge fan of the most recent Apple TV, and it's price really isn't out of line for what you get (ie, the Spatial Audio, SharePlay, Audio Sharing, HomeKit, AirPlay, etc that hellosil mentioned earlier. ('https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/deals-apple-tv-hd-with-new-siri-remote-drops-to-record-low-price-of-129-98-on-amazon-19-off.2306981/post-30159290')

What am I missing?

Apple TV+ is available on Firesticks ($39.00), and come with many Smart TVs preinstalled. Why would I buy the Apple TV Hardware?

Full Disclosure: I owned a 7" x 7" Apple TV, and also the 3" x 3", and it was always a 50 / 50 thing to see if the connection would be there. Many times I would need to unplug the power, and plug it back in a few minutes later to make the connection.

For one thing, the speed. While using Plex on an AppleTV 4K, scrolling through tons of movies or tv shows is soooo much faster. Load times are almost non-existant. This is not true for firesticks and/or smart tvs. There are also compatibility issues with many formats of video and audio that other devices tend to have. AppleTV 4K tends to play anything I throw at it.
AppleTV also works as your hub for homekit enabled devices, allowing some really cool features, including the ability to control your devices from literally anywhere with an internet connection. It also does cool things like shows you who is at the door on your TV if you have a video doorbell and since Siri is controllable with the remote, it allows you to control all of your homekit devices through Siri if your phone isn't anywhere nearby.
This is more specifically about Plex on these devices, but it will definitely give you an idea of how different devices compare to each other in many ways:
Also, this video is for the old AppleTV 4K from before the upgrade earlier this year.