Reviews of the new Apple TV 4K are out today. As I’m not a reviewer (yet), I’ve been looking at what some reviewers are saying. iMore says the new Apple TV 4K is a solid improvement with better performance at a lower price. On the other hand, Macworld says the new model offers “barely noticeable improvements”. But the other thing to note is that the remote that ships with the new Apple TV now charges by USB-C.
Apple’s transition away from Lightning to USB-C started with the iPad Pro and has worked its way through the entire iPad range. With the Apple TV remote joining Apple’s USB-C party, that leaves the iPhone, AirPods, Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad as the last holdouts.
AirPods are interesting as, despite only being released a few weeks ago and after the EU’s decision to push USB-C as a mandatory standard, they retain Lightning for charging but also support the Apple Watch charger as well as MagSafe and Qi. I suspect Apple will be watching closely to see how its customers charge these devices to see whether wireless charging is preferred over cables.
I’ve been contemplating a new magic Keyboard in order to take advantage of TouchID on my Mac Studio but have decided to hold back until a USB-C version is released. While I still use Lightning to charge my iPhone on a bedside charging dock, I have pretty much moved to either USB-C or wireless charging everywhere else.
It was clear from Greg Joswiak’s recent comments that Apple is not happy about being pushed to adopt USB-C and that is resigned to compliance. The move for the Apple TV remote is the next step in a transition that started with the iPad Pro and will continue to ripple through the rest of Apple’s product line over the next year or so.
Anthony is the founder of Australian Apple News. He is a long-time Apple user and former editor of Australian Macworld. He has contributed to many technology magazines and newspapers as well as appearing regularly on radio and occasionally on TV.