Tag: apple tv

The Apple TV’s touchpad swipes and misses at being a good remote

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From Chaim Gartenberg at The Verge:

Apple made a remote control that’s an undeniably beautiful piece of hardware. Outside of the Siri Remote, how many TV remotes can claim to actually look good? But the touchpad’s minimalism and misplaced attempt at trying to turn the entire remote into something that it’s not makes it like other failed Apple buttons before it: a stark warning of the dangers of chasing form over function.

The Siri Remote is by far the worst Apple product I own and this article sums up all of the frustrations users feel when using it. The actual Siri functionality is brilliant but it mostly stops there. Swiping around is a pain, they’re easy to lose and when you do find them, odds are you’ll pick it up facing upside down.

I could be wrong, but this sort of design feels like the worst of the Jony Ive era and I’m hopeful that Apple will make amends with the next Apple TV version.

Amazon and Apple Strike Deal for Prime Video In-App Purchases and Subscriptions

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From Daring Fireball:

Why would Apple agree to this? Financially, Apple now gets a cut of some Prime Video rentals and purchases, and a recurring cut of new Prime Video subscriptions made in-app. And Apple TV users get all the benefits from the Prime Video app supporting AirPlay 2, universal search, and integration with the TV app that Apple is trying to make the default interface for watching shows and movies. Prior to this deal, Apple made nothing from Prime Video — it was a free app with no in-app purchases, and there was no way to subscribe to Prime Video through iTunes.

Everyone wins in this situation. Makes me hopeful that we’ll see other providers such as Netflix check all of the “integration” boxes eventually to make the Apple TV experience better.