Apple TV Siri Remote

I have the new Apple TV 4K device. I use to use Apple TV all the time. It was my go-to streaming device.

I've been a fan of Roku since I bought my first one in 2010. I bought an Apple TV device for the first time in 2010 also, just days after purchasing a Roku device. Back then, there was stuff one did that the other didn't. That's still true to a small degree, but today, essentially, they do the same thing.

Back then, Apple TV was intended to play music through the sound system that was connected to the TV. Since all the music was in iTunes, that was the easiest way to play that content through that system. It worked well. And, though I normally used Roku for streaming, I would use the Apple TV device -- a second generation Apple TV -- to stream on occasion.

Apple TV took over when I began using iTunes and Apple TV for playing local content. I ripped my DVDs into iTunes to go along with iTunes purchases that I downloaded, and iTunes was the server that, well, served them up.

What frustrated me the most about Apple TV was the remote. The touch remote was frustrating. I could use it, I just really didn't like using it. Eventually, Roku went from sharing time with the Apple TV to taking over completely from the Apple TV, solely due to the remote.

The new Apple TV 4K comes with the new Siri remote, which is a hybrid of sorts. It still has some touch capability, but the button pad works a lot like the older silver Apple TV remote, which I liked. The remote is, in my mind, a huge improvement, getting back to an easier to use remote, but still offering some touch capabilities for that that want such a thing. I don't.

There is still some frustration to be had with the touch capabilities. I never want to use them, but it is easy to accidentally activate the functionality. So, it's not perfect, but it is an improvement.

By the way, when I went to set up the new Apple TV, it wouldn't let me use my iPhone to speed up the process. That's the first time I couldn't use my iPhone to set up an Apple TV. I have no idea why, but a manual setup isn't that difficult, so it wasn't a deal breaker for me. It was frustrating, though.

Apple TV won't replace Roku as my go-to device, but the new Siri remote makes it a device that I will use on occasion. I like having it back into my Streaming Life.