Ever since I laid eyes on Apple’s new AirPods I’ve been wondering just how necessary it is for Apple to ship a physical remote with their next generation Apple TV. Already, in our household we mainly use the remote for the microphone to tell Siri what app or movie to open. We even use Siri for fast forwarding or reversing in videos. It works pretty good. It’s one of those things that you never consciously decide to do but one day you notice that you’ve been doing it that way for a while.
The 32GB Apple TV 4 sells for $149. The remote alone sells for over half of that at $80. If Apple wanted to pour more money into higher quality components or add new features without raising the overall price, one way they could do that would be to eliminate the relatively expensive remote. That’s exactly what happened with the iPhone’s headphone jack.
And if you still want something in your hand to control your TV, the new Apple TV app is a lot better than the old Remote app. I use it on my iPhone and iPad when I’m too lazy to get up and grab my remote, which is maybe 5 feet away. I rarely ever used the older version of the app with my 3rd gen Apple TV.
With all the rave reviews that Amazon’s Alexa is getting for its array of microphones, you gotta wonder if the Apple TV team hasn’t considered doing something similar. Dropping the remote would free up a whole lot of material component budget which they could plow into microphones. The cost of the Apple TV would go down, and you’d never have to worry about losing your remote. How about that? Solve the lost remote problem by eliminating the remote.
The only reason I can think of why they might not ever drop the remote would be the issue of privacy. Amazon’s Echo is an always listening device which is dissecting every word said in the house 24/7. I’m not sure that Apple could overcome this privacy issue. Currently, the Siri button on the remote serves as a sort of permission switch which tells the Apple TV that it’s okay to start eavesdropping.
Then there's the issue of gaming on the Apple TV. But the Apple TV remote was arguably terrible for gaming anyway. An iPhone is just as good (or bad). If I was Apple, I’d drop the remote and design an optional accessory specifically for gaming.
And maybe Apple won’t be the first to do this. I could easily see the Echo or Google Home morphing into a media center. But I’m guessing that as voice recognition and intelligent assistance gets better, remotes may start going the way of the headphone jack. Another trusty vestige of an older time that isn’t long for this world. If you thought the outcry from losing the headphone jack was raucous, just imagine what's going to happen if they drop the remote.
And if you still want something in your hand to control your TV, the new Apple TV app is a lot better than the old Remote app. I use it on my iPhone and iPad when I’m too lazy to get up and grab my remote, which is maybe 5 feet away. I rarely ever used the older version of the app with my 3rd gen Apple TV.
With all the rave reviews that Amazon’s Alexa is getting for its array of microphones, you gotta wonder if the Apple TV team hasn’t considered doing something similar. Dropping the remote would free up a whole lot of material component budget which they could plow into microphones. The cost of the Apple TV would go down, and you’d never have to worry about losing your remote. How about that? Solve the lost remote problem by eliminating the remote.
The only reason I can think of why they might not ever drop the remote would be the issue of privacy. Amazon’s Echo is an always listening device which is dissecting every word said in the house 24/7. I’m not sure that Apple could overcome this privacy issue. Currently, the Siri button on the remote serves as a sort of permission switch which tells the Apple TV that it’s okay to start eavesdropping.
Then there's the issue of gaming on the Apple TV. But the Apple TV remote was arguably terrible for gaming anyway. An iPhone is just as good (or bad). If I was Apple, I’d drop the remote and design an optional accessory specifically for gaming.
And maybe Apple won’t be the first to do this. I could easily see the Echo or Google Home morphing into a media center. But I’m guessing that as voice recognition and intelligent assistance gets better, remotes may start going the way of the headphone jack. Another trusty vestige of an older time that isn’t long for this world. If you thought the outcry from losing the headphone jack was raucous, just imagine what's going to happen if they drop the remote.
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