review
2021/08/07 18:30
Smartphones have always been Android sect, but I bought an iPhone 12 mini because I wanted a small smartphone. Although it is the perfect size for the author with a small hand and can be used comfortably, it does not go well with the media streaming terminal "Fire TV Stick 4K" that I have been using so far, and the video I was watching on the iPhone is displayed on a large screen. Cooperation such as projection does not go well. So I decided to switch to Apple's "Apple TV 4K" released in May. In this article, I'll frankly describe what I felt when I first touched the Apple TV, including a comparison with the Fire TV Stick 4K and Chromecast I've used in the past.
What is Apple TV 4K in the first place?
Apple TV 4K is a device that belongs to the media streaming terminal. The feature of media streaming terminals is that they can connect to the HDMI terminal of TVs and displays and output various contents such as videos and games via Wi-Fi (Apple TV also supports wired LAN connection). It can also be linked with PCs and smartphones. Amazon's Fire TV Stick and Google's Chromecast are similar devices to the Apple TV 4K. The price competitiveness of these two models is stronger, the latest model Fire TV Stick 4K is 6980 yen, Chromecast with Google TV is 7600 yen, while Apple TV 4K is 21,800 yen (32GB model), which is almost three times as much. expensive. The point of evaluation is whether or not you can feel the value of the price difference.
Advantages (1) Remote control operability and nimble operation
Let's start with the benefits of Apple TV 4K. The media streaming terminal is basically operated by the attached remote controller. Apple TV has excellent texture and operability of this remote control. The Apple TV 4K remote control "Siri Remote (2nd generation)" uses a machined aluminum body that is typical of Apple. Unlike the remote control made of plastic, it has a cool and luxurious feel. The remote control is difficult to operate if there are too many or too few buttons, but the Siri Remote has a good number of seven, and the circular "click pad" that can be touch-operated creates a light operation. .. You can move the cursor by swiping, you don't have to hit the button repeatedly, and it's also convenient when adjusting the playback time. I often use it to skip the first warm-ups and ceremonies when watching long-distance sports such as baseball, soccer, and F1. With the Fire TV Stick 4K, I used to hit the button repeatedly to fast forward, and then press the enter button at the right place to stop it. It was difficult to regenerate from the proper position, and I was not a little stressed. On the other hand, Siri Remote can be operated more intuitively by swiping left and right, and if you want to perform detailed operations such as selecting the next application, you can press the button on the outer edge of the click pad. You can mix and use the two operation methods. I felt Apple's uniqueness in creating the UI around here.
Advantages (2) Smooth cooperation between Apple products
Not surprisingly, the integration between Apple products is smooth. Suppose you want to watch a video on your iPhone on a big display or TV. When I was using the Fire TV Stick 4K, I couldn't transfer the video being played on the iPhone, and I ended up having to search again with the remote control (which I could do with an Android smartphone). If this is an Apple TV, you can easily connect the video to the device to which the Apple TV is connected by turning on AirPlay (a function to stream the videos, music, and photos you are watching on your iPhone or iPad on another device) from your iPhone. Can be transferred / played. You can easily transfer audio to Apple's smart speaker "HomePod mini" and earphones "AirPods Pro". At my home, I have placed one HomePod mini on each side of the display, which I purchased for listening, and set it as a stereo pair. By setting this pair of HomePod mini to the audio output destination of Apple TV 4K, I enjoyed powerful sound with deep bass than the speaker attached to the display. By the way, the same thing can be done with the combination of Fire TV Stick 4K and Amazon Echo, and for that reason, Amazon Echo was renewed. However, at that time, if the power of the display was turned off during playback, the unstable behavior of making an abnormal noise with a high probability at the next playback made it unusable, and it was stored in a crying cry. The stability around here is like Apple. Also, it is convenient to enter search words and login information linked with the iPhone. When you view the text entry screen on your Apple TV, you'll see a notification on your iPhone. Tap this notification to enter text from your iPhone. Login information can be entered safely and quickly by using the iPhone's password auto-entry function. With the Fire TV Stick 4K, I used to select and enter characters one by one with the remote control, so this function felt quite easy. In addition, entering the password with the remote controller is not preferable in terms of security. In some cases, it is difficult to enter your Apple ID password in front of your family and friends. Character input linked with the iPhone is also compatible with iCloud Keychain (Apple's password management system), and you can easily enter the account name and password stored on the iPhone in the form.
Merit (3) You can also play authentic games
One of the unique features of Apple TV is that you can play games for iPhone and iPad (only for tvOS compatible games). If you have a PlayStation 4 or later, an Xbox wireless controller, or an MFi (Made for iOS) certified Bluetooth controller, you can enjoy the game comfortably on a large screen. The author is 38 years old this year. It's hard to play games on the small screen of the iPhone 12 mini, probably because of Alafor. After playing for an hour or two, the back of my eyes starts to hurt. In that respect, I'm happy that Apple TV can play games on as large a display as you like, whether it's 24 inches or 50 inches. It may be equipped with the same chipset "A12 Bionic" as the iPhone XS. All games could be played smoothly without any processing loss. Not all iPhone games can be played on the Apple TV, so don't expect too much, but tvOS-enabled games are available. In particular, Apple Arcade, a subscription-type game service, has a wide range of games for tvOS. There are many attractive games from Japan such as the new Mistwalker RPG "FANTASIAN" led by Hironobu Sakaguchi, who created the final fantasy, and the golf game "CLAP HANZ GOLF" by Clap Hanz, who has worked on the "Everybody's Golf" series. .. My personal favorite is the puzzle game "Mini Motorways +", which aims to create a vibrant city by building a road network in cities around the world. It's fun just to see how small cars run around the roads made by combining elements such as highways, traffic lights, bridges, and tunnels, and the city grows little by little. It's worth trying Apple Arcade just to try "FANTASIAN", "CLAP HANZ GOLF", and this "Mini Motorways +". A one-month free trial is also available, and the monthly fee is 600 yen, which is not so high. If you don't like it, you can cancel it during the free trial. You can play these high-quality games on your game controller, which makes you feel like you have another game console at home. However, the degree of perfection varies, and there are some games where the operation with the controller is not perfect or the screen configuration is not optimized for tvOS. It seems a little unsatisfactory for those who enjoy games on high-performance game consoles such as PS5 and gaming PCs, but it is just right for the author who enjoys games with a little time killing. By the way, the sound of the game could not be output from the HomePod mini for some reason. This was disappointing, but tvOS 15 seems to have stronger integration with the HomePod mini, so it's probably going to go away after a while. In addition, tvOS 14 also supported output to the AirPods Pro series. When I tried the noise-cancelling fully wireless earphone "AirPods Pro" I had, I was able to immerse myself in the game world while shutting out the surrounding sounds. I didn't like the fact that Nintendo Switch requires some ingenuity to use wireless earphones and headphones, so I think this is the hidden appeal of Apple TV as a game console.
Disadvantages of Apple TV 4K
So far we've seen the advantages of the Apple TV 4K, but it's not without its disadvantages. The best of these is the number of apps that support tvOS. I also feel that the essential video content is unsatisfactory. Services related to movies, dramas, and animation are quite substantial. It supports not only Apple TV + but also third-party subscription services such as Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Hulu. If you are watching content mainly in movies, dramas, and animations, you may be satisfied with the lineup. On the other hand, it is not very strong in news and sports. Although F1, professional baseball, and J League can be followed on DAZN, apps such as WOWOW on-demand and TVer are not currently distributed, and follow the broadcast of the four major tennis tournaments and the Olympics with one Apple TV 4K. Is difficult. After all, some services are played on the web browser of a personal computer and displayed on an external display. The acquisition of broadcasting rights for sports is left to the financial strength and management policy of each service, and whether or not to create an app for tvOS depends on the service provider. I understand that it's not a problem that Apple can do. But if there were a few more Apple TV users, the response might be a little different ... I can't help but wonder. With the Fire TV Stick 4K, you can watch the French Open and Wimbledon on WOWOW on-demand. In the end, no matter how good the device's performance or user interface is, if you don't have the content you want to see, the appeal of media streaming devices will be halved. Let me conclude. Apple TV 4K will be a great device to upgrade your video experience. However, if you already love Apple products and the content you want to watch is supported by tvOS ... (Urabe Seisakusho, Takehiro Sawada)
