I don't think I've fallen out of love with the device faster than I have done with the brand new Apple TV remote.
Here's why.
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Last April, Apple announced a new 4K Apple TV and with that came a newly designed remote.
Apple's previous remote is notoriously hated mostly because of its sensitive trackpad.
It's way too easy to graze and it can unknowingly pause whatever you're watching.
Apple aim to fix this by reintroducing the directional buttons from the first generation Apple TV remote, but they also left the trackpad for those of you that like those quick swipe features.
They also claimed to have added a scroll wheel just like the original iPod.
I was really excited about that scroll wheel and so I pre ordered this instantly.
After using it for a few weeks though, I've come to realise that those new features didn't improve the experience all that much.
At least not yet.
But before I get into that, I should mention that Apple did not send me this remote and I paid for out of pocket with my own money.
So these are my personal unbiased opinions.
You may not agree with all of them, but you should definitely let me know in the comments whether or not you do.
First let me tell you what I actually like about the remote, ergonomically it's a big improvement.
You can see it's a little larger than the last remote and it feels really nice in the palm of your hand.
It also feels sturdier and I really like the addition of the Siri button on the side.
That's about it though.
The trackpad on the new remote is smaller and has a little bit of a curve to it which actually makes it a little bit more difficult to scroll with.
You can turn off the trackpad if you don't use it but directional buttons only feel like a band aid for that problem and almost a step backwards in design.
Even though I set the sensitivity as low as it can go, I still have trouble landing where I want when scrubbing through a video.
It's also really easy to bump the playhead when pressing the select button.
If you're doing something like skipping through commercials on YouTube TV, you'll often rewind or fast forward from where you wanted to play.
As of recording this video, that iPod scroll wheel doesn't work with most of the apps I use, depending on which direction you're rotating, it'll act as if you're either scrolling left or right on the trackpad.
I'm not sure if that's because it's on the developers to add that functionality to the apps but I'll put an update in the comments if that changes.
The next issue I have with this remote is the location of the plan the mute button I'm not the first person to suggest this, but those should be swapped.
The old remote has conditioned me to think that the play and pause button is at the bottom left, which is way more convenient than being in the middle of all the other buttons, especially since I use it way more than the mute button.
I understand why they chose to put it there though, because mute is right next to volume down, but I think it's one of those instances where Apple decided to prioritize design over usability.
I actually don't think that mute button is necessary at all because most times I'll just pause what I'm watching.
I'm curious though, are you a potter or muter.
The last complaints I have may seem specific to me, but I imagine there's a lot of you out there that have a very similar problem.
The newly added power button is essentially useless for my entertainment setup.
I have a TCL6 series which loads into a Roku interface by default when it turns on Even though I can get to the Apple TV input by pressing the TV button on the remote, I need a separate remote to get to any other inputs and I use my TV to play video games almost as often.
Even using it to power off my TV can mess things up because I use a Logitech Harmony remote.
That's Alexa enabled so that I can ask it to power on my TV to the exact input that I want.
When I use the Apple TV remote to power off my television it can throw the whole harmony system out of sync because it thinks the TV is still on the next time I go to watch it.
Bottom line.
This is not the only remote I need like Apple claims that can be.
I don't think the Apple TV remote has improved enough to drop $60 for an upgrade like I did.
That's not to say I won't be using it though.
Having Siri for looking things up quickly or for speech to text is really convenient.
But if you already own the last Apple TV remote, those features are already available to you.
And to be honest, every remote I own has its own set of problems.
I hope you found this video helpful in some ways.
If so, I'd appreciate a nice thumbs up.
It helps us out big time.
You should subscribe to our channel if you haven't already.
We've got a durability test for this remote coming up, as well as a full review of the 4k Apple TV, and you definitely don't wanna miss those.
Thanks for watching, see you next time.
