The next Apple TV is done, just stuck in a holding pattern
According to his latest Power On newsletter, the hardware for the next Apple TV box wrapped months ago and is already in active use among Apple staff. The holdup has nothing to do with the box itself.It’s the same bind that has stalled other finished Apple hardware, since the refresh was built to launch next to the new Siri and Apple Intelligence.
That software is now penciled in for this fall, after a long run of delays.
There’s a chance the Siri Remote gets refreshed, though the change may be internal. | Image by Apple
What to expect, and what not to
Here’s the part that will sting a little: don’t look for much beyond a faster chip. The box reportedly keeps the same look it has worn since 2010.
There’s a chance the Siri Remote gets refreshed too, though even that could be an internal tweak you would never spot. So the headline change here is silicon, plain and simple.
Why a simple chip bump still matters
It sounds underwhelming until you remember what the current model runs: the A15, a chip that first showed up roughly five years ago. Anyone on the 2022 Apple TV has felt it grow sluggish as apps ask for more.
A modern chip fixes the one thing that nags at daily use, and that’s speed. Rivals like the Google TV Streamer and the latest Fire TV hardware have refreshed in the meantime, so Apple’s box has quietly fallen behind on raw responsiveness.
A boring upgrade that’s exactly the right one
A chip bump alone won’t win headlines, but it’s the upgrade this box has needed for a while. When a device starts stuttering on the basics, faster internals are the fix that matters most.The shame is that finished hardware has been gathering dust for months over software that keeps slipping. If the new chip lands this fall as expected, the wait will have been worth it for anyone whose Apple TV has started to drag.
