Apple TV is a device that can receive digital data for visual and audio content such as music, video, video games, or the screen display of certain other devices, and play it on a connected television set or other video display.
The device has no integrated controls and can only be controlled remotely, either by an Apple Remote control device (which is included with Apple TV) using its infrared or Bluetooth capability.
The Apple TV series is a family of digital media players designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple since 2007. Apple TV over the years has had seven generations, and four generations of remote controllers.
Before the original Apple TV has been released, Apple has in its portfolio Apple Remote, which generally speaking was a remote for a Mac. When the first Apple TV came out, Apple decided to add an existing remote to the Apple TV as the primary controller for this device. Once for a while, Apple was introducing some changes to its remote as well. In this article, you will find not only the history of Apple TV, but you’ll find the history of Apple Remote as well.
All models of the Apple TV Series
- Apple TV
- Apple TV 2nd Gen
- Apple TV 3rd Gen
- Apple TV HD
- Apple TV 4K (2017)
- Apple TV 4K (2021)
- Apple TV 4K (2022)
All models of the Apple Remote Series
History of Apple TV
Original Apple TV
The first generation of Apple TV has been introduced on January 9, 2007, and discontinued two years and eight months later on September 1, 2010. Today this device is 16 years old.
This Apple TV features a 1 GHz Intel Pentium M processor, 256 MB of RAM, 40 GB or 160 GB hard drive, ethernet port, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, USB port, HDMI connection, HD TV capability, and NVIDIA GeForce Go 7300 graphics.
The original price of the Apple TV was $299 for the 40 GB model and $349 for the 160 GB model
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV
Apple TV 2nd Generation
The second generation of Apple TV has been introduced on September 1, 2010, and discontinued one year and six months later on March 7, 2012. Today this device is 12 years old.
This Apple TV introduced many changes and improvements such as a new black box case, 1 GHz Apple A4 processor, 256 MB of RAM, a new operating system based on iOS 4, Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, HDMI and optical audio ports, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi 802.11n, support for streaming Netflix, YouTube and Flickr.
The original price of the Apple TV 2 was $99
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV 2
Apple TV 3rd Generation
The third generation of Apple TV has been introduced on March 7, 2012, and discontinued four years and seven months later on October 3, 2016. Today this device is 11 years old.
This Apple TV introduced changes mainly in speed performance due to a new 1 GHz Apple A5 processor, 512 MB of RAM, and an iOS 5. New Apple TV introduced as well support for 1080p video and a new user interface.
On January 29, 2013, Apple TV was slightly revised and features a smaller version of the Apple A5 processor and supports Peer-to-Peer AirPlay.
The original price of the Apple TV 3 was $99
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV 3
Apple TV HD (4th Generation)
The Apple TV HD has been introduced on September 9, 2015, and discontinued entirely seven years and one month later on October 18, 2022. Today this device is 7 years old.
This Apple TV features a Dual-Core 1.4 GHz Apple A8 processor with Quad-Core graphics, 2 GB of RAM, 32 GB or 64 GB of flash storage, a Siri Remote, and Dolby Digital Plus 7.1 support. New Apple TV introduced as well support for 1080p video quality, and a new user interface based on a brand new operating system tvOS 9.
From April 30, 2021, Apple TV HD is available to order with a new Siri Remote for the same price of $149.
The original price of the Apple TV HD was $149 for the 32 GB model and $199 for the 64 GB model. Today available to order is only Apple TV HD with 32 GB storage.
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV HD
Apple TV 4K (5th Generation)
The Apple TV 4K has been introduced on September 12, 2017, and discontinued three years and seven months later on April 20, 2021. Today this device is 5 years old.
This Apple TV features a Six-Core 2.3 GHz Apple A10X Fusion processor with Twelve-Core graphics, 3 GB of RAM, 32 or 64 GB of flash storage, a Siri Remote, and support for 2160p (4K) output, HDR10, Dolby Vision, and HEVC hardware decoding. Dolby Atmos support was added in tvOS 12.
The original price of the Apple TV 4K was $179 for the 32 GB model and $199 for the 64 GB model.
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV 4K
Apple TV 4K 2021 (6th Generation)
The Apple TV 4K 2021 has been introduced on April 20, 2021, and discontinued one year and six months later on October 18, 2022. Today this device is 25 months old.
This Apple TV features a 2.49 GHz Apple A12 Bionic processor with 64-bit architecture, 32 or 64 GB of flash storage, an all-new Siri Remote, and support for 2160p (4K) output, HDR10, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, Color Balance calibration, and HEVC hardware decoding.
The original price of the Apple TV 4K 2021 was $179 for the 32 GB model and $199 for the 64 GB model.
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV 4K 2021
Apple TV 4K 2022 (7th Generation)
The Apple TV 4K 2022 has been introduced on October 18, 2022, and is still available in Apple Store. Today this device is 32 weeks old.
This generation of Apple TV features an Apple A15 Bionic processor with 64-bit architecture, 64 or 128 GB of flash storage, a Siri Remote with USB-C charging port, and support for 2160p (4K) output, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, Ethernet port in 128 GB storage version, Color Balance calibration, and HEVC hardware decoding.
The original price of the Apple TV 4K 2021 was $129 for the 64 GB model and $149 for the 128 GB model.
Go to the full specifications of the Apple TV 4K 2022
Apple Remote History
Original Apple Remote
The Apple Remote has been introduced on October 12, 2005, and discontinued four years later on October 20, 2009. Today this device is 17 years old.
Originally Apple Remote was dedicated to Mac computers and was bundled with iMac. In 2007, Apple has added this remote to the original Apple TV as a primary pointing device.
The Remote’s original function was to enable navigation in Front Row, which allows users to browse and play music, view videos (DVDs and downloaded files), and browse photos.
The original price of the Apple Remote was $29
Go to the full specifications of the Apple Remote
Apple Remote Aluminum (2nd Generation)
The Apple Remote Aluminum has been introduced on October 20, 2009, and discontinued thirteen years later on October 18, 2022. Today this device is 13 years old.
The new version of Remote has been totally redesigned and now is thinner, longer, and finished in an aluminum housing. The Play/Pause button was moved out of the center of the directional buttons and put beside the Menu button (under the directional buttons).
The symbols for the Volume Up/Down and Next/Fast-forward buttons were replaced with small dots, to make it clear that the buttons were also used to move up, down, left, and right within menus. All of the buttons became black and embossed within the aluminum.
The original price of the Apple Remote was $19
Go to the full specifications of the Apple Remote Aluminum
Siri Remote
The Siri Remote has been introduced on September 9, 2015, and discontinued five years and seven months later on April 20, 2021. Today this device is 7 years old.
The Siri Remote is visually distinguished by a trackpad covering the upper third of its face. The multi-touch surface allows for clicking, swiping in either of four directions for navigation and tilting the trackpad button in any direction to “tilt” buttons in the interface.
The Siri Remote is equipped with dual microphones for spoken input for Siri and text entry. In addition to controlling the Apple TV itself, the Siri Remote can learn the IR codes to control the volume of a TV, soundbar, or receiver.
On September 12, 2017, together with the Apple TV 4K, Apple announced an updated second-generation Siri Remote, with a raised white border around the menu button and additional motion input for apps. Additionally, the price was reduced to $59.
The original price of the Siri Remote was $79
Go to the full specifications of the Siri Remote
Siri Remote 2nd Generation
The Siri Remote 2 has been introduced on April 20, 2021, and is still available in Apple Store. Today this device is 25 months old.
The all-new Siri Remote features a new Clickpad control with gesture and swipes support, Power Button that controls a TV, Mute Button, and Siri Button on the side.
This Siri Remote has been updated on October 18, 2022, while Apple TV 4K 2022 was released. From that moment Siri Remote features a USB-C charging port instead of the Lightning port.
The original price of the Siri Remote 2 was $59
Go to the full specifications of the Siri Remote 2
Article last updated: November 1, 2022
Article next update: October 2023
