| The Apple TVs are quite over-powered devices compared to competitors. They come with A12 processors getting around 1,100 single-core and 2,800 multi-core Geekbench scores. To put that in perspective, the brand-new Samsung Galaxy S21+ gets 1,000 single-core and 3,100 multi-core. Apple is shipping an Apple TV with a processor that basically matches the best processors ever on Android. That's quite over-powered for a device whose main function is decoding video which can be done in hardware rather than the main CPU performance. The last generation came with 3GB of RAM which is also more than you see in TV devices. This generation might be 4GB. Likewise, the remote is metal, comes with a scroll wheel, and is rechargeable rather than using AAA batteries like competitors. I think the cost of Apple TVs is partly because Apple has decided to create a device with much better specifications. No other device is offering performance that rivals the best Android phones ever made. I think part of this is that Apple is (half-heartedly) thinking of the Apple TV as a gaming device. They noted that you could hook up XBox and Playstation controllers to it during their keynote. The real competition for an Apple TV is the NVidia Shield. The Shield TV costs $150 and the Shield TV Pro costs $200 - similar to Apple's price point, but with worse specs. The Shield TV Pro is $200 and comes with 16GB of storage (compared to 32GB on the base Apple TV 4K at $180). The Tegra X1+ processor is no match for an A12. The cheaper ($150) Shield TV stick only comes with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. It's hard to find Geekbench results for the X1+, but this (https://androidpctv.com/comparative-nvidia-tegra-x1-plus/) seems to indicate Geekbench 4 results of 1,300 and 3,700 for single/multi-core. The A12 hits around 4,800 and 11,000. NVidia is selling a competitor with less storage and way less processing power for more money (probably less RAM too). I don't think one can compare a Roku or Chromecast to an NVidia Shield TV. The Shield will run circles around those devices. An Apple TV will run circles around the Shield. Some of it might be companies not having the same business model, but some of it will be the fact that the Apple TV is a device with way higher specs. |