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Although Apple TV is still a bit bass heavy, they seem to have reigned this in. They’re still fiddling with the sound. It is not flat, and it should be. But at least the bass is no longer hyped to the point of being excessively distorted. I still need to do a massive bass cut on my stereo because Apple TV’s sound is too bass heavy and there is no EQ in tvOS. My previous Apple TV 2 didn’t sound like this.
If you’re into hip hop, the bass boost may be desirable, but it may also be overkill. For electronic ambient music, it is downright frustrating. Even the HBO tone, played before each program, is distorted on Apple TV. Has no one at Apple noticed this?!? Or is it just par for the course with a company that delivers mediocre audio quality with their consumer electronics? It’s ironic that the Mac rules the professional recording studio, but iPods, EarPods, AirPods and other Apple consumer products don’t sound very good. Hopefully, the HomePod will live up to the hype, but I really need to hear it.
If you play a lot of games on Apple TV, you may want to wait before upgrading to iOS 11. If you use AirPlay, you’ll want to upgrade right away. Let’s take a look at some tips that will help you get the most out of tvOS 11.
Set Appearance to Automatic
The Appearance setting in tvOS controls light mode and dark mode. Light mode is intended for daytime use and dark mode is for the evening or dark environments. With tvOS 11, users can now set this to Automatic. This setting automatically changes to light mode after sunrise and dark mode after sunset. I think this is what most people want, but unfortunately, this is not set by default, unlike Night Shift on iOS. You can change this setting by going to Settings > General > Appearance and selecting Automatic.
Choose your TV Provider
The cable and satellite industry still have a strangle hold on a lot of content. Although Apple TV offers vastly superior technology, the powers that be want consumers to keep paying for cable. This means that, at best, Apple TV can only be an adjunct to cable/satellite for most households.
tvOS network apps tend to require activation using an account created with your cable or satellite company. This used to be a frustrating experience, requiring the user to activate individual tvOS apps through a cumbersome process. tvOS 10 introduced a single sign on feature which can automatically activate most network apps. Simply sign on once and tvOS apps from major TV networks should “just work”. This feature has been expanded to include more cable and satellite providers in tvOS 11. Just don’t expect perfection.
Not every TV provider supports Apple’s single sign on. If they do, not every app will work with the technology. It can still be a frustrating experience. Remember, this is not Apple’s fault. They are actually making the best out of this mess of greed and conflicting interests. I have to admit, Apple’s solution to this problem is peerless, but not perfect. They seem to handle it better than any other tech company. next page →