The current Apple TV remote was originally launched back in 2007 with Apple TV. With a look that resembles a piece of milled aluminum, the remote is perceived by some as a design and engineering masterpiece.
The Apple TV remote features a type of button interface that's streamlined to make UI navigation easier and faster.
Nonetheless, Apple is giving its Apple TV remote a major makeover in conjunction with the launching of its latest TV box model that is scheduled for the summer. The company is preparing to unveil its new Apple TV service in June at the annually-held WWDC developers conference.
Apple's new remote is said to have two physical buttons and will bear a new design. There is also the notion that it will have a touch pad that's reminiscent of the trackpads found on Apple laptops.
The original remote is one of the heavily discussed topics in Apple's employee training program that is held at Apple University. During training course, instructors typically place the Apple TV remote side-by-side with Google's TV remote control and note how the latter is filled with an amazing 78 buttons. The comparison prompted Apple to emphasize its need to keep the TV remote as simple as possible for users to understand. It is also used "to show how the company's product designers started out with an idea and debated until they had just what was needed for the device to be usable and easy to understand."
In addition to the touch pad, which will allow users to manipulate the Internet video box, the upcoming remote is also believed to have a thicker build than the current model. If that is true, the new Apple TV remote will have a size that's akin to the remote built for the Amazon Echo wireless speaker.
The redesigned remote will be the first big change that Apple is giving the device since it was introduced in 2007 along with the Apple TV. The latter is designed as a set-top box that easily connects to a TV to allow for streaming of content via an Internet connection. The original Apple TV is paired with a plastic white remote that has a few buttons.
Rumors claim that the revamped Apple TV will feature an A8 processor, Siri voice control and a dedicated App Store. It is also speculated that Apple is prepping to launch an over-the-top subscription streaming service to consumers.
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