Apple TV 4K Review (2021): Ultimately A Next-Generation Siri Remote!

The updated Apple TV 4K model is a great streamer — but the brand-new Siri Remote steals the show with its innovative color and high frame rate HDR.

Now that Apple has launched features, particularly HomeKit, AirPlay 2, and even iTunes, into several renowned smart TVs, are there any reasons to buy Apple TV anymore? The answer is yes.

The long-awaited refreshed second-generation Apple TV 4K has arrived, and it’s the remote that steals the spotlight. Overall, the latest remote isn’t much different from the remote that came in 2017. Aspects make it different from its predecessor, but the A12 Bionic processor allows Dolby Vision and HDR video to display at 60-frames per second to make fast action and sports look smooth and precise.

High-quality Video Experiences

A12 Bionic, high frame rate HDR (High Dynamic Range), and Dolby Vision video are the reason behind a high-quality video experience. FOX Sports, NBCUniversal, Paramount+, Red Bull TV, and Canal+ are worldwide leading video providers. A new feature allows the TV to optimize the colors of your TV screen using the light sensor on an iPhone.

The TV automatically tailors its video output to deliver much more accurate colors and improved contrast— without customers ever having to adjust their television settings. Through an innovative color balance process, TV works with iPhone and its advanced sensors to improve a television’s picture quality.

New design Siri Remote

The old TV doesn’t support 120Hz refresh rates, which might be necessary should you ever want to play serious games on an Apple TV. It also has the most notoriously bad remote control. Fortunately, the company has completely redesigned the remote for the new model with an improved, more ergonomic design and more capabilities.

The new remote is thicker than the prior model, has a new five-way touch controller in place of the maligned swipe pad of the original, and an appropriate power button to turn off your TV. The Siri search button is at the side of the remote, under your right thumb.

Apple TV 4K 2021: Specifications

Design and Build: There is overall no change in the design and build of the TV 2021. It is the same round-edged square box-shaped device with a big logo on the top. Dimensionally it is 3.9 inches on the sides and 1.4 inches in height.

Processor: The 2021 edition gets a significant boost in performance as the new Apple TV 4K (2021) gets the A12 Bionic chip from Apple, which also powered the iPhone XS, XS Max, and the XR. It was also used in the 2019 versions of the iPad Air, iPad mini, and the iPad. The A12 Bionic chip is significantly faster than the A10X processor used in the older models. Hence, the new chip will offer smoother performance and faster app loading times, which are as expected.

Ports: Unlikely, port availability remains the same as the older ones. Mainly the HDMI port, Gigabit Ethernet Port, and the power cord input. With the new upgrade, it now supports HDMI 2.14.

Comparison between New and Old

The new design is very comparable to the older version. They look alike and have most of the same capabilities, including access to Apple Arcade and Fitness+ and assistance for immersive video and audio technologies, such as 4K HDR, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos.

The distinction is that the new design has a lot of stable internals. Apple knocks it down with a faster processor (A12 Bionic) and supports HDMI 2.1 and Wi-Fi 6. This also allows the new version to support 4K TVs with higher frame rates. If you've purchased a new 4K TV within the last year or two, then the latest version will probably be able to get the most out of it.

Perhaps the most noticeable variation is that the latest launch arrives with redesigned Siri Remote. It's slightly thicker, more ergonomic, and not as well-formed, so it should be easier to navigate in the dark.

Pros:

• Faster performance 
• HDMI 2.1, Wi-Fi 6, and Thread for futureproofing 
• Now with improved Siri Remote 

Cons:

 

• Priced at a premium far above competitors 
• It can still be finicky when moving between HDR and SDR. 
• No spatial audio support for AirPods

Price and Availability of the Latest Version

The brand-new Apple TV 4K (2021) comes in two variants – a 32GB model priced at $179 and a 64GB model that will set you back $199. It’s available to pre-order now and should start shipping by the end of May – in the UK Store, and it’s showing shipping within 1-2 weeks.

This was the same price as the current model (2017) in the US when it launched. The new Siri Remote is also available to purchase separately for use with the previous-generation TV 4K and TV HD for $59.

Consequently, there isn’t much difference as far. But the new remote is pretty awesome. So if you don’t want to buy the new model, get the remote.

AirTag: Apple expands the Find My ecosystem

Apple’s latest Bluetooth based tracker’s deceptively mere design covers effective efficiency.

Apple’s own Tracker Device

How unusual, an Apple device with no moving component, button, display, or touch-sensitive part. The new device launched by Apple is a kind of tracker, apart from an incredible ability to produce sounds without a speaker grill, quite seems inactive.

Though, it’s not dead. At the core of the tracker, a chip is installed along with Bluetooth, ultra-wideband (UWB), sensors, and a dogwatch battery, all operating mutually to oversee your stuff. It’s more right to state that; tracker holds a vigilant sight on momma iPhone, bleating the same like a lost sheep if the device (and its holder) turns too far away, for too prolonged.

Although Apple doesn’t suggest using AirTag for dog because if any uncertainty occurs, then the company doesn’t have to be liable.

Face Value of Newly Launched Apple AirTag

It is a tiny and elegantly devised Add-on that can be customized with free engraving and allows iPhone users to securely determine and retain a trace of their valuables by the Find My app.

Apple tracker cost around $29.00 for a single and $99.00 for a four-pack, and for getting an optional joining loop for the expensive stuff, you have to pay $12 to $40 additionally. This is profitable for those who habit of leaving behind kinds of things like bikes, wallets, umbrellas, luggage, keys, etc. 

 

White-Glossy Appearance and Replaceable Battery

It is a quarter-sized tracker which is white-glossy from one face and metal on the opposite face. You can customize it as per your preference by using any Emoji or Alphabets before buying. The best part is, it is water-resistant, so you can be carefree and don’t stress when it accidentally falls into the pool. It remains undamaged and still works.

The tracker holds a replaceable battery, i.e., CR2032. It is a kind of battery that is used in a wristwatch and works longer than a year. You even receive an alarm when the battery is about to die, and you can easily find a replacement battery from any grocery store.

Comprise of Stunning Features

Below are some best features of newly launched Apple device tracker:

It has a Delicate Design with Mystic Setup-

Each circle of the tracker is tiny and sheer, features precision-etched polished stainless steel, and is IP67 water- and dirt-resistant. A built-in speaker plays sounds to discover tracker, whereas a changeable cover makes it effortless for users to substitute the battery.

It features the identical mystic setup as AirPods, and you have to take the tracker device near the iPhone, and it will link. Users can attach it to an object and title it by default, such as “Keys” or “Jacket,” or present a custom name of their choice.

A Comprehensive Finding Experience-

When it is established, you can see it in the new item tab in the Find My Application, where you can find the current location of the stuff and the final site on a map.

If you lose a thing and it is within Bluetooth reach, you can use the Find My app to play a sound from the tracker to locate it. Users can also request Siri to discover their thing, and it will play a sound if it is nearby.

If the tracker gets apart from its user and away from the Bluetooth range, then the Find My network can assist you in tracking it down.

The Find My network is progressing a billion Apple devices. It can identify Bluetooth signals from a misplaced AirTag and transfer the location back to its user, totally in the background, anonymously and secretly.

Built-in Privacy and Security-

It is devised from the ground up to retain location data secret and protected. No location data or location history is collected inside the device. Conversation with the Find My network is end-to-end encrypted in such a way that only the possessor of a device has an approach to its location data. Nobody except Apple identifies the status or location of whatever device accommodated to locate it.

It is also originated with a collection of proactive peculiarities that inhibit unfavourable tracking. Bluetooth signal identifiers transferred by it, often turn to check unwanted position tracking.

Hermès Accessories-

Apple has launched AirTag Hermès, highlighting a classic collection of handcrafted leather associates, including the AirTag Keychain, Bag Charm, Travel, and Luggage Tag. Hermès accessories will be sold with a custom-engraved tracker based on the brand’s iconic Clou de Selle mark.

Environment Friendly

Presently, Apple is carbon neutral for global corporate operations. By 2030, it proposes to produce net-zero environment influence crosswise the whole company, including manufacturing stocks chains and all stock life cycles. Hence, it implies that all Apple device sold, from the material collection, manufacturing segment, transport assembling, charging, all the way through recycling and material replacement, will be 100 per cent carbon impartial.

Apple tracker device will employ 100 per cent recycled tin in the solder of the central logic board, is unrestricted of toxic elements and extremely energy-efficient.

How to Customise Your Keyboard Layouts in macOS 11 Big Sur?

Seventy-eight keys are there on the keyboard of your MacBook, and it can be a hundred and nine if you are using a numeric keypad. You have access to lots of keys which also means more chance of customisation as per your requirement. The modification cannot be done quickly and find it hard by simple people, even though it’s not that tricky. This article will tell you how to customise your keyboard layouts in macOS 11 Big Sur.

The Mac can support diverse keyboard layouts, and you can shift between them pretty smoothly. It’s on a surface level, and you can acquire more functions out of it the keyboard, mainly if you function in varied languages. Nonetheless, you don’t need to be put down if you cannot change the keyboard layout in macOS Big Sur. 

 How to Customise Your Keyboard Layouts in macOS 11 Big Sur?

Initial, you’ll have to go to System Preferences and open the Keyboard pane. Then keyboard layouts emerge in the Input Sources tab, and the ones you currently have a working will be in the left column. Apple gives numerous keyboard layouts based on diverse languages, and you can combine more by clicking on the “+” button on the below left (connecting “-” removes a layout). A pop-up window will emerge with the layouts that are possible.

There is no limitation of adding the number of keyboards layouts, and You have to learn the trick to switch between the layouts. There are few options given that help you to perform the process quickly.

• If you examine the box for Display input in the menu bar, a menu bar icon arrives, and you can instantly modify the layout by ticking that icon and choosing the one you need. 
• If you go for a keyboard shortcut, then you can activate it in the Shortcuts tab. Select Input Sources in the left column, and you can utilise the default key combination or set up your individual. 
• Below Input Sources, you can choose the Use Caps Lock key to turn to and from the last used Latin input source checkbox. When this gets active, you’ll have to press and then retain the Caps Lock key to allow typing in all caps. 
• Additionally, below the Input Sources is an alternative to shift to a document’s input source automatically. This enables you to allow a layout to a report. For instance, if you are utilising the Maori layout but use English in a Microsoft Word document, macOS will automatically turn the layout when you’re working on Word.

How to Switch keyboard layout at the login?

User can select the type of keyboard layout at the login screen. To perform this task, you required to hold administrator preferences. After the user login, the user can also transform the layout in the Keyboard system preference. Below are the steps to set it:

1. When you logged in to the administrator account on your Mac, go to > System Preferences > Users & Groups. 
2. Click on the padlock on the lower corner to unlock the settings and enter an administrator’s username and password. 
3. Click Login Options at the bottom of the left column. 
4. In the right section, check the box for the Show Input menu at the login window. 
5. Click the lock and exit.

When the option turns on, the keyboard icon occurs on the upper right of the login screen. Click it and choose the keyboard layout you need, and then log in to the Mac.

How to change Change the default keyboard layout in the Terminal?

If you are using various keyboard layouts and require switching the one that is the default, you must have to perform that in the Terminal, the command-line interface for the Mac. The Terminal has placed in Applications > Utilities. Below are the directions.

1. Fixed macOS to the keyboard layout. You need to work as your default. 
2. In the Finder, press down the Option key and preferred Go > Library. 
3. In the Library window that appears, open the Preferences folder. 
4. Watch out for the file name “com.apple.HIToolbox.plist” and then choose it and copy it by pushing Command-C. 
5. Go to the Finder and then pick Go > Computer. You should recognise your Mac’s storage device in the window. 
6. Open your storage device, then open Library > Preferences. 
7. See the file named “com.apple.HIToolbox.plist” and add “-old” to the end of the name. Now you have to insert your password to verify the modification. That will be your backup file. 
8. Now hold Command-V to paste the file you copied previously into this folder. You will necessitate to enter your password to verify this.

Before restarting the Mac to complete this setting, verify that the files can be read by utilising the Terminal. Initiate the Terminal and then insert the below syntax:

sudo chown root:wheel /Library/Preferences/com.apple.HIToolbox.plist; sudo chmod 644 /Library/Preferences/com.apple.HIToolbox.plist

When you enter the command, Terminal will demand your password. If no message will emerge and the Terminal prompt comes back up, then all good. Now restart your Mac and pick the desired layout as the one the Mac boots into. 

Conclusion:

If you need to return the settings, go to Macintosh HD > Library >Preferences folder, delete the “com.apple.HIToolbox.plist” file. Then watch for the file named “com.apple.HIToolbox.plist-old.plist” and rename it “com.apple.HIToolbox.plist”. Then restart your Mac to implement the settings.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini Launched

The beautiful purple shine for iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini ideally complements the elegant flat-edge design and precision-milled rear glass.

The tech giant Apple has launched a marvelous purple shade for 12 and 12 mini. So far, Apple 12 and 12 mini are present in green, white, black, red, and blue. But at its yearly iPad event, Apple introduces another color, purple. Pre-orders for the purple color will start this Friday. The first units will be available on April 30. The company has put efforts into balancing the color of the aluminum case from the back glass panel.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini Features:

Greg Joswiak says ‘this range is the most well-liked Smartphone globally, with purple, the 12 and 12 mini are now available in five distinct shades.’

Immersive display and Strong design

The superior design of the 6.1-inch 12 and 5.4-inch 12 mini is beautiful as well as robust. IPhone 12 mini is the smallest Smartphone that gives the most solid 5G experience. The ceramic shield front cover provides an immense durability leap to the device. A14 Bionic is the most durable chip ever in a Smartphone, with excellent battery life and the most solid 5G experience on any Smartphone.

The super retina XDR performance with OLED in the device leads to a more impressive display experience. The latest OLED gives pixel accuracy brightness, a two million-to-1 contrast ratio for pure blacks, and an HDR viewing experience for high-definition video, photos with more clarity, and almost twice the peak brightness of iPhone 11.

The 12 mini is the smallest 5G Smartphone globally. Comprising all the technology of iPhone 12 into an appealing compressed size while still gives an impressively expansive and immersive edge-to-edge display.

Advanced dual-camera system feature

A dual-camera system feature comprises the model that gives powerful intensive photography features and high video quality. This unique camera system highlights the Ultra-Wide camera and a Wide camera with a ƒ/1.6 aperture. It is the most fleeting, granting 27 percent more brightness for even more beautiful low-light photos and videos.

It is the first camera to capture HDR video with Dolby Vision and the only device to facilitate an end-to-end Dolby Vision experience. The device allows customers to shoot, edit, and share cinema-grade videos. Both models grant advanced cinematic video stabilization, realistic selfie video with night mode, and Dolby vision. From time-lapse, longer exposure times for sharper videos, better light trails, and smoother exposure in low-light scenarios when used with a tripod is another unique highlight of the phone.

Bounded by the Environment

Apple is a carbon fair for associated global operations, which plans to have zero influence on climate by 2030 across the entire business. All devices of Apple sold from the material collection, transport, customer usage, and all the way recycling and material recovery is ultimately carbon neutral. The 12 models use 100 percent recovered rare earth components in all magnets, plus the camera, Taptic Engine, and MagSafe, and Apple’s MagSafe accessories.

The company also takes out the power adapter and Ear Pods from the packaging, lessening carbon discharges and avoiding the mining and using precious materials. It enables smaller and lighter packaging and allows for 70 percent more boxes to be shipped on a pallet. Collectively, this revolution will reduce 2 million metric tons of carbon release yearly. It is equal to decreasing approx 450,000 cars from the road each year.

Moreover, tech giant Apple has been guessed to be working on a foldable iPhone for months. Investigator Ming-Chi Kuo has stated that Apple might be introducing such a model by 2023.

Apple Worldwide Developers Conference is Planned to kick off on June 7

The Apple Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) has come too far from its first meeting in 1983. Initially, very few Apple developers took part in the gathering. But now the strength reaches six thousand people per year. Apple conducts WWDC yearly in California. And the meeting begins with the address of keynotes by Tim Cook and Apple executives. 

 

Moreover, the conference is widely covered by Apple developers, administrators as well as media. 

Virtual Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2021: 

Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2021 or WWDC 2021 is the annual gathering. It is organised virtually by Apple in 2021. And this will be a yearly 32nd computer conference planned to kick off on June 7, 2021. The program is only for the pre-registered partners of the Apple developers. 

The meeting will be carried from 7 to June 11 by virtual sittings due to the global pandemic issue. Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2021 will put forward deep-insight into the possibility of the latest Apple operating program. 

For example, macOS, iPadOS, tvOS, including watchOS. However, many developers took part in the conference last year. And that was even never seen before. The previous conference was attended by 22 million viewers by the entire Apple's stream. The virtual conference in 2021 is the second year of the virtual Apple global Developers meeting. Thus, it will give app developers access to many possibilities. Such as to become aware of technologies and devices' latest versions. To which they lean on to form cutting-edge applications and games. 

Highlights of Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2021: 

The WWDC 2021 meeting is assumed to be profitable again in 2020. There is also a buzz of the launch of updated and most advanced tools. It will help Apple developers to form apps and gaming programs. In the Apple Worldwide Developers meeting 2021, Apple visions 28 million app developers followed by app developers of the next generations. By the data and devices required to transform their mental pictures into reality. 

WWDC 2021 yearly meeting will include broadcasting from the keynote, including the State of the Union platforms, virtual sittings, 1:1 labs giving complete direction, and unique methods for app developers. It will link with Apple technicians and the designers to discover the most advanced cores and technologies. 

 Apple states that the conference will broadcast again at no cost on the website. Moreover, for student developers, Apple has declared that this year a chance is given to budding developers to present their coding abilities. It is planned to be done by a challenge of developing a swift playground app. In 2020, students who achieved this test were given a fellowship to proceed with WWDC. 

 WWDC 2021

However, this time the winner will get WWDC 2021 apparel, a personalised pin set, and free membership to the Apple Developer studies for one year. Although, students have to enrol till April 18, 2021. 

Mac rumoured with Apple producing the most advanced modifications of the iMac desktop computer and MacBook Pro. It is still vague if those devices will appear at WWDC 2021. Apple will release further news of WWDC 2021 on the Apple developer website and through email.