The Apple TV 4K is my favorite streaming box on the market by a good margin. The Apple TV 4K is also the oldest streaming box I own. I’m still using the first-gen box that dates back to 2017, and this means it’s close to a decade old. It still works, but it’s definitely showing its age. I’ve had to force close apps way more than I did a few years ago, so the writing feels like it’s on the wall.
I plan to keep on using my Apple TV 4K until it finally bites the dust, but I was looking to upgrade it in 2025. I had my eyes on the third-gen model, but rumors kept indicating a new, fourth-gen model was right around the corner. As it turns out, that wasn’t the case, and I was left holding the bag for something that wasn’t coming. The rumor mill has already started up again about this elusive fourth-gen Apple TV 4K, but I’m done waiting for it. I don’t plan on buying a third-gen model right away since mine is working fine, but I don’t see myself waiting around for new tech like this again. There’s no point in waiting, especially since the third-gen model would’ve been a big upgrade. With the benefit of hindsight, I really should’ve just grabbed that new Apple TV 4K when I wanted to.
Waiting around isn’t worth it
They won’t get me again
My Apple TV 4K stopped receiving notable updates. It doesn’t have Liquid Glass. It doesn’t have additional aspect ratios. It somehow didn’t get the Snoopy backgrounds either. Although it still works with all my apps, it feels like it’s been left behind in a way that the third and second-generation Apple TV 4K models haven’t. I have a good reason to upgrade, and I could’ve done it months ago instead of being locked in a cycle of waiting. My problem was that I kept seeing articles and different people saying that a new Apple TV 4K was planned for 2025. I had no reason not to trust that information, but here we are in 2026 and there’s no new model to speak of.
What I should’ve done to ease my concerns is look toward the second-generation Apple TV 4K. It’s still getting updates, so it’s not like Apple has just abandoned it. The third-gen model will likely be very relevant for years to come, so I could’ve just gotten that one and called it a day. A fourth-gen model would be faster, but it’s not like the third or even second-generation models are slouches. My first-gen device still feels faster than the 2024 Roku Ultra I have in my bedroom.
New tech always feels like it’s on the way, so it’s easy to get paralyzed by always waiting. I’ve found over the years, especially with this Apple TV 4K situation, that it’s better to just get what you want right away. I could’ve been using this device for a year now and have been perfectly happy. Instead, I’m stuck using something that’s almost a decade old and wishing it were something newer.
This line of thinking can be applied to all technology. I see it often in the PC gaming space where somebody asks if they should upgrade to the latest CPU or GPU only to be told that the new generation is just a few days away. It’s good advice on the surface, but you run the risk of the current situation we find ourselves in where the RAM prices skyrocketed, and now it’s a bad idea to build a PC. If you had just bought something when you needed it, you might not have run into this issue.
Basically, if you’re looking at something you plan on using right away, there’s no sense in waiting unless you’re a few days before Black Friday or something like that. If you wait around, you’ll just run into a situation like I found myself in where you’re just waiting all year for absolutely nothing to come. I don’t want to have that feeling again, so the next time I want something, I’m just going to buy it without thinking too hard about it.
A new Apple TV 4K is nowhere in sight
What could be taking so long?
I don’t want to say the rumors were wrong because it’s not like the information about a new device didn’t come from credible sources. There could actually be quite a bit going on behind the scenes that led to a delay, and it might be the same thing causing the next-gen consoles from being released.
With RAM prices being the way they are, it could easily make the price of a new Apple TV 4K shoot up as well. The Apple TV 4K is already the most expensive streaming box by a good margin, and bloated RAM prices could make that even higher. Coupled with tariffs raising the price of everything, it might just be a constant state of bad timing for the release of new hardware.
This isn’t affecting just Apple, but it’s a problem across all of tech. Graphics card prices are extremely high, and we’ve already seen the price of the Xbox get raised because of the tariffs. I’m not certain this is what’s happening with Apple and the release of the Apple TV 4K, but it makes sense to me.
If you’re willing to stick it out and stay patient, you might see a new release some time this year. With how many rumors there have been, it certainly feels like there’s a smoking gun, but there’s really no way to know for certain. Every time somebody was adamant there would be an announcement at the next Apple event, it always came and went without any release.
I hope Apple drops a new model out of nowhere so I won’t instantly feel burned if I pick up a third-gen device. Based on my luck, I’ll buy a new Apple TV after waiting for over a year for a new one, and then Apple will announce the fourth-generation. If I took my own advice, I wouldn’t even be upset about that, since the third-gen will be supported for years to come.
