ifixit took the new Apple TV 4K of 2021 apart and confirmed that it is easy to repair – although not much can really break.
The remote control is difficult to take apart and requires a lot of work to replace the battery. However, the battery should survive all other components. If it is only recharged once every three months, as is the case with the Magic Keyboard, it should last at least a decade.
A12 chip slower than old A10X?
Somewhat surprisingly, Apple is using old technology in the latest Apple TV: The skin processor is now an A12. This is three years old and was also used in the iPhone Xs. Now you can say that it is sufficient for video decoding – and that is of course correct.
However, the new old chip is significantly slower in terms of graphics performance compared to the even older A10X chip. The X versions of the A chips are the better variants in terms of performance, which are used in iPads, for example. However, Apple simply uses the normal A12 for the current Apple TV. It remains to be seen how this will be noticeable in games. The A10X already reached its performance limits here. If you do not care about gaming and only want streaming performance, however, the A12 is an improvement.
