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This week on TechHive: The new Apple TV 4K skates to where the puck was
Among everything Apple announced at its press conference this week, the Apple TV 4K was the only one lacking a killer hook.

The new streaming box’s most noteworthy features are support for 4K HDR video—already table stakes in other high-end streaming boxes—and a faster processor for the Apple TV’s oft-neglected gaming features. The remote control got a slight redesign, perhaps to stop people from holding it wrong, and there’s gigabit ethernet instead of 10/100Mbps, but Apple introduced nothing on the hardware side to change the way we interact with our televisions.

Yet the company did raise prices, despite well-documented evidence of Apple TV losing to its competitors: The new Apple TV 4K costs $179, which is $30 more than the previous version (introduced in 2015). And while the two-year-old 1080p Apple TV is sticking around, it’ll carry the same $150 price tag that it always has.

This was an unusual segment in a presentation that otherwise focused on how Apple, in the words of worldwide marketing head Phil Schiller, tries to “skate to where the puck is going to be.” Read the full column on TechHive.

Weekly Rewind

4K HDR Fire TV rumors: Over at AFTVNews, my pal Elias Saba has quite a scoop about the next Fire TV devices. Amazon is reportedly working on two of them, including a cheap-ish 4K HDR streaming dongle (akin to Google’s Chromecast Ultra) and a new 4K HDR Fire TV box with Alexa built-in. For the latter–assuming the report is accurate–that means you’ll be able to bark orders at it from across the room like an Amazon Echo Dot. The box also reportedly has an IR emitter for controlling TVs and other A/V equipment.

Currently, Fire TV sticks out as the only streaming device platform without HDR video support–an embarrassing omission given Amazon Prime’s library of 4K HDR content. Saba says this should be rectified next month when the cheaper dongle arrives. As for the box, it’s still unclear whether Amazon will launch it this year or early next.

FuboTV’s DVR overhaul: The sports-centric streaming bundle FuboTV continues to remake itself amid tough competition. This week, Fubo replaced its previous DVR format, which provided 10 recording slots that expired after 10 days, with a more traditional 30-hour DVR that stores recordings indefinitely. That’s included in the $35 per month base package; users who want more storage can pay an extra $10 per month for 500 hours.

The old format probably made sense when FuboTV was laser-focused on sports, since 10 sporting events could easily last over 30 hours. But as Fubo added more general entertainment channels like CBS and HGTV to its lineup, those 10 slots became a straitjacket. As it stands, Fubo and Hulu with live TV are the only streaming bundles that allow upgrades to more than 50 hours of recordings with indefinite storage, and compared to Hulu’s offering of $15 per month extra for 200 hours, Fubo’s upgrade has the edge.

More Catch-Up

  • The sports-free streaming bundle from AMC and others is coming soon.
  • Verizon says it’ll decide how to approach streaming bundles by early next year.
  • The roadside motel of wireless carriers? Both of AT&T’s newer unlimited plans now include free HBO.

Save More Money
Amazon still has a great deal on a refurbished Roku Premiere+. It’s currently available for $65 with free shipping, which is $25 off the price of a new unit, and like the new Apple TV 4K that launches for $179 next week, the Premiere+ supports 4K HDR video from sources like Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Thanks for reading!

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Until next week,
Jared