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  A black box and a silver remote on a table

The new Apple TV 4K is pretty much just like the last one for most people, and that means it’s still the best streaming box you can buy if money is no object—doubly so if you already live in Apple’s ecosystem.

More importantly, a substantial price cut helps make it more appealing. That cut’s still not big enough to make it the best deal in town, though.

When it was first introduced in 2017, the Apple TV 4K was positioned as a rethinking of how we approach TV. As I wrote then , it fell far short of those ambitions as Apple ran up against the entrenched and disparate interests of the various players in the television business. Nonetheless, the Apple TV 4K has a killer interface, outstanding picture quality, a strong stack of features, and impeccable app support.

Enlarge / It's still a black box, but the chip inside is faster this time. (credit: Apple)

The new Apple TV 4K adds HRD10+ and Dolby Vision, bumps the default storage capacities, and keeps Ethernet only on the more expensive model.

The new models cost $129 for 64GB storage and Wi-Fi or $149 for 128GB storage and an Ethernet port. Prior models started at $179 for a 32GB model. Both newer models run on the A15 Bionic, the chip that powers Apple's iPhone 13 lineup. That should provide a speed and responsiveness bump for those who game on their Apple TV. It will also likely help enable the newest output options: HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and the now-typical audio arrays of Dolby Atmos 7.1 and 5.1.

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  The isometric top/front of the 2022 Apple TV 4K.

Apple is sticking with the much-improved silver aluminum slab remote design that is a lot easier to use and to find in a couch than the prior black-glass touchpad model. This third-generation remote charges with USB-C, replacing the Lightning connection on the prior model. Sadly, Apple has still not implemented a Find My function into the remote, nor does it offer a way for the remote to emit a sound to help find it.