Best Apple TV

The 64 GB Apple TV is the best you can buy today. It lets you use all the apps and games on the App Store, and stream all the content from iTunes, Netflix, HBO, and more, all from a tiny box that can fit just about anywhere.

Update: Content providers in the U.S., Canada, and elsewhere are beginning to provide Apple TV and tvOS apps in place of — or as extensions to — traditional set-top boxes. That lets you add more Apple TVs and apps to get your content in more rooms. The 32 GB Apple TV is ideal for just those typs of multi-room setups.

Why the 64 GB Apple TV is the best

When it comes to content, more isn't just more — it's better.

Apple went years without updating the Apple TV, then updated almost everything about it in one fell swoop. The biggest part of that is apps. Just like iPhone and iPad, Apple TV now has an App Store all its own. That means not only can you stream iTunes, Netflix, ABC, CBC, BBC, and more, you can download everything from exercise and shopping apps to the casual and hardcore games.

Nilay Patel called it the "best of television's present" on The Verge:

The streaming boxes on the market right now all compete to do very few simple things: get everything you want to watch in a single place, make it all easy to search and discover, and get out of the way. And the Apple TV does that as well or better than anything else on the market.

David Katzmeier was even more enthusiastic on CNET:

Apple TV's awesome remote and voice control make it one of the best entertainment devices, especially for anyone who already owns plenty of Apple gadgets.

To understand why the 64 GB version is the best, we need to look at how Apple TV works. With Apple TV, Apple introduced On-Demand Resources (ODR). If you go to watch a movie or get a game on your TV, the last thing you want to see is an error saying you're out of disk space and telling you to go delete something old before you can download something new.

So, ODR manages all that in the background. As you download new stuff, ODR deletes old, infrequently used stuff. That includes levels and cut scenes in games you've already completed, and content you watched a long time ago and haven't returned to since. Think of it as a super-smart, next-generation cache.

That might make it sound like you can get away with less storage and not need more. For some people, especially those with high-speed internet connections and no or very high data caps, that'll be true.

For most people, though, having more content available locally will still be the best experience. When you watch a movie this week, it might still be available immediately to show your friends next week. When you download a bunch of games, they'll all be ready to play, right away. Plus, you won't have to worry about wasting as much data on re-downloads.

And that makes the 64 GB Apple TV the best experience.

Conclusion

If you don't care about iTunes, you can look at alternatives like ChromeCast or FireTV. Otherwise, if you want the best set-top box Apple has to offer, you want the 64 GB Apple TV.