The new Apple TV 4K is hiding its best feature in plain sight

Craig is a reporter for Pocket-lint based in Toronto. He earned a diploma in journalism from Seneca Polytechnic and holds a Media Foundations certificate from Humber College. Craig previously interned and wrote for MobileSyrup, a Canadian tech publication. He enjoys reading and writing about consumer technology, especially phones, tablets, and PCs.

After four years of waiting, Apple finally unveiled its next-generation Apple TV 4K at its "Welcome home" event last week, alongside two other new home products: the HomeView smart display and the HomePod mini 2.

For the most part, the new Apple TV 4K (4th-gen) is pretty much what many expected, keeping the same design but adding substantial hardware upgrades. These include Apple's A19 chip, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 support, and three far-field microphones that let you use Siri hands-free.

On the software side, the biggest change is Siri AI support. However, Apple surprisingly announced that Siri AI won't be exclusive to the new Apple TV 4K (4th-gen) and will also arrive on the 2nd-gen and 3rd-gen Apple TV 4K next month with tvOS 27.2.

But there's another exciting upgrade that I think has flown under the radar, and it could have a much bigger impact on streaming than you might expect. The new Apple TV 4K (4th-gen) is the first model to feature a dedicated AV1 decoder built into its A19 chip, a seemingly small hardware change that could make a big difference to how you stream content now and well into the future.

What's a dedicated AV1 decoder?

Better streaming while using less data

If you're not familiar with AV1, it's a newer video codec used by some streaming services to compress video more efficiently, enabling smaller file sizes and lower bitrates while maintaining high image quality. Compared with older codecs like H.264 (AVC) and HEVC (H.265), AV1 can deliver the same sharp 4K picture using less bandwidth and data. That can be especially beneficial if you have a slower internet connection or a limited data plan, as it can help reduce buffering and data usage while streaming.

AV1 can also reduce compression artifacts you might notice while watching a show or movie and minimize color banding in dark scenes, preserving more detail in the image.

It's also open-source and royalty-free, making it easier for streaming services to adopt. YouTube, Netflix, and Prime Video use AV1 the most. Last year, Netflix said AV1 accounted for about 30 percent of all streams on the platform, making it the second-most-used codec, with Netflix expecting it to become number one in the near future.

However, one drawback is that AV1 decoding can be computationally demanding, and devices without dedicated AV1 decoding hardware have to rely on their CPU or GPU to handle the workload, which can impact performance. Because the new Apple TV 4K (4th-gen) has a dedicated AV1 decoder built into its A19 chip, it should handle AV1 decoding without breaking a sweat.

Here's what Apple had to say about AV1 in its press release for the new Apple TV 4K:

"The A19 chip also includes a new, dedicated AV1 decoder, enabling more efficient, high-quality streaming while using less bandwidth."

Price is the biggest hurdle for the new Apple TV 4K

$300 is a lot to ask

With AV1 becoming increasingly popular and major streaming services like YouTube, Netflix, and Prime Video already adopting it, a dedicated AV1 decoder in the new Apple TV 4K is a welcome hardware upgrade, and one I wasn't quite expecting.

Given that the new Apple TV 4K costs a staggering $300, having a dedicated AV1 decoder does help sweeten the deal a little. But at the end of the day, $300 is still a lot to spend on a streamer, and if you already own an older Apple TV 4K, it might be best to hold off on upgrading for now.

However, if you've been waiting years for a new model and don't mind paying the premium, the new Apple TV 4K is arguably the fastest streaming device you can buy, and with upgrades like the A19 chip with dedicated AV1 decoding, Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 6, it's also one of the most future-proof options out there.