Apple Tv vs Ant+

Any opinions on which is better Apple tv or ant+. Bike shop salesman told me Apple tv was much better. Thanks for any input

Not following what you are comparing. AppleTV is a device that runs Zwift and ANT+ is a wireless protocol.

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If you just mean is it better to run Zwift on a PC or Apple TV I think it just depends on your own circumstances, technical expertise and graphical requirements.

For me I use Apple TV as I didn’t want to move my PC or laptop in to the garage, I therefore use a permanent ATV in there which isn’t used for anything else.

I’m not too bothered about frame rates, graphics quality etc. So again ATV is fine for me.

If it goes wrong it is cheaper to buy a new ATV than a new PC as I am not very technical and unlikely to be able to fix PC related issues.

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For info, a used PC that performs about as well as an Apple TV in Zwift is around a third of the price of an new Apple TV.

Edit: quick search of eBay and easily found some for a fifth of the price.

Can open.

Worms everywhere.

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You should post up more details about your requirements, your budget etc. The “best” platform for one person may be a long way from the “best” for someone with different requirements.

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Haha, I’m not starting don’t worry. Just saying that if the in-game experience Apple TV offers is acceptable, and cost is a priority, then it’s really quite expensive. It has other benefits, but that isn’t one.

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If you know your way around bluetooth and you can live with two connection (plus remote)…then ATV is convenient. Otherwise setting up a computer and using Ant+ is a bit more robust IME.

What’s the quality on a PC that costs USD $40? Sounds a bit sketchy to me.

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Lol, that may well be the case mate, but I like click & play. And having had Zwift on atv for 3 - 4 years now with only very minor glitches, I’m sticking with it. Also, IME atv boots up quicker than I can put my shoes on. Most pc’s don’t.

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Personally I would add some more RAM and an SSD, taking it to a whopping £50. But it’s not necessary, to get roughly the same performance in the game as an Apple TV.

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The system above with an SSD boots Windows in approximately 13 seconds. Zwift to pairing screen is about 35 seconds. It’s usually about now that the goalposts start shifting. :wink:

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I bought my Zwift PC on Ebay for $80 USD, it is an i5 however and already had an SSD and enough RAM. Graphic cards back in early 2020 were still quite affordable and got a gtx1650 for $190 (about the same price as an Apple TV 4K I think) to complete the system.

That’s some interesting stuff. I never really looked into that. Maybe it’s time! The ATV definitely works fine for me, but I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to some better graphics.

In fairness that’s not the same thing either, given your system annihilates an Apple TV. :wink: But reasonably priced graphics cards are as rare as rocking horse plop these days. :confused:

Purely talking about buying a cheap device to run Zwift in 1080p Basic at around 30fps, a new Apple TV is actually one of the most expensive options. That’s all I meant.

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Oh I know, just an example that cheap PC’s are abundant on Ebay and they work just fine for Zwift.

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Apple TV box is quite small and convenient……:rofl::rofl::rofl:

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And it doesn’t run windows which helps. The Apple TV is simple and just works without fuss. I still have to use a PC laptop for some other software.

However I prefer using the ant+ connection on my desktop Mac over Bluetooth. It seems a lot more stable with kickr bike and I don’t have resistance inverted glitches.

Those weren’t Apple TV issues, rather issues that appeared immediately after certain Zwift updates.

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Can’t follow, sorry. Helps???

The windows devices I have here are very troublesome in comparison. Windows updates running at the worst times, freezing, etc. Apple TV might not be as functional but it just works. It’s adequate for Zwift.