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Older Apple TV boxes will keep HBO's apps a little longer

Apple TV legacy box

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Updated April 10, 2020: HBO has told Engadget it'll extend things on the third- and second-generation Apple TV boxes a bit.

Good news for those of you with older version of Apple TV — HBO has told Engadget it'll allow its apps to continue to work on the aging Apple TV boxes a little while longer. HBO Now will get a two-week repeive, and HBO Go will get a few extra months.

From Engadget:

An HBO spokesperson told Engadget that HBO Now will remain on 2nd and 3rd gen Apple TVs until May 15th and that HBO Go will be available for "a few additional months." The spokesperson said that HBO made the decision to extend support "to provide impacted users more time to make any necessary updates."

Regardless, the third-generation Apple TV hardware was released in 2012, and the second-gen in 2010 two years before that. They're both old and it's about time for them to be put out to pasture.

Original post follows:

HBO today announced that as of April 30, its standalone applications (that'd be HBO Go and HBO Now) no longer will work on the two oldest models of Apple TV hardware.

That means if you're still using a third- or second- generation Apple TV box, you'll be out of luck. It doesn't, however, mean you won't have any way to watch HBO.

Support pages (as noted by MacRumors ) for both HBO Go and HBO Now spelled out the pending changes.

The reasoning?

In order to provide the best streaming experience, we need to make some changes to our supported devices list. Starting on April 30, 2020, HBO NOW will no longer be available on the Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation).

Here's the thing, though: The third-generation Apple TV (that's Model Numbers A1427 and A1469) was released in 2012, making it just about 8 years old. The second-get Apple TV (Model A1378) is two years older than that. That's pretty ancient for any kind of tech. And while it won't be of much consolation to anyone who still relies on those boxes for HBO, not even Apple supports all of its legacy devices forever.

The two more current models of Apple TV — 2017's Apple TV 4K (Model A1842) and 2015's fourth-generation Apple TV (Model A1625) will still be supported by HBO Go and HBO Now. (And it remains unclear if the legacy models will still have access via third-party streaming services like Hulu or AT&T TV Now.)

In other words, for those of the second- or third-gen models: It's probably time to upgrade. The question is whether you'd get bit if you buy an Apple TV 4K — which really is the only one you should consider — today, or if you should hold out for a new model, which could come ... whenever. Apple hasn't given a date yet for this year's WWDC event (not surprising given all the commotion), and it could well just release new hardware whenever it wants.

So roll the dice. Maybe just wait until as close to April 30 as you can, though.