Apple TV preview is not looking good

Plex Experience Preview
1

I am extremely dishearten to see the direction Plex is going.

When I open Plex, I want to see my library. The Home menu should include my content. I should not have to dig down to find the content I own when I open the application to access my content on my server.

For me, about 85% of the time I open Plex on my Apple TV, I’m going to watch a movie. If I have to scroll to Libraries, then Movies, just to get to what I want, I am not going to use this application (it’s already too cumbersome in the general release).

I would strongly suggest your user interface team take a look at how many movements you need to make to get somewhere. Scrolling and tapping up and down and left and right is just a mess. It is not a pleasant experience.

To access my movies library, I have to tap:

  1. Right to Libraries.
  2. Enter.
  3. Down.
  4. Up to display the libraries menu.
  5. Left / Right to select my Movies library.
  6. Enter.
  7. Down.
  8. Left.
  9. Down to select Browse.
  10. Enter.
  11. Then, when I’m finally looking at my movies, there’s no longer an alphabet slider on the right to jump ahead.

Are you effing kidding with this?

Please - tell me I’m missing something so I can edit / take down this post.

The existing menu structure is objectively superior to what you’ve implemented here. I am not opposed to a revamped user interface, I think what you have here is certainly more attractive, but it’s overwhelming how hard Plex is trying to push purchased or ad-supported content down our throats.

You may make more money with your updated UX, just as grocery stores force you to walk to the back of the store to get your necessities like eggs and milk, but you are not creating a pleasant experience for your user base.

The Home Menu should show your choice of services.
I would have My Movies, My TV, My Music, My Photos, Plex TV, Plex Rentals. When I sit my ass down on the couch, this is the first choice I want to make. Then, when I select My Movies, the primary interface should allow me to select from my collection of movies. The secondary or peripheral interface should be recommended movies.

Furthermore, to reiterate my first comment about the updated experience, Music and Photos is missing.

Edit: I just want to hammer on this one again. Not having Music or Photos in the Plex app - AppleTV or iOS version - is enough to stop using Plex entirely for me and my family. I can not overstate how critically important this is. If forcing us to use your VOD service from within our media libraries is making it too difficult for you to develop a user friendly application, get it the eff out.

While you’re working to separate the user experience into different apps, I would suggest you separate your money-making app from your owned-content app.

I hope you’ll take the time to write up a user guide to maintain the existing user experience and disable all future software updates.

30 Likes
2

I completely agree with you; the UX is indeed less effective compared to the initial version, at least in several aspects. I also wish Plex would revamp the interface to make it easier to use, even though I agree it looks more visually appealing than before.

9 Likes
3

I couldn’t agree more. I feel this is my Sonos experience all over again. I don’t want to re-live that nightmare.

I know it is early, there are bugs and many things will change, but I have to say this is starting on a very bad direction. It takes longer to get to what we want to do and it doesn’t make live better. It makes it worse.

As a developer that focuses on UX, I encourage Plex to get a core group to gather better feedback. From a UX, this is wrong in every direction I look at. Sorry to be blunt.

13 Likes
4

Strong agree.

Both the wife and I immediately commented on how everything is now more cumbersome.

The new Apple TV app is basically grandma-proof.

9 Likes
5

I was able to disable most of the unwanted VOD stuff however the discover tab is still prevalent.

I like the overall idea of the new app but it’s lacking photos and music. Are they going to release photos and music for every client now? I doubt it. It’s also way too complicated to switch users now.

And I think the sidebar missing makes it all the more clunky to use.

I just wanna hide the discover tab.

Not to mention HDR files don’t play properly in the new app. I feel like this new app is just going to confuse my family. They really went for form over function.

The new video player just doesn’t work either. It constantly buffers or makes hdr content look off.

Yeah, it’s bad.

3 Likes
6

Disable “Discover Source” here:
https://app.plex.tv/desktop/#!/settings/online-media-sources

2 Likes
7

I haven’t downloaded it yet, but getting rid of the sidebar is a huge mistake!

I use lots of libraries to separate different types of content and now its going to be a lot harder to find, especially for less tech-literate people.

They tried to do something very similar to this like 5 years ago and the blowback was so big they had to scrap that plan.

8 Likes
8

It is disabled.

9

At the end of the day, I don’t care what the app looks like if it can’t play files correctly. It keeps transcoding everything instead of direct playing.

2 Likes
10

Completely close out of the app and restart it then. I tested this yesterday (along with disabling Movies & Shows to get rid of On Demand). It works, if you restart the app. (Double-click the TV control button and swipe the app up to close it.)

And make sure the Discover Source is disabled, and not just disabled for managed users. I tested with an admin user.

11

Having it completely disabled fixed it thanks.

1 Like
12

You’re welcome!

1 Like
13

I absolutely agree with this and the current TV app for Plex is near perfect. This new ui works somewhat better for Mobile but on TV a side bar you can acsess any time is a must have

6 Likes
14

I think that’s really the beauty of the current app - the sidebar is easily accessible and really flexible. It slides out of the way too.

Having to scroll all the way to the top to get to your movie libraries is not very intuitive.

I’d rather see them keep the sidebar and allow for even more flexibility. For example, let me create filtered views of my library and pin them to the side. Maybe I want to have all of my 4K action movies pinned there, or maybe all holiday movies or certain collections. Give us more flexibility, not less!

9 Likes
15

I agree. Typical Product Managers looking at something that isn’t broken and setting out to demolish it and start over. Gotta justify your job somehow, I guess.

6 Likes
16

Exactly this and don’t forget to mention not using apple’s native player is a big mistake.

New player runs so sluggish.

8 Likes
17

After getting the iOS and iPad updates today, unwanted, I have disabled my AppleTV app updates.

There’s NO WAY I’m trusting Plex to not release an app as horrible as the mobile releases are.

My trust in this company is non-existent now. I’m so angry I just upgraded to lifetime Plex Pass a few weeks ago.

I should have trusted my DVR needs to Channels.

What a complete mess they’ve made of things. Good job, dummies.

9 Likes
18

Anyone else dealing with freezes on the new Apple TV app? Gets stuck on the Plex logo frequently.

19

This is so true. Personal Media should be easily accessible and stop making it deliberately hard so that we watch your on demand and rent/buy movies

21

You have deeply misunderstood. I know it can be done on server settings but the point is I want on demand and other offerings but not showed down my throat when I open the app.
Rather, personal Media should be first and then others to follow like in the old app

1 Like