The iPad Pro 2021 has an M1 chip, 5G connectivity, and a Thunderbolt port. Cool stuff, but that's not what caught my eye at Apple's Spring Loaded event yesterday (April 20). It was the design of the new iMac. Again, it looks great, but it doesn't make my heart skip a beat; here's the trailer for Ted Lasso Season 2, which I can't wait for when it premieres in July, but again, I have more important things on my mind.

Yes, all of these will no doubt excite the majority of those who went along with all of Apple's Spring Loaded event announcements. But none of them made me jump out of my chair, grab my wallet, and scream deep in my throat for Apple to take my money already.

That honor went to the new Siri Remote that comes with the new Apple TV 4K 2021.

All I know about Siri Remote is what I heard during Apple's hour-long product news briefing and details from the press release and product page. In other words, I will have to wait until I actually use the Siri Remote before I can judge whether it is the right remote control for Apple TV. However, I have been using the current remote that Apple bundles with existing Apple TV models for some time. And there is no chance in the world that the new Siri remote could be any worse.

Think of this as akin to a baseball trade when your favorite team announces that it has moved an error-prone player who can't hit water if he falls off a boat. 'Great trade,' you say. 'Who did we get?' This is how I feel about my old Apple TV remote control.

The Siri remote on the existing Apple TV is a thin black slab that goes missing more often than your no-good uncle when paying his share of the restaurant bill. This remote features black buttons that blend into the black surface and a trackpad on one side of the remote.

How many nights have I picked up the Apple TV remote and tried to scroll through the on-screen menus while muttering about the Apple TV's lack of responsiveness, only to realize that I was dragging my finger around the non-touchpad end?

In short, every night in recorded history.

I don't want to suggest that the only good thing about the new Siri Remote is that it is not the old remote control. (The buttons on the new Siri Remote are a different color than the device itself and stand out.

The new click pad, with its 5-way navigation and circular design, makes it unlikely that you will ever mistake the edge of the remote control. In addition, a circular gesture around the edge of the click pad can turn the remote into a jog control.

And best of all, the Siri Remote is sold separately from the new Apple TV 4K (2021) that comes with it. Perhaps you might be tempted to pay $179 for a new set-top box and replace your aging model. Certainly, the new color balance feature and support for high frame rate HDR make the latest Apple TV an attractive option. But if I just want to replace my current remote control, which I hate--oh, I want to do this--I only have to pay $59 and the new Siri Remote will be mine.

There are still a few things about the new Siri Remote that I would like to experience in person. I'm eager to see if it will be the same size as the current model, or if it will be a bit more chunky so that it is less likely to blend in with the couch cushions or blend into the furniture. I would also like to see the reaction to the click pad.

Also, if Apple is going to start releasing AirTag to track valuables, I am curious why that technology is not built into the Apple TV remote control. Because remotes are very easy to misplace.

But these are small concerns in the larger scheme of things. Apple has replaced a totally inadequate product with a product that actually shows promise. One would hope for such a trade-off in any product event.