What about Apple TV?

[ryberg]

Anybody got it or experienced it? What's the story on it or the feedback? I haven't heard much of anything. I'm curious, not just because it's Apple but because watching stuff on iTunes that I've downloaded or whatever has become a much more significant portion of the little TV/video we watch, anyway, so....

Apple page

Wikipedia link

Steve

[mastequilapf]

I went and played with one while Susan was buying women's clothes at the mall.

I love the functionality...great navigation, great capabilities.

HOWEVER, the picture quality is TERRIBLE! They had a few movies (downloaded from iTunes) of which you could watch a clip. They all looked terrible when scaled up on the flat screen TV they had connected to it.

Sorry guys, probably wouldn't buy one, even though I'm a definite mac geek.

This is also why I never by movies/TV shows from iTunes because I don't want to watch them on the small screen, and I know that when they get scaled up they'll look like crap.

[ryberg]

Thanks for that. I can imagine that there would be some issues like that, though at the same time, I can imagine they'll probably go away over time as a function of greater and greater bandwidth and memory or improvements in streaming of whatever. Was just wondering.

I'll have to try and see one at some point myself, as it sounds like that might be a point that's a bigger concern for you than for me. (We have spent many hours not bothered by the resolution of Lost downloads at full-screen on laptop or sometimes 17" CRT, for example.)

Seems like it's still a pretty low profile thing, though, in general...

Steve

[roni]

Originally Posted by ryberg

Anybody got it or experienced it? What's the story on it or the feedback? I haven't heard much of anything. I'm curious, not just because it's Apple but because watching stuff on iTunes that I've downloaded or whatever has become a much more significant portion of the little TV/video we watch, anyway, so....

Apple page

Wikipedia link

Steve

Yesterday, at an event introducing the new iMacs and Mac Mini (plus a very cool iLife 08 and iWork with a new spreadsheet), Apple executives were asked abou the Apple TV. Steve Jobs said there would be news about it, but that the event yesterday focused on the iMacs and they would not be talking about the AppleTV.

[james]

Originally Posted by mastequilapf

HOWEVER, the picture quality is TERRIBLE!

no it isn't. it depends on the source material. (maximum resolution: 1280 by 720 pixels at 24 fps)

I think they were trying to show you small format on a large screen. It can show large format too.

I've recently looked at Apple TV during my shopping for a possible replacement for my hacked XBOX running Xbox Media Center (which is fantastic). I've not found anything better but the processor in the XBOX isn't up to HD resolution processing.

The Apple TV unit has to be hacked to run divX/Xvid codec encoded source material (or even many other music formats, including many of the lossless variety I use), which dominate the 'download' scene, and that's where I operate.

I considered a Mac Mini instead of aTV (no DVD capability was a deal breaker for me, I want one component, my TV, and audio system, and this one component has to cover all my source material) but it's hard for me to justify the price of the mini when I can build a machine with much more 'legs' for less that runs Windows Media Center addition. I think I'll build a media center PC with something like this and I'd end up with a system that can be repaired more easily, upgraded more easily and that is more powerful for about what the mini would cost. Less, actually.

I have a terabyte of storage to hold all my music and video files (that I download) that sits on my home/office network, and the media center component (currently the hacked XBOX running XBMC) accesses that.

[ryberg]

I love it when you talk tech, James.

I don't know about all that stuff, I'm just thinking that if we already don't watch much TV at all, and for years have only used a TV really as a display for DVDs, and now we're watching what we watch on a computer, anyway, and downloading what we watch more often (a trend that is obviously only on the increase), and superb resolution isn't a big concern for us, and computers play DVDs and of course music, and so on, well why have a TV and a computer? Why not just run all video from the computer in the same way, following the same path music has taken over the last several years? Am I missing something?

It seems like Apple TV is going this route but providing a sort of shell more than a full-blown computer to bridge the gap (and perhaps allow you greater ease of using the computer providing the files to watch in the first place, as well)...

Steve

[ryberg]

By the same token, if you're not really so interested in the usual modes of TV reception and again if (like us) neither superb resolution nor a really large viewing area is so important to you (that is, if say a 29" TV screen still strikes you as sufficient if not a tad large, even), does it make more sense just to get a large computer monitor as opposed to a TV?

Steve

[Mikey]

I use Slingbox and it works great....Either on my computers or on my phone....You hook it up to the cable or satellite box and you can watch your TV at home on your phone or computer as long as you have a wifi connection...My phone uses the cingular 3G when I dont have a wifi connection and works perfect......

Sling Media - US Home


There is also something new thats out that is suppose to be better......

HAVA-Play Your TV Anywhere-HAVA Video Streamer; HAVA Place-Shifter; HAVA Mobile TV