Apple releases Apple TV 2.3 with AirTunes, third-party remotes

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  • Reply 21 of 107
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GeekLawyer View Post


    I predict a DVR in my aTV just as soon as there's an FM tuner in my iPod.



    (Half past never.)



    Here you go: http://store.apple.com/us/product/MA...mco=MjE0NzczMg



    It's been around quite awhile.



    Edit: retroneo beat me to it
  • Reply 22 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TheBum View Post


    Speaking of Boxee, does the update break it? I'm fully expecting to have to reinstall it, but I hope it still works.



    To answer my own question: YES, BOXEE IS BROKEN UNDER 2.3!!!



    Luckily, I checked the Boxee forums before upgrading my Apple TV.
  • Reply 23 of 107
    aplnubaplnub Posts: 2,605member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by retroneo View Post


    Where have you been?? Most iPods except the touch have FM capability ?!?! You just need the Radio Remote.







    Not supported on the iPhone.
  • Reply 24 of 107
    There's no reason for DVR and it's obvious why Apple is staying away from it.



    1) HULU.com - I watch most stuff on hulu for a couple weeks after it's aired on TV

    2) ABC.com NBC.com CBS.com TBS.com HBO.com, etc. etc. etc... I can watch whatever I want, whenever I want for a long time after it's aired. I can pause and go to the bathroom and even watch all the commercials (yes, I like them).



    I think that aTV is great for getting a quick streaming moving to your big 'ol TV whenever you want it. It's good for buying and downloading your favorite movies. But DVR is gone and dead. As our computers dock to our HDTV's, we'll all forget about DVR's soon soon soon enough.



    P
  • Reply 25 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    These DVR Vs. no DVR debates are always so US-centric. Ever heard of the rest of the world? Just because you guys don't get anything decent transmitted free-to-air, doesn't mean that's the case in the rest of the world. If I could get an AppleTV/Mac Mini with blu-ray and FreeView (UK digital terrestrial broadcasts) DVR, I would.



    Let me guess, you were the hall monitor in school.
  • Reply 26 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TheBum View Post


    To answer my own question: YES, BOXEE IS BROKEN UNDER 2.3!!!



    Luckily, I checked the Boxee forums before upgrading my Apple TV.



    fix is in the works.

    hopefully boxee/xbmc will run on the 2.3 firmware within 24hrs
  • Reply 27 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Pachomius View Post


    There's no reason for DVR and it's obvious why Apple is staying away from it.



    1) HULU.com - I watch most stuff on hulu for a couple weeks after it's aired on TV

    2) ABC.com NBC.com CBS.com TBS.com HBO.com, etc. etc. etc... I can watch whatever I want, whenever I want for a long time after it's aired. I can pause and go to the bathroom and even watch all the commercials (yes, I like them).



    I think that aTV is great for getting a quick streaming moving to your big 'ol TV whenever you want it. It's good for buying and downloading your favorite movies. But DVR is gone and dead. As our computers dock to our HDTV's, we'll all forget about DVR's soon soon soon enough.



    P



    What we need is Hulu.com, etc functionality on the ATV. Apple could team up with those big networks to get a cut of advertising revenue or at least have the networks subsidize the ATV.



    That would help give folks a reason to buy an ATV. Content and pricing seem to be its biggest issues. If you could watch a large chunk of ad supported shows for free whenever you want that would be a big bonus.



    Sure Apple might not want that as it competes with iTunes, but iTunes still carries some advantages to distinguish itself -it is ad-free and you own the TV show and can transfer it to your ipod.
  • Reply 28 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wobegon View Post


    Hah, I swore the Apple TV had the AirTunes capabilities since launch! Well, the new IR stuff sounds good.





    And @ people who might want to turn this into a DVR vs. no-DVR discussion,



    Please stop while you're behind. The iTunes Store, which provides content (a la carte) to Apple TV users, is in direct competition with cable TV boxes/subscriptions.



    Now a Netflix Instant Watch portal similar to the flickr photo album portal? That's a possibility (though I suspect Apple would want to enhance such a service by making the movies actually download to the hard drive and make all Instant Watch movies browse-able right off the device, rather than requiring interaction with a computer).



    This is a discussion forum, we'll discuss whatever we d@mn well please.
  • Reply 29 of 107
    bg_nycbg_nyc Posts: 189member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post




    For me, the AppleTV's ability to rent HD movies is interesting. Its ability to stream content from a computer in the house is interesting. But if I had an AppleTV as it stands now, I'd still want a DVR and a blu-ray player. Why have three devices when a Mac Mini with a blu-ray drive, a couple of FreeView tuners and some decent Apple software could do it all in one, better, and for less money overall?



    I totally agree. That mac mini would be the ultimate HTPC for many people, and it will unfortunately never happen (unless we build it ourselves). Apple seems intent on telling us what we need, not the other way around.



    I couldn't care less about freaking Airtunes in my ATV. I already stream from my iMac to 2 Airport Express locations and the ATV, and it stays on all the time anyway. With the ability to control iTunes on the iMac via Remote app on my iPhone, i have no more use for the AppleTV as a music interface. The rentals are a good deal, but I have moved on to blu-ray so their low-bitrate 720p content is a joke. I only use ATV now for streaming my home movies and handbrake'd rips.



    iTMS+ATV will not ever replace cable+DVR. And people who are geeky and rich enough to buy an AppleTV can probably afford to have both and AppleTV and an expensive 400+ channel cable subscription complete with an HD package to go with their flat panel.



    The AppleTV is going nowhere fast, which is sad because if they would ask us what we need instead of telling us, we would all be better off.
  • Reply 30 of 107
    dunksdunks Posts: 1,254member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by UnseenLlama View Post


    Maybe because ATV is supposed to replace your cable box, not supplement it. Why pay a flat subscription rate to the cable companies when you can have a la carte!



    Why pay anything when you can DVR free-to-air TV.



    It's not about it being an alternative to anything. It's about consolidating the ridiculous assortment of non-user-friendly devices one is expected to have under their TV to pass as a human being into one simple device. If i want to watch a DVD I shouldn't need to perform genital origami just to reach over the TV to unplug cords or attempt to navigate cryptic, MS DOS-like on screen menus using 3 remote controls.



    Please Apple give me this one device to rule all others or open up your DRM so somebody can before I lose interest in TV altogether.
  • Reply 31 of 107
    No streaming from a NAS is dissapointing. I want to dump my music/movies onto a NAS and stream to ATV without having my laptop on.
  • Reply 32 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jotnar View Post


    No streaming from a NAS is dissapointing. I want to dump my music/movies onto a NAS and stream to ATV without having my laptop on.



    Just install Boxee or XBMC.

    (Or ATV Files or Sapphire or Nito)

    All these AppleTV add ins can stream media from a network share.



    Some of them even index your files, pull down cover art and episode data from the internet and show it all with a nice DVD like interface.







    C.
  • Reply 33 of 107
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    These DVR Vs. no DVR debates are always so US-centric. Ever heard of the rest of the world?



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Pachomius View Post


    There's no reason for DVR and it's obvious why Apple is staying away from it.



    1) HULU.com

    2) ABC.com NBC.com CBS.com TBS.com HBO.com, etc. etc. etc...



    See what I mean?



    Also, what resolution and bit-rate do those online services use?
  • Reply 34 of 107
    antkm1antkm1 Posts: 1,441member
    Excuse me for butting in. don't pick on the English guy, even though he wants us to be more globalt minded; yet he spouts off about UK techno-bable.



    So to me, the only way for ATV to be totally viable is if Apple addresses...
    • DVR with some kind of link to your tuner. Otherwise this will NEVER replace a DVR. As long as there is cable and dish and SATV you'll never convince enough people to dump cable and just buy "a-la-carte". iTunes is good, but netflix is better and broadcast is the most diverse with new content all the time.

    • Offer Free Watch TV shows on iTunes. Otherwise, why bother if you already have cable. Not every show people watch is on iTunes and there are so many free sites out there that have free-view TV. Sure it's not live when it airs and that leads me back to point #1. You can go on for hours about "a-la-carte" but that means nothing to Joe-Six-Pack with a Dish who lives in Union, Missouri. You could also say that Joe isn't in ATV's target market, but for ATV to trully be accepted as compeition, they will have to convince 'ol-Joe as well.

    • Offer a way to download my personal DVD/BD to iTunes (Including Special Features). In order to appease everyone, Apple is going to have to work out a deal with the movie industry to allow users to download personal DVD/BD to iTunes or ATV will never replace the DVD player. Most people today that have movies own DVDs, so they will NEVER be able to toss the tried-and-true DVD player if there's no way to watch thier DVD's THROUGH the ATV.

    • Offer Special Features from DVDs on iTunes. yes, people can say that Special Features is a thing of the past with the internet, but that's 95% of the reason why most people buy movies on DVDs in the first place; other than offesting the cost of multiple rental fees. Plus Specail features aren't always good but more than 50% of the time they are well worth the cost of the DVD alone (i.e. "Gangs of NY"; horrible movie but fantastic Special Features). heck, I'd pay double the iTunes asking price if i could get LOTR Specail features on iTunes. Long Point Short, Movie companies will continue to offer Specail Features to help boost sales. weather it's online or not is the debate. I'd prefer it to be downloadable.

    anyway, that's my 2 cents...
  • Reply 35 of 107
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by antkm1 View Post


    even though he wants us to be more globalt minded; yet he spouts off about UK techno-bable.



    Sorry. Should have made it clear that FreeView uses DVB-T, a Europe-wide standard. In any case, I was using it as an example of free-to-air content that's worth watching. I'm sure the UK isn't alone in that.
  • Reply 36 of 107
    jingojingo Posts: 117member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dunks View Post


    Why pay anything when you can DVR free-to-air TV.



    It's not about it being an alternative to anything. It's about consolidating the ridiculous assortment of non-user-friendly devices one is expected to have under their TV to pass as a human being into one simple device. If i want to watch a DVD I shouldn't need to perform genital origami just to reach over the TV to unplug cords or attempt to navigate cryptic, MS DOS-like on screen menus using 3 remote controls.



    Please Apple give me this one device to rule all others or open up your DRM so somebody can before I lose interest in TV altogether.



    Absolutely - couldn't have said it better. Here in the UK we get some fantastic over-the-air stuff that is excellent quality on Freeview. I can record it using EyeTV on my Mac, but is is such a time-consuming palaver having to transcode it from MPEG2 to MPEG4 in order to get it on to AppleTV (via iTunes) that I've given up. As a result the AppleTV never gets used.



    I would love to be using AppleTV as the main interface box for my TV, and it could be done so easily. All it would take is the following:



    1. Support for a dual-tuner freeview USB stick (maybe via ability to load a version of EyeTV?).

    2. DVD drive

    3. (Ideally) incorporation of BBC iPlayer or similar streaming support from various TV channels.



    Then AppleTV would provide EVERYTHING I would need to access on my TV, and as a result I would use it ALL the time from the TV. And as a result of this I know that I would rent tons of stuff on it because it would be there and easy to access. As it is, because I don't use the AppleTV at all, I never rent anything.



    I know that Apple thinks it is being a big clever profit-oriented, shareholder-focused, corporation by only really allowing AppleTV to access material that comes from Apple at a price, but in doing this they are neglecting to deliver a product that is optimal for most of their customers. I think this is very short-sighted and causes the product to be ignored by most people, even many of those who own it.



    Ultimately they may in time deliver TVs which incorporate AppleTV functionality plus all the off-the-air, DVD, and internet streaming stuff. If so, I will be first in the line to get one. The current iMacs are nearly there in conjunction with EyeTV, but fall just too far short (and are probably not big enough for most people anyway).



    Until then AppleTV in my view is just a hobby that they are not very good at. A bit like taking up football and only making it to the fourth team, and even then not always being selected to play.
  • Reply 37 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Carniphage View Post


    Just install Boxee or XBMC.

    (Or ATV Files or Sapphire or Nito)

    All these AppleTV add ins can stream media from a network share.



    Some of them even index your files, pull down cover art and episode data from the internet and show it all with a nice DVD like interface.







    C.



    I'm signed up on the boxee alpha but I'll wait for the update/work around thingy. thanks for the pointer to the other options though.
  • Reply 38 of 107
    antkm1antkm1 Posts: 1,441member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Sorry. Should have made it clear that FreeView uses DVB-T, a Europe-wide standard. In any case, I was using it as an example of free-to-air content that's worth watching. I'm sure the UK isn't alone in that.



    Appologies, let's just quit the bias talk, people may seem bias in the US for the same reason i called you out, we argue based on our own POV. That doesn't mean we excuss ignorant but welcome increased knowlege. that's what being geeks are all about friend.



    anyway, the point about ATV is that it can't possible replace what's the mainstream, not that i think Apple is trying to, but i'd like it to. Apple's all about simplicity in product design. why not dive head first into the mainstream home video market?!?



    I'd also allow the ATV to have APPs from the App store and Safari and Email and possibly even video phone. I don't see why the iphone firmware couldn't be installed on the ATV right now???
  • Reply 39 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mr. H View Post


    Sorry. Should have made it clear that FreeView uses DVB-T, a Europe-wide standard. In any case, I was using it as an example of free-to-air content that's worth watching. I'm sure the UK isn't alone in that.



    Freeview ROCKS!



    but the sooner 2012 arrives and we free up the bandwidth for a larger slice per channel.. the BETTER for all our eyes.



    I'm getting sick of the crappy compression artefacts on some channels (50" screen)
  • Reply 40 of 107
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by retroneo View Post


    Where have you been?? Most iPods except the touch have FM capability ?!?! You just need the Radio Remote.







    That's not an FM tuner in my iPod. That's a separate product that brings the FM tuner to by iPod.



    I'm all for Apple releasing an add-on to the aTV that brings DVR. But the box itself won't ever do it without something added on.
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