As
promised this morning, we've been spending some quality alone time with the
Apple TV today, and we've got the gallery to prove it. We ran through most all of the options, hit a few bumps here and there, but for the most part had a good experience with the unit. Our favorite podcast, "William Hung Cooking Show" was a no-go thanks to the restrictive codec support, but otherwise our little collection of iTunes media transferred smoothly and played without a hitch on the device. In fact, sometimes it was a bit hard to tell if something had already been synced, or was just streaming off of our computer, or was in the process of both, since for the most part things "just work" with the unit. Setting up syncing was just like working an iPod, so there shouldn't be any worries for the noobs out there in getting this thing up and running. There is one huge caveat, however: TV shows and music videos don't look great after being scaled to 720p. Hopefully Apple has some HD content up its sleeve, 'cause otherwise it seems like waste of money to use this with a decent TV unless you want to look at photo galleries all day -- which look great, by the way. Actual operation and booting of the device is responsive, silent and energy efficient -- the unit is quick to fade the screen to black after going unused for a minute or so. For someone with a lot of cash invested in a collection of iTunes media, the Apple TV seems a solid -- if pricey -- buy, but for most people with more diverse media collections and saner pocketbooks, this is a hard one to recommend.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
wWw @ Mar 22nd 2007 4:46PM
*yawns*
js @ Mar 22nd 2007 4:50PM
If this doesn't prove that Engadget is an Apple-whore, I don't know what does.
Ryan Block @ Mar 22nd 2007 4:55PM
We're Apple whores because we tested an Apple gadget, took a bunch of pictures, didn't think it is that wonderful, and then say so? You're kidding, right?
Ken @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:07PM
Way to read an article.
BTW, this looks like a rip-off of MythTV's interface
rj @ Mar 23rd 2007 8:53AM
"didn't think it is that wonderful"
-damn... i was totally misled by your articles title header then...
Squid @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:04PM
This is for non-tech nerds, with money. I would go for one. But I am a broke tech nerd.
michael @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:06PM
What's with Engadget and these Apple TV stories? Really, I've never heard them go into so much detail over a product. What about the other set-top boxes out there? Are they such Apple lovers to always go excited over a product like this? I'm not here to complain. I'm just a bit angry that while there are a million other products out there, anything Apple usually seems to get all the attention on here, while some other products (especially ones that are so good) get just a small post about it. Please Engadget, do more detail posts on other products instead of just Apple ones.
James @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:28PM
Yeah like Vista?
AndrewNeo @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:45PM
People said that about Engadget and Vista a few months ago.
Fred Hedemark @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:08PM
2nd Chapter of Acts???
OLD SCHOOL! ROCK ON!
Owen V @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:12PM
Engadget does a good job of reviewing (or finding reviews of) everything applicable to a site named "Engadget." Apple makes very popular consumer electronics, people who like apple products are somewhat fanatical and there are lots of people who like apple products.
Engadget just writes a lot of articles, lots about the zune and microsoft, lots about TVs, lots about apple. Surely they write lots of articles about products you know that you dont like. It seems like the readers of engadget love to comment on how engadget writes too many articles on this or that but every article that people complain about is some fanboy's favorite article of the day.
I guess I'm just tired of reading useless comments from people complaining that engadget wrote an apple review or an article about a zune update.
Good job Ryan, Peter, Paul etc. I check this site and engadget mobile 10-20 times a day because you guys write so many articles that, for the most part, are all great. Keep up the good work.
moma @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:42PM
Well spoke.
Scooter @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:13PM
Bottom line... for a little more money, get a value added Mac Mini and use Front Row.
Scooter
http://www.gadgetgrid.com/
Todd @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:17PM
Engadget a Apple whore? No, that's not fair. A little overly enamored with the iPhone maybe, but I have seen plenty of anti-Apple posts. Speaking of being "anti"...
Ever notice how much Bill Gates looks like that dude from Raiders of the Lost Ark? I made this picture that shows it:
http://imgjax.com/1/4d4a3080fab4327689a699434da9e4c5/gates_toht.jpg
LongshotX @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:08PM
Uhhh No...try again.
Eric @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:20PM
I'm sorry, I'm supposed to be impressed you spent all day taking pictures of a screen and telling me things I already knew? All day reviewing a product and you only wrote a paragraph?
I really fail to see the big deal with streaming things to my TV anyway. There are many ways to do that. Now find me a DVR via usb that doesn't have the crappiest software known to man, can do HD, and doesn't cost more than $200, that would be interesting.
manfesto @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:21PM
Does the AppleTV support WPA wireless encryption? The picture in the gallery only listed WEP.
Not that I'm going to buy one, but that could be a dealbreaker for some.
Brandon @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:22PM
Crazy jealous! I can't wait for mine to arrive!
Jim @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:22PM
So, this thing seriously doesn't have any other visualizer for music besides "cover flip"? Lame. I want to get a media extender for my TV/music/photos and am upset that other boxes won't play iTunes but this isn't the solution. My problem is that I have both kinds of files (avi, divx, etc.) and iTunes AAC and downloaded TV shows. I don't want to have to buy two things (Apple TV and another media extender) to play it all.
ThinkIndifferent @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:36PM
Jim, AppleTV has other options to use as a visualizer besides using cover art (personal photos, flower art, Apple logos, etc.). You can also use numerous video/audion conversion utilities to convert your avi and divx files into iTunes compatible files with very little effort, such as I am now doing. :-)
Fitz @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:07PM
You can easily do this with MCE, many plug-ins developed - even an iTunes one....go to www.thegreenbutton.com
Francisco @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:23PM
When we are getting a full hardware spec?
Processor, Memory ...
How hackable is this box?
It was mentioned before the possibility to see your Apple System on it. Kind of export your display thing. Is this possible or it was just a rummor?
ThinkIndifferent @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:25PM
Received mine today. Up and playing videos and music in just under 5 minutes. Luvin it thus far!!! Wish you could control it via iTunes like you can an Airport Express, but a solid product nonetheless.
Mat @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:27PM
What a shit looking interface. I thought apple would have something nicer then what sony offers.
Frank @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:31PM
I see no purpose in Apple TV. My Time Warner HD-DVR does everything I need it to do.
ThinkIndifferent @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:40PM
Frank, My Time Warner HD-DVR does everything I need it to do too. Oh, except play all my iTunes media. But, now I'm covered. :-)
Frank @ Mar 23rd 2007 11:21AM
do you mean your mp3s? I would rather play my music through a stereo, and not a tv. And itunes videos are low res, so why would you want to look at it on an HDTV?
Josh @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:37PM
From the stills it looks like the xbox 360 Media extender interface is slicker, plus it doesn't require widescreen. How does the experience using the 360 compare to that of the appleTV? Is it an unfair comparison, are they about equal, or does one stack up better than the other?
Angry Black Man @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:39PM
I can't wait to get one refurb'd for $150.....
Kev50027 @ Mar 23rd 2007 11:41AM
Oh, and you're going to pay out your ass to do so?
That's dumb.
You know.. Sony TVs even have USB ports where you can hook up a thumbdrive or external hard drive with videos, pictures, or music on it and play it right on the TV. And the interface Sony has built into their TVs isn't half bad.
tommy @ Mar 22nd 2007 5:55PM
Ok, so who's willing to reverse engineer the apple tv, so that I can install the interface on my mac mini, which I've already connected to my tv... should be possible wouldn't it?
dLeet @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:05PM
Hey Ryan, or whoever at Engadget has the means -- Does the Apple TV have the ability to interface directly with a Hard Drive connected to the network (i.e. an external HD connected to a network hub via USB), or does it have to connect to a computer running iTunes?
Thanks!
walk2k @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:15PM
40 GB...... wow.
Pretty funny there are IPODS with more storage than this piece of crap.
I know it doesn't do HDTV but.... good thing since that would only be 5-6 hours worth... lol.
Josh* @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:24PM
Won't the Apple TV would be streaming content from your computer, which I imagine holds more than 40GB
walk2k @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:45PM
My understanding is that it can stream from remote computers via WiFi, but there are hitches/hangups when doing so. That is why the HDD is there - it "syncs" with iTunes (on 1 computer only) just like your iPod does.
Josh* @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:03PM
Even duriung initial access and seeking Apple TV won't use much of that 40GB unless some HD content comes out soon. In that event, consider how much HD content you can store at one time with that space with full HD DVDs at 15-30GBs and Blu Ray discs at 50...
Eric Bandholz @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:52PM
I like the Xbox 360 next to the TV.
Dinraj Pradeep @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:53PM
Gonna say what many have said before here.
A blatant Rip-off of the Media Center.
But it'll sell. Sell a lot. Most Mac Fanatics can afford this, and usually are the early adopters. But here's a question, is it a fairly open platform? Can we see a bunch of plugins to go with it? Or is it the usual apple story?
pwfletcher @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:00PM
To answer a few quetions and a few stupid statements ...
- it can only stream content from computers running iTunes, not from networked USB drives
- yes, it streams HD content ... I am doing it right now
- yes, it has other screen savers
- no glitches in streaming content have appeared yet
What it needs ...
- 5.1 DD, it mixes everything down to stereo
- iTunes store better start selling HD content FAST, the SD files that they are selling now look less than stellar
- the ability to control it from iTunes, it should also show up in your speakers selection like the Airport Expresses do
David @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:12PM
Maybe I missied it, but I don't think you guys put in the diagnostic screen. Hold the 'minus' and Menu buttons for 6 seconds and you get a diagnostic mode as well as an option to restart.
Stewart Dean @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:24PM
I really don't get this product. It doesn't do TV, it doesnt do PVR, doest to interactive TV, doesnt play DVDs etc. A networked hard disk connected to a TV? Why not add on, say, a blue ray player and make it do games. Hang on - I think there's something else that does that...
bob cobb @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:30PM
I dont see any reason why someone wouldnt just get an xbox 360 for the same price. you can do so much more with that.
John Doe @ Mar 22nd 2007 11:12PM
When could you start getting XBox 360's that have 40Gb hard drives for $299...Oh wait. Fanbois are moron asshats. No matter which camp they are in.
all I can say is unless I can hack this thing up to a 200GB drive I'll pass. I have a collection of 500+ DVD's and I want to eventually migrate them all over to a hard drive, and throw the media in storage somewhere. (takes up a shit load of space.) 40GB isn't close to being able to hold that many ripped movies without scaling back quality a bit.
Apple Tv @ Mar 22nd 2007 7:48PM
People, including me, criticized iPod for the same things: unimpressive, overpriced, other products do it better- We underestimated its synergy with the iTunes Store. This unit also has flashable firmware- HD shows, Games, and video-goodness coming in the future, and no need to choose Blu-ray or HD-DVD units. (I could stream/copy disc content from my PC if I needed) Although I would like to see an autopsy- Break open the sucker already! What makes it tick?
David @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:06PM
Here we go. Can't we get some unbiased and accurate comments and reviews here? Here's what I have tried: ripped DVD -look good when streamed; iTunes video content - older content, not bad, not impressive either; newer iTunes video content (e.g, the movie "The Core"), not bad, not DVD quality either. Other sources: avi's, wmv's -- depends on the source quality. User interface -- simple and effective (similar to Front Row). And < 15 minutes from setup to watching Celebrity Deathmatch.
Remember: this is supposed to add to the iPod/iTunes ecosystem...which it does. If you are using those things, this is a natural extension.
Regarding the Media Center / Media Center extenders, you have the same problem vis-a-vis HD: a source of good content (and I am not talking about some crappy HD DVD release that no one wanted to see when it was in the theatre). This device will appeal to the non-techies -- and I'm sorry to say this, but the Engadget/Slashdot/Gizmodo crowd is not the target audience (too narrow of a market).
People who will want this, just want something that is easy to connect and to configure.
Ryan @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:10PM
Is there 480i support on this thing after all? Could it be plugged via composite cable to a SDTV?
Galley @ Mar 22nd 2007 10:51PM
Early reports say NO. I was suprised to even see 480i as a selection.
Evan @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:28PM
"for the most part things "just work" with the unit."
That describes exactly why non-techies will flock to this device over more obscure or technical solutions (that is, if Apple can sell the concept).
"I really don't get this product. It doesn't do TV, it doesnt do PVR, doest to interactive TV, doesnt play DVDs etc. A networked hard disk connected to a TV?"
It's for playing your downloaded media in you living room. Most people don't like being tied to their PCs when they watch their downloaded tv shows and music.
"I dont see any reason why someone wouldnt just get an xbox 360 for the same price. you can do so much more with that."
Better yet, one of several off-brand divx hard-disk players, which are a) cheaper, b) let you install any size harddrive, and c) support desired formats including divx.
Zandr @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:33PM
So, once again, anything you do to put together a nice slideshow, like timing transitions, manual iconographs (oh, sorry "Ken Burns Effect"...gag), and so on is stuck only on the machine where you create the show. And you can't even export that slideshow intact to the appleTV?
Disappointing....this thing could be a nice portable presentation machine if they get that idiocy fixed.
John Brackett Jr. @ Mar 22nd 2007 9:18PM
I'm getting one. Apple Rules!