iTunes and Apple TV rentals and purchases: what you can (and can't) do
Oh dear lord is there a lot of confusion about iTunes movie rentals, and how they differ from movie and TV purchases -- and how the Apple TV and iTunes computer-driven downloads aren't the same either. Granted, real world scenario won't be too complicated for most people, but the nerds around these parts will probably want to check out our handy, aptly confusing chart to know exactly what's in store. Hey, don't look at us, we just parse the data.
Green indicates goodness, or the general perception of awesomeness.
Red indicates badness, or not-goodness (but not including inherent lameness due to DRM).
The columns (iTunes / Apple TV) represent the point of purchase / rental. The Apple TV column assumes AFTER the Take 2 update.
iTunes (desktop) | Apple TV (PC-free) | Comments / notes | |
---|---|---|---|
Buy show: in SD | Yes - $1.99 | Yes - $1.99 | |
Buy shows: HD | No | No | |
Rent show: in SD | No | No | |
Rent show: in HD | No | No | |
Buy movie: in SD | Yes - up to $15 | Yes - up to $15 | |
Buy movie: in HD | No | No | |
Rent movie: in SD | Yes - $2.99 / 3.99 | Yes - $2.99 / 3.99 | Library / new |
Rent movie: in HD | No | Yes - $3.99 / 4.99 | Library / new |
Play purchased: on previous-gen iPods | Yes | Yes | |
Play rentals: on previous-gen iPods | No | No | |
Play purchased: on current-gen iPods | Yes | Yes | |
Play rentals: on current-gen iPods | Yes | No | |
Transfer anything: ATV to any iPod / iPhone (without PC) | -- | Hells no | |
Transfer anything: to non-Apple devices | Um, no | Are you high? | |
Transfer purchase: computer to ATV | Yes | -- | SD (shows, movies) only right now |
Transfer purchase: to previous-gen iPod | Yes | Yes | Only video-enabled iPods (duh); for ATV - by way of sync to PC, only |
Transfer purchase: to current-gen iPod / iPhone | Yes | Yes | For ATV - by way of sync to PC, only |
Transfer purchase: ATV to computer | -- | Yes | SD (shows, movies) only right now |
Transfer rental: to ATV | -- | Yes | SD (shows, movies) only right now |
Transfer rental: to previous-gen iPod | No | No | |
Transfer rental: to current-gen iPod / iPhone | Yes | No |
So, what'd we miss?