Apple TV; an HD perspective
Streaming video devices are without a doubt here to stay, but who will win on this new front still remains to be seen. At least in our hearts it's gotta be HD or we pass. The latest Apple announcements finally give us details about the HD capabilities of Apple TV. The good news is that it supports multiple resolutions via HDMI or Component including 1080i 60/50Hz, 720p 60/50Hz, 576p 50Hz (PAL format), or 480p 60Hz. The bad news is the supported video fomats are somewhat limited, while there is 720p HD support there are very few other variations. Supported CODECs include H.264 and protected H.264 (from iTunes Store): 640 by 480, 30 fps, 320 by 240, 30 fps, 1280 by 720, 24 fps and finally MPEG-4: 640 by 480, 30 fps. We can only assume that it converts all of these formats to what your TV can display. No word yet on DD5.1 support, but we have a man on the scene who's looking for answers to this as well as a few other questions.
