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AppleTV owner here. I love it. I just need to invest in that USB encoder thing to rip more of my Movies to AppleTV format….
“(A download of Syriana from Warner Bros. goes for $20.)”
LOL! You are joking, right? This startuop has a limited future with that kind of pricing for that quality movie. No wonder Apple isn’t doing business with Warner Bros..
The studios and networks are the problem on the content end of things. They just need a lot more content on iTunes to make this thing work. Then the lack of DVR capability becomes much less of an issue.
The cable companies are the problem on the DVR end of things.
Is there even a standard way the Apple TV could interface with cable companies (CableCard slot?) to get high quality video into that thing—assuming the cable companies would even allow that?
Apple TV has been a great addition around here. Whether feeding our music system, watching movies, or letting the grandkids see an awesome family photo show, it’s done much more than we ever thought it could. I don’t regret the purchase for a minute. A niche product, for sure, but in a good space.
So apparently, now every Apple product that doesn’t sell as fast as the iPod and iPhone is a “flat-out flop”
That’s the price of success I guess
AppleTV falls between pillars in strange ways. It suggests that you need an HD set to use it, yet it has no HD content. Also, TV from the Apple store is too expensive to replace casual viewing. So the studio’s brilliant solution of making things even more expensive is doomed. I think they just want this category to fail so they can keep the existing broadcast model in place.
have both the 40GB and 160GB models. Love the product and it has huge potential. Don’t care so much about buying music from the tv, but would love to see HD content available from the ITMS besides just a few Podcasts. Sux that the movie trailers stream from the tv at standard def too… wish that was also HD.
And why doesn’t Apple take advantage of their own technology? Example, using the device to stream their various events. Just seams like even Apple doesn’t care for it much so why would other content providers?
I look forward to the future of this product. The current model is a step in the right direction.
I think I’m gonna go buy one – just because I don’t like Woolley’s negative and superior attitude. Like he’s got all the answers…
you are wrong in the worst way…
I use it for one thing, ok 2 things, and 2 things only. It serves as my music hub as I have a kick ass sound system, and for watching the ocassional vid podcast. Thats it, thats what I bought it for, and I love it.
I own an Apple TV and I’m happy with it. But it’s all about content. TV shows need to be cheaper and more importantly movie rentals need to become available.
I don’t think people understand the Apple TV paradigm. Apple doesn’t want to be ties to cable, satellite, whatever so they’ll never offer DVR. They want Apple TV to be iTunes on your TV. The key now is to get more content on iTunes.
We LOVE our Apple TV. If flat out Rocks.
Honestly people, think it out for once. The AppleTV is a device created to allow iTunes to broaden it’s market. Since iTunes sales of TV shows and movies has been steadily increasing, the average user will eventually want a way to play their media the way they want to.
In other words, AppleTV doesn’t have to be a success right now, all it has to do is be ready to catch the market when it turns in it’s favor.
I am happy with my AppleTV – just wish I could download TV rentals directly from the sofa.
I am in on that motion too. Bully-for-Woolley!
Plus, I like the device.
Some of the DVR’s out there have poor encoding quality.
They are a wonderful idea. I would add that to the AppleTV wishlist. BUT, as a consumer. I knew what it did. Due to the machine I had at the introductory of this item… it was not for me.
Now – since CUTTING cable tv… I prefer buying what I want to see… DVD or iTunes.
THIS is the future. Apple TV is not a FLOP… it just isn’t in the CULTURE yet.
When Jobs says hobby he means the product is evolving. Just like the Hifi thingy, they are testing whether the market is good.
The AppleTV still has a lot of room to grow. The content distributors still are wary of Apple. Like the music gurus they want have their cake and eat it.
2 years down the road, OS X and the hardware will be so powerful that any content will be able to run on whatever Apple choose to develop.
Apple TV is meant to be a device that turns an HDTV into a giant iPod for the living room. I don’t have an HDTV yet, but when I get one, I’ll probably get an Apple TV too. The onboard software should be updated to mirror the iPod-related capabilities of the iPhone and iPod touch.
“”The ballyhooed box has sold perhaps 250,000 units–far behind the 1 million sold for the iPhone, which was priced twice as high and has been on the market less than half as long.”
Does anyone else see the failed logic behind this statement?
The AppleTV is probably ultimately going to be one of the biggest products Apple has.
http://metrophoenix.com/nobox/
I love my AppleTV! I have 11,000 photos on my Mac, and this is the best way to get them on the screen. It works great with movies taken with our digital cameras, but there are some shortfalls:
1) Event Grouping: For any given event, I might have photos and videos, but iTunes forces me to break up my content into those categories. I want to create my own categories and add whatever content I want to them.
2) iTunes make home videos a royal pain! I have to have separate versions for my iPhone and Apple TV. What the hell for?!?!?! I haven’t even tried to figure out what I’m going to do with a .Mac web gallery!
3) The audio off my Sony digital camera uses a format that doesn’t jive well with apple products. It has something to do with muxed MPEGs, but I’m not quite sure. What I am sure of, is that converting the muxed MPEG audio to something usable on my iPhone isn’t possible with QuickTime Pro!
4) Let my play DVD images on my AppleTV. I’ve got a lot of old DVDs that have photos and videos that would be a real pain to transfer over to iTunes. And really, why should I have to? Apple may have abandoned the DVD format, but it’s still alive and well in my world!
I love my AppleTV, but a few things need to get fixed! Every time someone new sees my photos on my TV, they want an AppleTV. They’re just put off by the $300 and the belief that doing anything useful with their Windoze boxes will cost them more hours than they have in a standard lifetime!
“• Let iTunes rip DVDs as it can rip CDs for music.”
This will never happen as long as the DMCA is in effect. Circumventing copyright protections is illegal under this bogus law.
I would be willing to allow them to add DRM to it though if it were somehow made legal.
Apple TV owner here. I think it’s a fantastic product that is limited by content owners and bandwidth.
– I’d subscribe to more shows if more meeting my interest were available.
– I’d surely purchase HD films if it were available at a reasonable price. Would negate the HD DVD / Blu-Ray wars for owners.
I use it equally for music and video now. Apple TV, a DVD player and Xbox 360 fill in as a replacement for cable. I’d rather spend my money watching what I want when I want rather than having 500 channels of some good content mixed in with a lot of crap. It’s also refreshing to get away from news these days since it’s either focused on keeping us scared, slanderous politics or hollywood tabloid b.s..
What could make it better besides more content and possibly HD content? How about these:
– Visualizer like the one in iTunes
– iTunes store (hopefully coming soon with new mobile store rollout)
– Apple event, product overviews & tutorial videos
my $.02
im a apple tv and ipod hi-fi owner,this thing they write is nonsense,forbes didn´t test the product,and review it,so…the should try before talking about it.
I will buy one when the following features are added.
1. A DVD or DVD-HD slot is added or they allow me to rip DVDs with my iMac.
2. They upgrade the content to full HD.
3. Allow users to buy and download content using the Apple TV.
Basicly I want my media anywhere I go. Via iPod, Apple TV, iPhone, PC(work), and Mac(home). And I wnat to be able to get new content on the fly.
I have all the above except the iPhone and AppleTV. 2 Macs, 3 iPods, 1 PC, and a pear tree.
I’ll get an iPhone as soon as you can buy one from Verizon.
I have to agree with Forbes. The TV offers only one feature I want – the ability to send my EyeTV DVR recordings to my TV – and nothing else. Hard to justify the expense for just one useful feature. I won’t rent sub-quality videos from iTunes, while iPhoto and Youtube are worthless gimmicks (Hey kids, want to watch a family slideshow!). Unless Leopard adds something substantial to the TV’s feature list, it will never sell well.