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Apple TV for birthday?

C

cmcconkey

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 22, 2005
313
5
Rocky Face, GA
My wife has been asking me what I want for my birthday (Aug. 5th) and I really don't have a clue. I think an Apple TV would be a great thing but I can't remember when the refresh "time frame" is, I looked on the buyer's guide section but I didn't see anything about it there. Should I hold off for any particular reason? I am not too worried about hard drive space because I will be doing a USB hack to it and attaching a large external drive to it. So anyways talk me into it or out of it, ask me any questions you think could help you give me some good opinions.

Thanks in advance.
 
I would say that a mini would be too far out of the price range. I would like to have one, but I would say it will have to wait until I get my home theater room completed.
 
Get it :)

I would get it. I was in the apple store looking for a wire that would connect my iphone and ipod classic to the TV. I was just looking around and I walked over to the apple TV section. I started to ask questions because it looked cool and it would add to my massive collection of apple products. So I got it :) I took it home and the hooked everything up to it, and it worked great. I could have all my iTunes on the TV and surround sound system. I have had my apple Tv for about 6 months and I have gathered over 400 DVD's using handbreak and buying some from iTunes, over 20,000 songs, and all my pics (college LOL). I love my apple TV. If you are going to buy a mac mini use it as a computer if you want a home entertainment center buy a apple TV. I have my apple TV with my PS3 what more do I need. The other thing that you talked about was getting the USB port on the back of apple tv to read external HD. To me that is unnecessary. I keep all my music and photos on the apple tv hard drive. The movie are on a 2 TB external that is just connected to my iMac. You can set up your iTunes to read the movie files on an external so the file go from the external on your computer to your TV. Just so that you dont have to mod anything and risk losing your warranty. I hope this helps you. If I was you I would get or ask for it :) and apple tv would benefit the whole family not just you.
:apple: iMac 3.06 with
:apple: 2 16GB iPhones 3G
:apple: Macbook 500Gb HD 4GB RAM with a black topcase and white keys
:apple: Every current iPod
:apple: Apple TV
:apple: Other's: Time Capsule, Airport Express, FCP2, Aperture
 
I say get one!

I've never regretted picking one up. I use it almost every day to watch something. I opted for one with a smaller hard drive and like afrye I have external hard drives linked up to it through iTunes to stream the media. I've read that the hard drive hack is very easy to do, so either option is good for extra storage.

There doesn't seem to be much info on the refresh 'Time Frame' for the Apple TV I'm afraid. It's been due some attention for quite some time. You'll hear a lot of rumours that it's days are numbered due to this lack of attention....but if you ask me it's going to be around for a while yet.
 
cmcconkey said:
My wife has been asking me what I want for my birthday (Aug. 5th) and I really don't have a clue. I think an Apple TV would be a great thing but I can't remember when the refresh "time frame" is, I looked on the buyer's guide section but I didn't see anything about it there. Should I hold off for any particular reason? I am not too worried about hard drive space because I will be doing a USB hack to it and attaching a large external drive to it. So anyways talk me into it or out of it, ask me any questions you think could help you give me some good opinions.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Get a PlayStation 3. Not only does it do everything Apple TV does, but it also plays back Blu Ray movies, DVDs and has a huge library of video games as well.

Not to mention it has a built in web browser which works with YouTube, BBC iPlayer and many other flash based video streaming websites as well as support for external storage out of the box. You can upgrade the internal hard drive with ANY 2.5" SATA drive and it is just one screw to get to it.

People who live in the USA have access to a video store just like iTunes which sells movies and TV shows. In some areas, Sony also sells a TV tuner for PS3 which allows you to pause, record and rewind live TV completely free of monthly subscriptions.
 
The Apple TV is awesome, but I would wait until the annual iPod Event in September first to see if Apple finally gives the Apple TV a hardware update (which it is in dire need of).

The current model has a lot of functionality, but it has a laggy response due to the inferior hardware. For most applications it will work just fine though. If you plan to use it mostly for Music, Pictures, and Rentals, it will be good.
 
neiltc13 said:
Get a PlayStation 3. Not only does it do everything Apple TV does, but it also plays back Blu Ray movies, DVDs and has a huge library of video games as well.

Not to mention it has a built in web browser which works with YouTube, BBC iPlayer and many other flash based video streaming websites as well as support for external storage out of the box. You can upgrade the internal hard drive with ANY 2.5" SATA drive and it is just one screw to get to it.

People who live in the USA have access to a video store just like iTunes which sells movies and TV shows. In some areas, Sony also sells a TV tuner for PS3 which allows you to pause, record and rewind live TV completely free of monthly subscriptions.
Click to expand...

I already have a PS3, she got it for me for christmas. I have also already upgraded the HD in it to a 500 gb :cool:

zedsdead said:
The Apple TV is awesome, but I would wait until the annual iPod Event in September first to see if Apple finally gives the Apple TV a hardware update (which it is in dire need of).

The current model has a lot of functionality, but it has a laggy response due to the inferior hardware. For most applications it will work just fine though. If you plan to use it mostly for Music, Pictures, and Rentals, it will be good.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I couldn't remember when the refresh for the aTV was. Those are indeed my plans for the aTV, but I am always looking to get the most out of my devices. I saw a hack lastnight that will open the USB port, add mac apps, and open the ability to run Boxee. I will be doing this hack shortly after I get mine. My problem is that I don't want to pick mine up and then a refresh be right around the corner.
 
If you already have a PS3 there isn't really a reason to buy Apple TV. As I said, Apple TV does nothing that PS3 cannot.

If you don't have it already, I recommend buying Medialink to stream content from your Mac to your PS3.
 
neiltc13 said:
If you already have a PS3 there isn't really a reason to buy Apple TV. As I said, Apple TV does nothing that PS3 cannot.

If you don't have it already, I recommend buying Medialink to stream content from your Mac to your PS3.
Click to expand...

My problem with my PS3 is that when I download anything it is so very slow. The other day I had a 128mb update for one of my games and it took about 15 minutes to download it. Not sure what the problem is with it but everything else on my network (Wii, MBP, MB, Custom Built PC running wireless and a G5 Power Mac running wired) run very fast with my 6mb connection. But all that is in another thread on here.
 
The twenty dollar question is who is going to use the PS3 as a media streamer? The Apple TV is spouse and kid friendly as to the user interface. I have found that my XBox 360 interface (using 360 Connect), while quite nifty, is not all that user friendly. I believe this is because it is an add on functionality to the device (a dedicated game box). Apple TV is designed from the bottom up to have a friendly, simple to use user interface.

One of the last things I want at the end of a hard day at work is my kids or spouse complaining they can't get the movie, music, pictures (you name it) working on the XBox. From what I have read on the AV websites, the Sony UI is even wonkier than the XBox. If its going to be just your toy, keep the PS3. If you want something the spouse and kids are going to use on a regular basis, go with the Apple TV.:cool:
 
TJRiver said:
The twenty dollar question is who is going to use the PS3 as a media streamer? The Apple TV is spouse and kid friendly as to the user interface. I have found that my XBox 360 interface (using 360 Connect), while quite nifty, is not all that user friendly. I believe this is because it is an add on functionality to the device (a dedicated game box). Apple TV is designed from the bottom up to have a friendly, simple to use user interface.

One of the last things I want at the end of a hard day at work is my kids or spouse complaining they can't get the movie, music, pictures (you name it) working on the XBox. From what I have read on the AV websites, the Sony UI is even wonkier than the XBox. If its going to be just your toy, keep the PS3. If you want something the spouse and kids are going to use on a regular basis, go with the Apple TV.:cool:
Click to expand...


Yeah my wife has just gotten to the point that she can now easily play a DVD/BD on the PS3. I have an external 250gb that I use to store movies on also but I am not going to even try to walk her through how to get those playing.

By the looks of things I will be holding off on the Apple TV until christmas and trying to figure out something else for my birthday, I just keep drawing blanks on what to get.
 
cmcconkey said:
By the looks of things I will be holding off on the Apple TV until christmas and trying to figure out something else for my birthday, I just keep drawing blanks on what to get.
Click to expand...

A Nikon SB600 flash for your camera if you've not got one, much better than the built in thing. I've borrowed one to test, but I must return it now, and need to find the cash to get my own :eek:
 
Shuttleworth said:
A Nikon SB600 flash for your camera if you've not got one, much better than the built in thing. I've borrowed one to test, but I must return it now, and need to find the cash to get my own :eek:
Click to expand...

I already have the SB600. I got it for my birthday last year. What can I say, she spoils me. :D
 
cmcconkey said:
Yeah my wife has just gotten to the point that she can now easily play a DVD/BD on the PS3. I have an external 250gb that I use to store movies on also but I am not going to even try to walk her through how to get those playing.

By the looks of things I will be holding off on the Apple TV until christmas and trying to figure out something else for my birthday, I just keep drawing blanks on what to get.
Click to expand...

There is always the Apple gift card. And BTW, happy birthday. 5 August is my birthday as well.
 
jpine said:
There is always the Apple gift card. And BTW, happy birthday. 5 August is my birthday as well.
Click to expand...

Both of us are bad with gift cards. We just used a Home Depot card that we got for christmas. We also still have about 15 gift cards left over from our wedding back in november and christmas.
 
Well once again I am wishing I had an apple tv. I rented 12 rounds on my PS3 tonight and after it downloading for almost 6 hours it was only 68% complete. The wireless adapter is a piece of crap. All of my wireless devices run great except for my PS3. I am going to borrow the airport express that we have at work and take the PS3 wireless totally out of the loop. This is why I would love to have a nice apple device to rent my movies on and watch them on a big screen.
 
I would get Apple TV in a heartbeat if it gets even a tiniest of hardware upgrade. I just hate to buy a technology that hasn't been updated in so long. It essentially hasn't received any hardware change since it came out in March 2007, almost 2.5 years ago.
 
nutmac said:
I would get Apple TV in a heartbeat if it gets even a tiniest of hardware upgrade. I just hate to buy a technology that hasn't been updated in so long. It essentially hasn't received any hardware change since it came out in March 2007, almost 2.5 years ago.
Click to expand...

Yeah that is another of my hold outs on getting one now. Trying to find something fun and cool for a birthday is so much work.
 
If you have any interest in watching iTunes compatible video on your TV, then you should get the Apple TV.

I watch a number of Video Podcasts, and iTunes movie rentals on mine and I love it...
 
aross99 said:
If you have any interest in watching iTunes compatible video on your TV, then you should get the Apple TV.

I watch a number of Video Podcasts, and iTunes movie rentals on mine and I love it...
Click to expand...

That is indeed the main thing that I would be using it for. Right now I am using my PS3 to rent movies but it is painfully slow, see post above.
 
appletv vs ps3

I use the PS3 for all my video podcasts as well. It's great because you can playback videos at 1.5X speed, so I can quickly chew through some of the longer content. I have it wired over Gigabit ethernet, no issues.

Does AppleTV do 1.5X or 2X for video playback, I'd be interested to know?

Also, MediaLink hasn't been updated in a long time...try out the free PS3MediaServer. This baby transcodes non-PS3 formats on the fly. There's the odd issue here and there, but it's by far the best option for streaming from the Mac to the PS3, and I've tried many.

In Canada, we have a lot less iTunes Movie & TV Store content available vs the USA, so that takes some of the shine off the AppleTV for me. On the other hand, Sony offers ZERO video content on their Canada store, no TV shows, no movies, just game trailers.

Anyway, put me on the list of people who are waiting for AppleTV's next revision, I'll definitely give it a look. Mostly just for the movie rentals, although my local Blockbuster is improving their Blu-Ray selection in the meantime.
 
I would wait until September, but the ATV is a must for you from the sounds of it. The movie downloads do depend on your internet though. I had Comcast before and if I rented an HD movie it would be "ready in 1 minute" I switched to 3MB DSL and it would be "ready in 1 hour" I just upgraded to 6MB DSL and now it's back to 1 minute.

And I would echo that with a wife and some day kids, the Apple TV has the nicest interface for accessing all of your media. The thing mine is best known for though is I have about 500 family and travel pictures in it. When we have people over, I put on a playlist of background music and let the picture screen saver go and people just sit and watch the pictures. A great conversation starter from the pictures and from the technology. Many people ask "how did you get your computer to do that?"

I am hoping for an update because I have been wanting a second one for our bedroom. Not that it's much to unplug 4 cables (ethernet and optical audio downstairs) and move the thing upstairs and plug in 2 cables.
 
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