Apple TV - FULL HD version??

[carlgo]

LOL. This statement couldn't be further from the truth. The truth is a small minority of message boards posters, technology geeks, and videophiles want 1080p (blu ray). The FACT is that the sales figures are making it painfully clear, that even at $200 (and less), the average public doesn't care about 1080p content (blu ray) at all.

Apple is not going to push any technology that either doesn't already have a mainstream market demand .. or that doesn't in some way create a competitive advantage for them. Blu ray has no mainstream demand whatsoever. And the technology provides Apple with no unique competitive advantage (think technology lock in). Hence we see blu ray on 0 Apple products.

"LOL"? Only a small minority of message board posters...etc want 1080p? I certainly don't get that impression at all. Quite the opposite. Maybe you need to get off the Luddite Board and check it out.

A combo ATV/BR player would be that competitive advantage. I would guess that far more people are interested in BR players than ATVs. A combo unit would likely sell more briskly than a download-only device and that would have the obvious effect of increasing the population of ATVs and that would result in more downloads. Hmmm, more devices sold and more downloads...wouldn't that increase profits more than the "hobby" that ATV is now?

720p, 1080i, apple pie: it doesn't matter how many pixels or geekos per ions there are. The industry is marketed by morons who have created products that nobody understands, are difficult to install and operate and many people are afraid to buy. Nice job guys!

Disclaimer: my plasma is 720p. It is wonderful. If it broke, I would get a 1080p. It is the defacto standard now. You don't have to think it is a necessary standard, but you have to know that it is the standard.

 

[mtbdudex]

nice setup....you have any sites that you used for research on benefits of the curved screens? I never heard much about it. What do you have for cable? digital/HD?

Comcast HD DVR box, and PS3 for Blu-ray.


This will explain the benefits.
Basically if you watch "scope" (2.35:1) pictures with a PJ and anamorphic lens, you get some pincushion, the curved screen will minimize/eliminate that.
http://www.stewartfilmscreen.com/white_paper/curvedscreens_derskine_wp.pdf

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=15282219#post15282219

 

[G4R2]

I've had a 1080p compatible television since they first became available several years ago. Most programming, with the exception of some Bluray players, simply aren't encoded in this format so that benefits of that mode for viewing television hasn't been realized.

However, one important (at least to me) advantage of 1080p capability is the higher resolution afforded when connected to a computer. I routinely hook up my laptop to the television.

So I would agree with most of you who have said that video content delivered over 1080p on a properly enabled ATV probably won't add much value to the device.

But video content is just one of the capabilities of the ATV. The ATV essentially runs a modified version of OS X, much like the iPhone runs a stripped down and altered version of the OS. Therefore the ATV is capable of delivering content other than video to television screens. Games, for instance, would benefit from 1080p as they can actually be delivered at that resolution.

No doubt a debate might be had about whether a game in 1080p is visually superior to a game in 1080i or 720p. I tend to think that higher, non-interlaced resolutions improve the visual quality of computer applications though this may be a subjective preference and perhaps HD has maxed out our actual ability to discern the distinction.

In any case, the 1080p question should be applied more broadly then to whether it just benefits movies or television shows and to include computer interfaces and games.

As for my own ATV wishes, 1080p is certainly in there, but for the device to reach its full potential it has to start dishing up content beyond video. I know that there are pro's and con's, vigorously defended and attacked in these forums, about using the ATV as a stealth game console but the inevitable technological improvements that Apple will need to make in order to keep step with the competition will make this path all the more apparent.