Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Give me iOS(on appletv) or give me death(of appletv)

B

bonsaidetective

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 17, 2007
54
0
Appletv hasn't been updated in forever. Apple will either give it apps or kill it.

1080p or 720p, doesn't matter. $.99 TV shows may help slightly, but won't save it. Facetime would be cool, but not enough to justify a purchase. Different video formats, whatever. The only way to make this product agile enough to survive is to give it an app store.

It will also need a revamped remote/input device.

I've lived with my appletv and my computer as the only devices hooked up to my television for 2 years. I'm ready to lose the computer hookup.
 
I am right there with you. If it indeed gets announced on wednesday with an app store I am jumping in. I have already cancelled cable because $80 a month for cable is a bit much imo. Ready to get the shows we cannot get on the TiVo HD w/Antenna...so ready for a revamped AppleTV.
 
Who wants it though? The only people who are keen to see an update are the tech-savvy like us and I don't think we're going to generate Apple the iTunes stores income it wants. For myself, it's be cool if the new box ran iTunes so it could act as an iTunes server and server media stored on a NAS to devices around the house. If it somehow supported DTS (either in m4v or mkv files) I could finish ripping my DVD collection and throw all my discs/cases into the attic. Likewise, support for 1080p, would let me start ripping my nascent BluRay collection at full quality for the same reason. I tried XBMC and it was a nightmare to set up - it mistagged so many tv episodes (especially when they are named in production/DVD order rather than broadcast order) that I just gave up. The Apple UI has the beauty of being so simplistic to use and not trying too hard to be cool.

None of these uses will make Apple any money beyond the initial outlay for the box, and if they're planning on dropping the price to $99/£75 that could be an issue. The irony is that I really want to move to buying digital media - I'm fed up of having to store discs that I rip once and never touch again, but with Apple's 720p films costing more than a BluRay most of the time, I can't justify the leap.
 
As a Appletv power user, over 500 movies and 3,000 tv shows, I agree with you on the NAS. But that won't get them flying off the shelves. All the power user features in the world don't matter to Joe Schmoe. Apps do. If the average Joe has apps for Netflix, Hulu, weather, news, sports, games and the like, he'll be happy. X-Plane for Appletv would be awesome. Personally, I'd like to see the Drobo and the Appletv combined. Unlimited future expansion!
 
kiranmk2 said:
Who wants it though? The only people who are keen to see an update are the tech-savvy like us and I don't think we're going to generate Apple the iTunes stores income it wants.
Click to expand...

I disagree. I think by using the iOS, Appletv will look familiar to every bozo who's seen an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad. Most people who see my Appletv are interested already. With apps, I think most of them would be won over, especially at a $99 price point. Once they have an audience, it will probably give them the leverage to lower prices on TV shows and Movies. I mostly blame the Studios and TV execs for that now.

Although, all this talk of an iTunes server makes me think. It would be cool if eventually Appletv could be the hub to sync iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad(s).
 
bonsaidetective said:
I disagree. I think by using the iOS, Appletv will look familiar to every bozo who's seen an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad. Most people who see my Appletv are interested already. With apps, I think most of them would be won over, especially at a $99 price point. Once they have an audience, it will probably give them the leverage to lower prices on TV shows and Movies. I mostly blame the Studios and TV execs for that now.
Click to expand...

I dunno - people have liked my AppleTV when they see the photo screensaver or the nicely arranged coverart. They seem less keem when I start explaining Handbrake to them. The problem is that getting music onto an ipod was easy - just pop in the CD, iTunes opens and offers to import it to your library. This is why the ipod succeeded. First they lured people in with the prospect of their whole collection on one device, then opened the store to tempt people to get hold of music instantly on their device. This simply won't work for video because the ripping (or importing) of films breaks the DCMA in the US and is a grey area elsewhere and people are used to discs ripping in about 10 minutes - when they see it's going to take 2-3 hours for a film, I think they'll baulk.

I don't know about the US, but here in the UK, most people seem happy to wait a couple of months and pick up films cheaply for £5-6 (~$10) or have a subscription to LoveFilm (our version of Netflix).

Although, all this talk of an iTunes server makes me think. It would be cool if eventually Appletv could be the hub to sync iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad(s).
Click to expand...

I've been hoping this would happen for years. After all, the ATV is "always on" so it might as well be doing something useful. It can act as an AirTunes server and I would have liked to see it act as a film server too, so if you had two ATVs - say one with TV shows and one with films - they cold stream to each other without needed iTunes.
 
kiranmk2 said:
I dunno - people have liked my AppleTV when they see the photo screensaver or the nicely arranged coverart. They seem less keem when I start explaining Handbrake to them.
Click to expand...

You are absolutely right about Handbrake. Normal folk just won't use it. Therefore the online prices for buying and renting must come down to compete with physical media. Hopefully this happens sooner than later. It has to be cheaper to produce downloads than to produce physical media. If the price is comparable and you don't have to leave your couch, then it's a no-brainer.

Of course, I'm assuming streaming services, such as Hulu and Netflix, will be available as apps to fill in the gaps. Maybe even a Amazon-on-demand app, or whatever it is. I think the streaming video will be the major draw with downloads only for your favorite shows that you would normally buy on DVD.
 
average bozo without :apple:tv

As an average bozo, I would like to see a system that I can plug into my tv, sit back download a movie/tv show, put it on my external hard drive, watch the show, look to get another show, maybe surf the web well a download is occuring and be able to give my wife the remote without having to explain how to use it and were to find the stuff she wants to watch. Apps would be nice, but an easy to use system that stores movies, shows, music, pictures on an external hard drive that I can pull up on the tv or on my mbp wirelessly, would be great. Keep it stupid simple, at a resonable price and we computer dumb dumbs may be interested.
We regular joes probably will not get ride of our blueray players because we spent money on them, just like I have 3 cd players I never use because Ipod does everything for me, but I can't convince my wife to part with them. What if the battery goes dead and you want to listen to music, you need the cd's.
Make it the coolest thing for your tv:eek: and we will have to have it because it is a cool toy. Simple, let me see a reason to get it:D.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back