Help: Is Apple TV really worth it?

[Jeff Hall]

Thanks for the reply's guys, I was wondering I have some old video footage on VHS and have converted that to make it be viewable on a DVD. My question is, can I upload any video footage I have directly to my Apple TV so I can watch it directly from there? Thanks

Just use a program like Handbrake or VisualHub to encode your DVDs into MP4 files and they will play on it.

 

[MikieMikie]

Thanks for the reply's guys, I was wondering I have some old video footage on VHS and have converted that to make it be viewable on a DVD. My question is, can I upload any video footage I have directly to my Apple TV so I can watch it directly from there? Thanks

You will have to convert the videos to H.264 (MP4) format, load them into iTunes, and then you can sync them to the TV.

If you prefer you can stream them from your computer, as long as iTunes is running.

 

[thunderclap]

Just use a program like Handbrake or VisualHub to encode your DVDs into MP4 files and they will play on it.

Will they be able to play on the Mac itself? I, too, am considering getting an tv after reading this (and other posts) and have become intrigued with creating a media server (i.e. firewire drive) for my DVD collection. I have VisualHub and have been experimenting with it, converting video to the tv 5.1 format yet it won't play on my Mac with Quicktime, iTunes or VLC. I've even installed an AC3 codec thinking that it was the problem but no go. I want to test the video quality before committing to the time required to convert as well as the cost of the hard drive and tv. Thoughts?

 

[AppleFan360]

Will they be able to play on the Mac itself? I, too, am considering getting an tv after reading this (and other posts) and have become intrigued with creating a media server (i.e. firewire drive) for my DVD collection. I have VisualHub and have been experimenting with it, converting video to the tv 5.1 format yet it won't play on my Mac with Quicktime, iTunes or VLC. I've even installed an AC3 codec thinking that it was the problem but no go. I want to test the video quality before committing to the time required to convert as well as the cost of the hard drive and tv. Thoughts?

Yes, they will play on the Mac or the ATV.

 

[thunderclap]

Yes, they will play on the Mac or the ATV.

Interesting. I can't get it to play on the Mac side at all. Hmm...

 

[northy124]

No not worth it.

1) HDD to small
2) Can't buy HD Movies (Only Rent)
3) To Expensive for what its does.

If you don't mind missing out on the HD Renting get a Mac Mini with decent specs, and D/L HD Movies/TV Shows from Movie/TV Show D/L Sites. The Mini does well with HD Videos 1080p runs fine on the current model. Remember always have Perian Installed for the HD Videos to play in Quicktime and invest in QT Pro to export to .Mov or .Mp4 for iTunes.

My 2¢

Northy124

 

[OlBlueHair]

I think for $225 bucks or whatever it cost it is well worth the price. That is not even the price of a wii, or a decent gps. As far as electronics go it's on par with an ipod - and it will only get cheaper most likely.

If you have a lot of videos and you don't want to mess with cases you can have them at your fingertips. It's simple, clean, easy and it works.

I know you can stream with other things but for this low of a price you can avoid a lot of hassle and extra steps. All you have to do is commit to converting your dvds once, then leave them on a big hard drive.

I love my apple tv. When they first came out I didn't think it'd be worth it. Even when I bought one I wondered if it would get that much use...well, it has gotten more than I ever thought it would. For example, just this week my dvr died and while I was waiting for the dish people to fix it - I was still able to see new tv episodes on my regular, big tv.

It's very convenient.

How many DVD's do you own? I have over 500 and doubt I could fit all of them on an tv.

So what? But the cheaper atv with the smallest hard drive and stream the movies from your computer's hard drive or an external hard drive. That's what I do and it works flawlessly.

 

[MacPM8]

I think for $225 bucks or whatever it cost it is well worth the price. That is not even the price of a wii, or a decent gps. As far as electronics go it's on par with an ipod - and it will only get cheaper most likely.

If you have a lot of videos and you don't want to mess with cases you can have them at your fingertips. It's simple, clean, easy and it works.

I know you can stream with other things but for this low of a price you can avoid a lot of hassle and extra steps. All you have to do is commit to converting your dvds once, then leave them on a big hard drive.

I love my apple tv. When they first came out I didn't think it'd be worth it. Even when I bought one I wondered if it would get that much use...well, it has gotten more than I ever thought it would. For example, just this week my dvr died and while I was waiting for the dish people to fix it - I was still able to see new tv episodes on my regular, big tv.

It's very convenient.

Thanks. The ease of use interface makes it seem nice as well.

 

[Alith]

Great thread folks!

I'm currently using Handbrake to rip and encode my DVDs into .m4v format with the Dolby Digital soundtrack retained. I'll probably end up getting a 1TB internal drive and moving my entire iTunes library over to that once I start getting low on space.

I'm looking to get the larger tv to store my whole music and photo library on it and then stream the movies from my MacPro over the wireless N connection. I might wait until the UK gets movie rentals though as they may even change the hardware or the price by then.

What I'm curious about is the resolution of HD video that tv can use. I have a 42" 1080i plasma and a HD AV Receiver. I've heard the tv UI will be in 1080i/p but the rentals are 720p. I'm wondering if 1080i movies stored in my iTunes will be catered for if I stream them over, or will they get downsized to 720p?

Also, do all movies need to be in the iTunes library or can I browse my MacPro's movie folder from tv similar to the way FrontRow does?

 

[OlBlueHair]

Also, do all movies need to be in the iTunes library or can I browse my MacPro's movie folder from tv similar to the way FrontRow does?

They must be in the iTunes library in the program but they can be in any folder anywhere you want. For example you could have your music on one hard drive, your tv shows on another and your photos on a third. Just go to iTunes preferences and uncheck that box that says "copy over to iTunes library" or whatever and iTunes will just keep your stuff where it is and leave it alone. Once you have this prefernce set all you do is browse your mac pro's movie folder and then drop those movies into iTunes so it can see them.

 

[MobyIck]

I don't understand the argument that the appletv HD is too small.

I have a TB HD connected to my mac and store all my movies in itunes. Streaming is instantaneous including the movies I have encoded at 2000 BPS. Why would anyone actually store the films on the appletv HD?

With the new interface, streaming is even more transpatrent and we no longer have to select the server machine/source.

Rentals work extremely well and with my cable modem connection, I can generally start watching even HD content within 2-3 minutes,

It does run HOT though.

JFS

They must be in the iTunes library in the program but they can be in any folder anywhere you want. For example you could have your music on one hard drive, your tv shows on another and your photos on a third. Just go to iTunes preferences and uncheck that box that says "copy over to iTunes library" or whatever and iTunes will just keep your stuff where it is and leave it alone. Once you have this prefernce set all you do is browse your mac pro's movie folder and then drop those movies into iTunes so it can see them.

 

[Killyp]

I think it's brilliant. Picture and sound is good, and IMO it's very cheap for what it does.

The hard drive size isn't an issue at all for me. Just keep everything on your Mac with an external hard drive. Very easy and works very well.