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TheCheapGeek

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 10, 2008
472
3
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I just unpacked my new apple tv and was very happy about the speed of the device, and how quickly it synced with my Mac. Why did apple ruin the orginization of the menus. All my content is now stuck under computers, and each of my tv seasons is it's own entry. It's horrible, apple really needs to correct some of these issues.
 
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I just unpacked my new apple tv and was very happy about the speed of the device, and how quickly it synced with my Mac. Why did apple ruin the orginization of the menus. All my content is now stuck under computers, and each of my tv seasons is it's own entry. It's horrible, apple really needs to correct some of these issues.

Sorry you are having difficulty adjusting to change, but I think having all computer content under one section is quite logical when you could have multiple computers streaming content to it. Why should John have to wade through his dad's list of movies when he just wants to see his own list? As for the TV seasons being listed separately, that's how Netflix does it so keeping things consistent probably isn't such a bad thing. Saying you "hate" Apple TV when all you really dislike is the new organization needed to fit the added functionality is quite overblown, I think.
 
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Well I am replacing the first gen apple tv. I do understand the idea of having multiple computers syncing content and all of that being under one menu. I feel that the organization is a silly compromise to match netflixes UI. As for me overblowing my displeasure I disagree.

The UI has always set the apple tv apart from other set top boxes and some of the UI choices really confuse me. At 99$ I will keep the box simply for it's hackability, but I am unplugging it and putting the old one back in.
 
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IgnatiusTheKing said:
You could return it and buy an older model TV off eBay or refurbished.

Oh and Gig'em Aggies, I love your avatar. Class of '08
 
Oh and Gig'em Aggies, I love your avatar. Class of '08

Whoop!

gallery_photo.jpg
 
Leave feedback for the Apple TV team. I did. I agree that's it's not a very logical organization. In fact, I've had to explain to various members of my family the new organizational structure since it's not intuitive.

If you want to watch a TV Show from your computer. The obvious menu is TV Shows, not Computers - > Actual Computer Name -> TV Shows. What the Apple TV should do is aggregate the content from all your sources under the main headings. You shouldn't need to know which computer the content is stored on.

http://www.apple.com/feedback/
 
This is why I just ordered a refurb 160 GB for $129. Hopefully I don't regret it when they start adding new features, but I know the current (old) ATV is exactly what I want now. At $99, I can always buy the new one down the road, but the old ones are going to run out in the meantime.
 
Yeah, being 99 dollars its just hard to return. I am not going to return it but reflecting a bit it may just be that the new apple TV doesn't mesh well with my 850 gb of TV shows. I guess that is not "normal". Maybe the update to add airplay video functionality will get the organization back in order.
 
Remember, you are looking at 1.0 version of the iOS software for the AppleTV. Just like the other AppleTV, they will upgrade the software and it will most likely return the organizational system of the old AppleTV -- except for the Computers menu, I think we are stuck with that. It will also add apps, or channels, etc. The upgrades are going to vastly improve this device. I have faith.

BTW College Station sux and Aggies always come to Austin to have fun? But there is no joy in Austin for Aggies on Turkey Day. Hookem'
 
I have five atv1s and added an atv2.

Felt just like you. Reminds me of the atv1 before the take2 software updates.

But then I played some high profile rips.

Wanna buy my 5 atv1s??? :D
 
The only thing that I don't like about the new ATV is that it doesn't update TV shows as having been watched after you watch them. I think it's too early for Apple to be removing functionality for purchased shows and pushing rent-only so hard. A lot of people (and by a lot I mean me) still purchase or have ripped our TV shows and would like to know which is next in the queue.
 
The only thing that I don't like about the new ATV is that it doesn't update TV shows as having been watched after you watch them. I think it's too early for Apple to be removing functionality for purchased shows and pushing rent-only so hard. A lot of people (and by a lot I mean me) still purchase or have ripped our TV shows and would like to know which is next in the queue.

It appears that is a bug because it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. If you start viewing from the "unwatched" menu, is usually when the problem occurs. And some have said you have to watch it all the way through including the credits at the end of a show for it to show as watched. Anyway, you can easily mark any show as watched by holding down the select button for a few seconds on it. A menu pops up allowing you to mark them.
 
I'm more on the things I like-things I don't like level. The present layout pushes the stuff Apple wants to sell you in preference to the stuff you already own. While I can understand that from a commercial point of view, I suspect most people are using the ATV to watch/listen to stuff they already have. The present system adds clicks to get to your own stuff, and if you do want to rent something, you have to do multiple clicks to shift from your stuff to the stuff you want to get. The new system makes it feel longer to get to the stuff you want, unless your first goal is to rent something. The old system of having all movies together, all TV shows together, and so on seemed more logical to me.

I also don't like what it does with podcasts. I recently started to follow a podcast with more than 100 episodes, and I'm tracking it from the beginning. The new ATV lumps all podcasts together, so I have to scroll through a long list to get to the podcast I want to hear. It then compounds the difficulty by not indicating correctly whether a podcast has been played. I know there are workarounds for the last, but it's a bug that needs fixing.

The remote app's system now seems a little confusing to me as well. You have to choose the ATV and then choose your computer's library. If, like me, you've used the remote app before the new ATV, you probably had it already set up to show your computer's library. That, however, now only gives you play at the computer, not at the ATV. It took me a bit of time to figure out why, although I had my library chosen, it would only play from the computer rather than the ATV! I have a very large library, so the remote app is a godsend.

I do like the better performance on 720p videos. They require no real fussing to prepare for the ATV, unlike the old model, and play very well. The much faster response to clicks is great as well. I do think there could be a more intuitive system for choosing subtitles and soundtracks. Maybe Apple could add a couple of buttons to the remote? :D
 
It appears that is a bug because it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. If you start viewing from the "unwatched" menu, is usually when the problem occurs. And some have said you have to watch it all the way through including the credits at the end of a show for it to show as watched. Anyway, you can easily mark any show as watched by holding down the select button for a few seconds on it. A menu pops up allowing you to mark them.

I didn't know you could manually set them. Thanks for the tip :)
 
I never had the old AppleTV since it was way expensive for what it did...but the new AppleTv 2 rocks. I would never return it. If you have an Itunes library...and who does not....this is the device to have!

Apps will come...soon...
 
I feel that most of the bugs will be squashed, if the TV shows can be sorted into seasons under the computer menu I will switch back to the new apple tv. Because that is mainly what I watch its an issue for me. I might even keep both attached so I can airplay as well.
 
Felt just like you. Reminds me of the atv1 before the take2 software updates.

Well the original Front Row interface was ideal if you had a limited library of content. But as the size of our libraries balooned the Take 2 interface took some getting used to, but we can live with it.

The new interface sounds awful. Having to know which Computer the content is on - for a streaming only device - is laughable. How did the old AppleTV manage to merge the locally stored content and the streamed content ? should be a breeze for the new ATV.

I'd buy another original AppleTV, if they weren't getting silly money on eBay in the UK. The orignals were reduced to £150 to clear stock. They sold out in a day, now the 2nd user 160GB models go for £140 + £10 shipping, or more.
 
New Apple TV

Well, i am not satisfied with my new Apple TV:( If i could only return it back. I would definitely do that. The Apple TV always buffer before you start to watch the video. Hopefully Apple fixes its speed issue with a firmware update the soonest possible time.:D



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I just unpacked my new apple tv and was very happy about the speed of the device, and how quickly it synced with my Mac. Why did apple ruin the orginization of the menus. All my content is now stuck under computers, and each of my tv seasons is it's own entry. It's horrible, apple really needs to correct some of these issues.
 
Your complaints about the ATV2 were well covered here when it was first released, so it wasn't a surprise to me at all when I received mine.

The organization is different, but easy enough to get used to. It really isn't that big of a deal. I think it works best since you can now stream from multiple Macs. I'm not sure how they would have done it otherwise.

I do agree that having each season of a TV show have its own entry is a little weird. That is something I hope Apple addresses.
 
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I just unpacked my new apple tv and was very happy about the speed of the device, and how quickly it synced with my Mac. Why did apple ruin the orginization of the menus. All my content is now stuck under computers, and each of my tv seasons is it's own entry. It's horrible, apple really needs to correct some of these issues.

You synced it? How? Mine is still in the mail so I might be wrong, but I thought we couldn't sync it. I thought it simply streams content from your Mac. This would also explain why all your content is "stuck under computers".
 
Your complaints about the ATV2 were well covered here when it was first released, so it wasn't a surprise to me at all when I received mine.

The organization is different, but easy enough to get used to. It really isn't that big of a deal. I think it works best since you can now stream from multiple Macs. I'm not sure how they would have done it otherwise.

I do agree that having each season of a TV show have its own entry is a little weird. That is something I hope Apple addresses.

You could stream from multiple macs with the atv1. you just had to select which one you wanted, but they all appeared in the equivalent 'computers' section. They haven't as far as I can see made this side of things any better or worse.

The TV Show setup is exactly like the atv1....about 3 or so software updates back. Im sure theyll be fixing that.
 
I love the look of the new ATV, but I bought a 160GB old ATV off ebay for £90, knowing that it would be simple enough to "hack" so I could play media from storage devices and network shares. There are also scripts to hide/disable menus you don't use for a more streamlined interface.

No doubt this functionality will come to jailbroken new ATVs soon, but knowing I could do what I wanted with an old one as-is, I decided it was the better choice for me.

I'm sure the jailbreak community will have a "fix" for this in time, even if Apple refuses to make one.
 
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