I'm pretty sure most of us only care about Netflix streaming, but nothing at all will be changing with our Apple TVs. I know some are going to complain, but my 160GB model has gotten a ton of use since I first got it in Jan. 2008. It's a great box, and will continue to be for what it does.
Will I upgrade? Probably not. The old ATV will be better for my needs, and all I'm missing is Netflix in my eyes.
Apple changed from Intel to ARM (A4 chip) with the new ATV, so porting everything over would require a lot of manpower (read: money). This is still a "hobby" for them, and at only $99 the upgrade isn't that bad for those that need it.
The biggest downfall is losing local storage if you upgrade.
24" iMac 2.16GHz,
Mac OS X (10.6.4),
Apple TV, 1G+2G Shuf, iPod Mini, iPhone 4
Sadly, the ATV as we know it is dead. This probably has more to do with moving to a "cloud-based" iTunes one day, but you're right - it feels like a sorry upgrade software wise. Not to diminish what the Apple engineers have done. I know this is an old OS written in the iOS language (due to the A4 processor), but it looks like a condensed version of what we had.
The only thing we are really missing is the Netflix - which is huge for us.
My AppleTV usage is probably: 50% YouTube 30% Music 15% Movie 5% TV.
Nick Rooney wrote:
The only thing we are really missing is the Netflix - which is huge for us.
My AppleTV usage is probably: 50% YouTube 30% Music 15% Movie 5% TV.
I don't understand why NetFlix is huge for you when presently it's not available on ATV? What's different? Is ATV as we know it now NOT going to do YouTube, Music, Movies or TV?
I got my ATV as a gift last year, and was really hoping that Netflix streaming would be available one day. WHen i heard the new one would offer, i too hoped that an upgrade to my current ATV would be available to include the Netflix option. In reality, we dont use the ATV a whole lot, but we really watch netflix online on the MacBook. i get the idea that losing the storage space *****, and agree. But being able to stream netflix to the TV might be enough for me to sell my current ATV and get the new one. Reading everyone's comments, i have realized that we truly dont utilize the power of our current ATV so i dont feel so bad about maybe trading it in...
You're right but it is an awful idea having to turn on your computer to see content on you ATV.
What they did was just drawing an umbilical cord back to itunes....sigh.
simply: not clever.
my 2 cents anyway
Tyler Parker wrote:
What you need to do is research how to get your DVD's contents into iTunes, then >you can stream all day long!
I have tried this and come to the conclusion that the time I spent encoding movies that I already own could have been spent finding a way to make money and that money could have been spent buying digital versions of movies I would actually watch.
Encoding your movies is a lose/lose scenario as long as no standardized method exists for doing so.
iTunes is great for music. When it can be the same for movies that it is for music... that will be a great day.
til then, keep the discs safe and the apple tv connected to the internets 😉
I have tried this and come to the conclusion that the time I spent encoding movies that I already own could have been spent finding a way to make money and that money could have been spent buying digital versions of movies I would actually watch.
Amen brother! Even if there was a "soup to nuts" program that encoded movies, it's still a LONG job. I've seen my computer "percolate" for 3 or 4 hours grinding away for just one movie to be switched to iPod status.
Is it time to buy a mac mini (and then copy our itunes to it) and use front row? it is a supported platform (not as nice as the old apple TV interface), but gets rid of the streaming issue.
I know, much more expensive, but just considering what to do since I don't want to keep my office mac on all the time for streaming content to the living room
Any suggestions would help.... I waited and did not buy an apple tv, used ps3 for couple years streaming from windows-ps3 server. Recently debating buying a mac mini or atv for the enhanced interface/album art, etc mainly for wife and kids. I ended up ordering the new atv last week, because of the new price of $99. Should I take it back and buy an old one (apple is now selling old ones for $150. and hack it? Or is it just best to bite the dollar and get a mac mini? I too hate conversions. I like to snag a movie online and then play a few minutes later on the big screen. Thanks in advance for any input.
To say this new product direction is a 'disappointment' doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of how I feel about Apple right now. Let me try to preach to this choir a little.
I bought the Apple TV as soon as they increased the capacity to 160gb. I loved it from day one! Every update has been like Christmas all over again. I'm a PC guy and I work in corporate marketing for one of the largest PC manufacturers on Earth, but I bought a MacBook Pro to replace my personal PC only because of the way it handles iTunes and my NAS storage library. After that, I was
hooked on Apple!
The Apple TV is the centerpiece of a $10,000 home theater investment which includes:
- a 70" 1080P HDTV (living room)
- a 42" 720P HDTV in the bedroom (old)
- 1080P native HDXA2 HD-DVD player ($1,000)
- two (2) Samsung Blue Ray players (bedroom and living room), one with Netflix
- two (2) Apple TVs (Bedroom and living room)
- Onkyo Dolby 7.1 digital surround in the living room
- seven (7) iPods (not including the two my son took with him to college)!
- one on the alarm clock
- one in the bathroom
- one in my car
- one on the treadmill for my wife
- one in my laptop bag for business trips
- one installed in my two month old son's swing
- one iPod Touch which is used exclusively as a remote control for the Apple TVs and for the AirPort Express speaker hubs placed in strategic locations throughout the house, including one in the nursery (our home wasn't pre-wired for sound).
We don't have cable television or Direct TV. The only television I've watched since Bill Clinton was elected President has been on the Apple TV. My wife and I live and swear by it! We have a monthly iTunes budget (which is sizable) for my wife's Apple TV rentals, purchases, and the required expansion of my music collection. We've spent so much money with Apple in the last two years that I considered buying stock...until last week.
The new Apple TV *****! It's that simple. We waited with baited breath for this announcement because we heard rumors that Apple was finally moving into the cloud, and we though that would mean we could finally watch content streamed directly from our NAS without the MacBook Pro needing to be in the house and turned on. Our only complaint over the years has been the lack of external storage support for the Apple TV, it's inability to recognize our NAS, and it's feeble built in storage capacity (essentially the same as the iPod I bought my son for his last birthday).
What's Apple's answer? A new Apple TV with 1/10th the storage that STILL can't talk to my NAS directly. With respect, sixteen gigabytes isn't crap! My music library (which I like to keep on the Apple TV and stream throughout the house) would fill that up easily. Our photo library (which we like to keep on the Apple TV to show friends) would take up HALF that amount. My wife likes to buy movies and episodes of The Office and LOST...Earth to Apple, the new Apple TV isn't big enough to hold the full run of either series plus a feature film!
I was going to buy my in-laws an Apple TV for Christmas (they've been drooling over ours ever since my wife and I got married). Now I have to grab one form the Apple Outlet store before they sell out, or resort to eBay. I won't buy one of these new training wheel models because it will only disappoint them.
I get where Apple is trying to go, but price was NOT the problem with this product. At $229, it was one of the cheapest components in my home entertainment network. My surge protector cost more! Does Apple really think that dropping the price of the Apple TV BELOW the price of the iPod Touch remote control I use to access it is going to help sales? What is wrong with Apple? I think these guys need Lasik. The market is OVER THERE!
I completely agree. I buy an AppleTV when no one else will, and for their appreciation they can't even be bothered to give us Netflix streaming. I could see if there was a hardware limitation, but this is nothing but software. I spent $300 for something that someone can now go out and spend $99 for and get more functionality. Way to take care of your loyal customers, Apple.
Apple has a history of only caring about getting new customers and not taking care of their old ones. Shameful. I'm very disappointed.
+I was also puzzled Apple didn’t even try to give us old faithful ATV users the possibility of streaming Netflix and then it got me: It’s not possible with the processor we have on the old ATVs, and the architecture of the device was not designed for streaming. There is a physical barrier no firmware can overcome, and after the 3G iPhone fiasco with the iOS 4.0, forcing a device into things that will stress its physical limits I’m sure is not on Apple plans. If you want to be convinced, visit the aTV Flash website and they will tell you right there in the FAQs that is not possible to watch Netflix movies on the ATV because of processing power limitation, the frame rate will be horrible.+
The AppleTV streams video from my iTunes library on my Mac and streams HD content from YouTube. Why would Netflix be any different?
