HDMI Handshake problems every 20 - 30 minutes - Color Inversion Issue

Since the number of people with that issue is growing and growing (Germany only?) I guess all of us should call the Apple customer support on Monday to report that problem. Seems a little strange that so many of us are encountering that phenomenon. Probably it really is a software issue and not a hardware malfunction after all. What do you guys think? Gonna call them, too? If so, please post what they told you.

Arcade99 wrote:
Due to the fact that the ATV2 works without any problem with my Sharp i guess the ATV2 is ok or that it is just a compatibility issue between ATV2 and some Philips TV. I'm obviously not the only one with a Philips TV and this issue.

There used to be some incompatibilities with AppleTV 1 as well, but there seem to be far more reports with ATV2.

You're right to suggest it's an incompatibility, and we don't really know if it's a problem with HDMI on AppleTV or TV, or a combination of factors, but you have to conclude it's almost certainly AppleTV's fault when TVs work with other HDMI enabled devices.

If you had to bet on who messed up their HDMI implementation you'd put your money on Apple before major TV set manufacturers who presumably know what they're doing.

Do you think that a future firmware update for the ATV2 will solve this issue?

Quite possible, there were several HDMI changes with the 1st generation, some subtle and only noticeable on particular settings with particular TVs, some that cured compatibility issues.

It's poor that the new device has HDMI issues at all, and equally poor it only supports 720p - it should be able to negotiate and provide appropriate output for the TV, one of the features of HDMI after all.

Newsflash: The error only occurs when the digital audio cable is plugged. I unplugged the ATV, then restarted it with HDMI only. 45min of watching without any issues. Then I plugged in the optical cable and 5min later, the screen problem reoccured. The issue then remained, even though I unplugged the optical cable, until I restarted the ATV (optical cable not plugged in, of course). Now it works fine again. So, I suppose it's kind of a conflict between the HDMI audio signal and the optical one. Not sure, but I guess a firmware update could help here since it might be a software issue in audio controlling. What do you think of that?

Same for me, optical audio is not connected and still the problem occured.

However, yesterday I activated "PC Modus" on my Philips for the HDMI-Port (not sure if it's enabled for the active port only or a general setting for all ports) and after that I used the Apple TV for about 2 hours (YouTube) and did not get that error. Coincidence? Or is that the solution? No idea, please try yourselves.

D.

Problem occured again this morning, optical cable not plugged. Seems like yesterday I just had luck once. Already changed mode from PC to HDMI and vise versa. Happened with both settings. Guess I'm gonna call the online store for another unit. Anyway, I'm afraid it won't help either since it worked fine when trying it with another TV. Can't explain though why my TV shouldn't be compatible with an ATV2 as it works fine with any other HDMI device connected to it.

Hi,
I've got the same problem also with a Philips LCD (8404). After checking different HDMI ports and cables, which did not change anything, I changed the setting for the audio option - turn optical audio off (I do not use optical audio in this setup). At the same time I switched the stand-by timer off. Yesterday it seems that the problem was gone, but I cannot tell which of the two settings made it. Will check later today.

Regards,
Ralf.

Same problem here I guess... I use a Philips 46PFL9704. Thats the way it looks

http://img295.imageshack.us/img295/6205/img0171wt.jpg

Must be a problem with the AppleTV. Other devices with the same HDMI-Cable work fine.
Apple, this is really bad work of you if the source of the problem isn't damaged hardware. Hoping to see a new firmware release in the next few days!!

I have had an AppleTV-1 for 2 years connected to 2-year old Sony XBR 40". Worked great. Also, my Sony works with DirecTV and Sony BluRay over HDMI perfect.

Got my ATV2 yesterday and replaced the ATV1: used same Digital Audio and HDMI cable that worked fine on ATV1.

Every minute or so I get a black screen on the Sony TV for 1-2 seconds, then goes back to normal. Sometimes, after black, I get a 1/10th second of snow too.

Again, using same HDMI cable (bought at Apple Store) that worked fine for Apple TV 1st Gen.

JP

I combined the AppleTV with my Samsung T260HD using the same HDMI cable and had no problems in the last hours. I am not pretty sure which HDMI version is used in my Samsung but regarded to Amazon, it should be HDMI V1.3. The same as in my Philips TV.
So the problem seems to be neither a hardware issue nor an issue related to the HDMI version.

Message was edited by: nomawie23

Maybe you are right but I wonder why this problem seems to affect only the Apple TV which was delivered in Germany ...

I have a Phillips 42-inch plasma display. The screen color has magenta instead of black when connected to ATV2.

I have tried a different ATV2, different HDMI cable, but the problem persists.