The Apple of my eye. . . . not
(Here is a subsequent post with new information about YouTube on Apple TV.)
I’m not a high-tech product reviewer by trade. But my latest Technology column in Fortune seems to be, on the surface at least, a review of Apple TV, Steve Jobs’s latest consumer electronics gadget. It’s not a positive article. I call Apple TV a dud, and liken it to the Zune, Microsoft’s ham-handed attempt to steal the march on Apple’s ubiquitous iPod portable digital music player. I came to this conclusion after using it for six weeks, and realizing that I was using it less and less each week.
I’m flagging my column here so that people who disagree or want to critique my critique or laud my perspicacity or otherwise comment or vent have a public place to do so. Apple (AAPL) zealots are a passionate bunch. I know, because I am one. (You can even call me names if that makes you feel better, but be forewarned, if you submit something in poor taste, we reserve the right to censor what you say, just to keep things civil.)
I don’t really consider the column a review, because I only skimmed over just how limited Apple TV really is, at least for now. Instead, I wrote it to point out that even Apple can bungle a product from time to time. Another thing I probably should have said in the column was that in a broader sense, flubbing is actually a good thing, because it shows that Apple is genuinely trying to raise the state of the art of consumer electronics. As the old Silicon Valley saying goes: “If you don’t launch a dud now and then, it means you aren’t trying hard enough.” Finally, I also wanted to show how even Apple can sometimes make the same kinds of mistakes that Microsoft does.
Mainly, however, with the launch of the much ballyhooed iPhone looming in June, I thought it was important to point out how Apple TV demonstrates that Steve Jobs, the ultimate control freak, is not in total control of all the production values of his new consumer electronics products; at least not as much as has been the case in the past with his computers and the first few generations of the iPod and iTunes. That’s not his fault, but instead is because Apple, as it ventures further afield, no longer “builds the whole widget” to the extent that it has in the past. It must rely on capricious movie studios and TV networks and record companies for content of course, and it increasingly will depend on stubborn telecom carriers for cellular and broadband connectivity and for marketing help.
Steve Jobs loves music, and the much celebrated iPod clearly was not the product of someone with a tin ear. “Elegant” really is the appropriate adjective to use to describe it, because every little nuance seemed right. But Apple TV makes you wonder if Jobs paid any attention at all during the birthing process. Or maybe it betrays how his well-known disdain for broadcast television might have left him with a blind spot when it comes to TV-related products. Or perhaps this is just what happens to a company when it develops the makings of a high-tech monopoly that it wants to preserve and extend, in this case the market for digital downloads. Speaking as a long-time Apple fan, I sure hope not.
But the irony to me is that Apple TV didn’t have to be a revolutionary product to be a great product. With just a little tweaking, it could have been so much more than what it is. Had it incorporated a 100 Gig or 200 Gig hard-disk and a built-in standard DVD drive, Apple TV could’ve been a versatile transitional product that not only would make it easier for people to use their computer-based content in the living room, but also would help us declutter our home entertainment systems. You could use the DVD drive to watch Netflix (NFLX) or Blockbuster (BBI) rentals, or your own home movies, and toss that ugly old oversized DVD player with the crappy remote. You could use the larger hard-drive to time-shift your favorite shows a la Tivo, and to accommodate more higher-resolution downloads. And as broadband services improve and the content providers get braver, the horsepower is already there to enable full-fledged HD TV streaming capabilities directly over the internet with a mere software upgrade.
After all, Apple TV is basically a computer — it sports an Intel (INTC) microprocessor and a variation of Mac OS X inside and both wireless and ethernet Internet connectivity. Yes, it would’ve been a little more expensive to add the DVD and bigger hard drive, but it would have been so much more useful right out of the box than it is now. And you’d at least be able to get half-way decent picture quality from recorded movies and TV shows between now and when the iTunes Music Store is capable of delivering true and full-featured HD content sometime in the future.
Here’s another big irony: True genius in high-tech comes from navigating around performance constraints with clever technology, and then making those constraints seem irrelevant — in other words, making something that is very complicated and intimidating look easy. It’s a kind of technological sleight-of-hand, and Steve Jobs is the master of the form. Unfortunately, with Apple TV, the constraints are the first thing you notice. So, as much as I’d like to give Apple the benefit of the doubt, it really does make me wonder whether some of the many sexy features of the iPhone might also disappoint.
One last thing. Just so you know that I really don’t have an anti-Apple bias, check out this quasi-review I wrote back in November of 2001 when Steve Jobs unveiled the very first iPod. The minute I held and heard an iPod, I knew that the music business, and more importantly the way people consume music, would change forever. And I said so. Sadly, I can’t get that excited about Apple TV. We’ll have to wait and see about the iPhone.
Apple TV is my dream machine. In fact I am lucky to have a great device to bring my own music collecting hobby alive.
I had been using the onkyo net-tune software which came with my avr and on a good day I would get 2 hours of uninterrupted music. Often the wireless wouldn’t work or the software would crash or both. After I got the Mac, the Onkyo software became useless.
I had been dying to get a device like the apple tv and got a 40gb version as soon as I could. I have about 200 gb of music and take a lot of pains maintaining the library with the right details.
Apple TV is the only way I have of reliably bringing my ripped music to my living room. The interface is fantastic - I wish the fortune webpage was had similar visual appeal and style - and Apple will keep working on the updates.
Even my 7 yr old can navigate through the menu and select the songs / videos/ photos he has to see. I am happy he is learning consumer tech from the best there is.
ps : I have only one complaint with the Mac OS - esp they dogged resistance to supporting Sony products.
I bought one amid the hype and then realized how little I use it. It does have the faults that many have pointed out.
However I see features being added. Not a lot right now but I think it is just going to get better and better - which is usuauly the case with Apple products.
Also, at first I thought the movies were expensive (compared with a Direct TV rental that I could record on my DVR) but having looked at Wal Mart and Amazon download prices Apple’s are better.
And of course all the Movie Studio’s rules and regulations is impacking this whole video download area making it difficult for anyone to put in any kind of customer oriented system. (For example with Amazon if you “rent” a movie download and start to watch it you only have 24 hours to complete watching it. Why? Do they think that if you have it for 48 hours or more you are cheating the studio?)
Apple TV is about as useful as an 8-track player these days.
To be honest, I love mac products so I am a little bias. The Apple TV exemplifies why I love Apple products however. How can you say the Apple TV is non-transitional? Here’s a great example - I have a 250+ dvd collection. I ripped all of these dvds (for personal use only) to mp4 files and stored them on a 500g external HD and brought it, my apple tv, and my macbook to Australia for 6 mos with me on business. Using the slick HDMI interface to the HDTV in my furnished apt, I have seamless and beautiful dvd quality movies all at my disposal 24/7. The transition you gloss over is that Apple can add all the functionality that you list as nice to haves over time via firmware updates. I agree for now the Apple TV remains more of a niche product, but as all Apple products do today, it does what it is designed to do seamlessly. For now it takes a little creativity and time to use the Apple TV the way I have - its the streaming technology not the interior hard drive that makes the Apple TV an amazing product. How many people would want a super dvd library on demand? I would think many. Much faster access and no maintaining dvds collections or worrying about friends borrowing them, scratching them, etc. The Apple TV is a bit of a sleeper today, for now it will make quiet waves… but as evidenced by the You Tube functionality there is SO much room for additions. What if you could access an RSS feed reader (Google reader perhaps?) via the apple tv? With its simple remote you can imagine getting the latest in sports, world news, finance, etc all in video or text format while you sip your coffee in the morning. I’m happy to wait for this while watching movies and putting together gorgeous slideshows and screensavers on my HDTV. If you really think the Apple TV is best served as the fourth leg of an arm chair, you are missing out. Literally every person who has seen the setup I have currently (which was mind numbingly simple to setup and configure) are blown away. Was the gen1 iPod a runaway success out of the gates? NO. Digital media products don’t work that way - to borrow from Gladwell’s book, it first must reach its ‘tipping point’ with the public. Early adopters such as myself love the Apple TV. I predict you will change your tune within a few yrs.
While it’s not perfect, it is simple elegant and works exactly as designed. It is a pleasure to buy commercial free TV shows and have them stream from ATV.
I thought originally the 30gig limit would be a problem but to the contrary wireless streaming from Itunes is wonderful from 3 different libraries on my home network.
You’re a “high tech” columnist and you don’t have the knowledge to see what a revolutionary product the apple tv is? That’s sad and unfortuneate for the readers that take your word. The way this merges media from your computer (photos, music and video) to your tv is amazing. And relatively speaking its cheap when you compare it to the junk of other products that tired to do the same job. The interface is very slick, almost all the friends and family that see it on our TV have stated that they want to get one.
I’ve always been an “Apple” person and my partner has always not, he’s was always on the “wintel” side of the market (both of us are Electrical Engineers) after using this product and a Mac, he has been converted, he actually loves apples products now and sees the quality products they design.
The great thing about this and other products like the iPhone, is that when Apple wants to add features to it, like some of the things your or other people have mentioned i.e. purchasing music and video directly from the ATV, all it will take is a firmware update.
They really know how to design and support their products, the latest update not only added YouTube, but also enhanced other features. I’m sure they will continue to do this and make this product even better as time goes on.
Well, I refuse to be in the “fanboy” group, and whilst there might always be things around that can “DO MORE FOR LESS MONEY” (go out and buy it then, see if they get any mentioning anywhere…). The point is, however, that this device does what it is supposed to do, very well. And it is 1.1. now, and offers YouTube content in a pleasant way, better than any competitor. And wait a few months, and you will have RSS feeds, widgets and the lot integrated. 40 GB? Not too small for me, but 160 GB is an option. Enjoy it or don’t bother buying one and telling the world that YOU don’t see a use for it - YOUR problem, not ours. And to those who needed THIS “review” to find out there isn’t a DVD player in the AppleTV… never mind.
First of all, i hate when people write an article bashing a product that is pretty revolutionary. While many people may not buy it, it does not make it a bad product. It has many uses and if apple decides to expand with more content available on itunes, it will only make it that much better. This product has the chance to grow which makes it a good start for apple.
When will people stop using this infantile “fanboy” thing?
It’s real old now.
If you’ve got something to say, do so, but this is like calling kids calling each other “dumb” on a school yard.
Meanwhile, the article’s author plainly hasn’t downloaded and watched on his laptop or destop any tv shows he missed.
If he had, he’d realize it isn’t that great an experience, especially if you’re not alone.
Apple TV fixes this. And while not HD, the pic quality is quite nice.
Plus, it gives you movie trailers on demand, which is great when you’re trying to decide what to go see.
Enough for me for now. More will come as it matures.
Stop with the complaining.
If the current features don’t solve any real world problems for you, don’t buy it.
But that doesn’t make it a sushi table (though that one made me smile).
All I can say is I love my ATV! Transformed my (400+) movie library into pure digital entertainment and now have it all at my fingertips. Wow! Free In-demand! (which sucks btw). Not to mention my family photos and home videos that can also be viewed in an instant. As far as the 40GB HD that is inside my ATV? Only photos are housed there, as the streaming capability of ATV is flawless!
Lastly, I just can’t wait to get my hands on one of those iphone thingies. I’ve been waiting FOREVER to consolidate my iPod, Palm PDA, and cell phone into a single device! Thankfully, APple has come to the rescue!
AppleTV does what PC’s and Sony WiFi Media boxes are suppose to do, and do not do well. Not to say AppleTV is perfect but if you compare it to what the first and second generation iPods where to mp3’s of the time AppleTV is actually better then the iPod at the same period in its life against its completion. The reason I know this is I have been setting up Macs and PC as media centers to projectors and big screen TV’s since 2001. I was not impressed with AppleTV and I was not oing to buy one until a couple of non-techs showed me what they where excited about, and what they could do. Add the hacks that exist that let you use AppleTV as a video convergence device and I am impressed. I am sure Apple had more in the box for AppleTV but they have learned from the Cube and others flops not to put too much in one device too fast.
If any review of an Apple product isn’t 110% positive, it’s nanoseconds before the fanboys will come out of their basements and tell the reviewer how dumb he is.
It’s totally predictable and always entertaining.
As you know Apple people don’t just like there products they love them. You where bound to get burned on your approach, there are short comings from the Apple Tv but it could easily be much more with just a HD download service , the ability to buy straight from the device and the untying it from the PC / Mac. This is all possible as it is a software and service thing, and the device runs OSX so it is all do able.
I work as a CG supervisor originally in film now in games. I only ever found one company to work for that used solely macs, and the trade of for this was not acceptable. I would love to have the benefits in 3D performance on the mac without spending a fortune on high end graphic cards. Or being plagued by non optimized openGL software on the Mac. Sadly this may never happen, Apple may not be everything to everyone but they are heading in the right direction and I am certainly along for the ride.
I think its sad that you are just crapping on a product to get some hype, and obviously its working. I own an appleTV and love it. It is easy to use, easy to sync, and has helped me to divorce myself from Comcast (yay). Also, its seamless integration into itunes is also nice to stream music to my big stereo (part of my entertainment center) as well as view my pictures etc.
Frankly, journalists such as yourself are why I don’t subscribe to Fortune in the first place.
It’s a good thing you are not a high-tech reviewer by trade, you’d starve. Not much of a “geek” either, I would wager, since you seem to have no vision or understanding of this product. I have been in the tech forum for about 38 years and this is one of the most promising and innovative avenues to bring digital content to the home that I have seen. Forget the past, it’s over. This review is not about the apple tv….to review a product it is helpful to understand it’s purpose. Obviously, you do not.
You are the first person ever to use “Apple of my Eye” as a headline for something to do with Apple. Oh, and you’re wrong.
I would get one if they put a cigarette lighter in the remote.
I work for a TV station and plan to buy Apple TV. It is a quick/handy digital media access point. My first step was to begin creating a library of off-air with Elgato EyeTV and tuner with my first Mac. Step two is a Mac Mini which has DVD for the primary living room media hub. Steps 3 and four are two Apple TVs, one for each bedroom. Anything supporting a format like BluRay or HD-DVD will cost more like Playstation or Xbox. We repeat play a lot of media for our child. Finding discs and wading throught the navigation is a big time waster so I plan to rip certain DVDs for convenience. I add extra external storage for media and system hard drive cloning. Elgato Turbo H.264 rips TV MPEG to H.264 Apple TV format faster than real time, one third the storage.
This Grouchy Geek sure new what he was doing when he “reviewed” Apple TV.
His job is to attract readership. Why not do it by slagging a company that is very successful.
And he has the nerve to call himself an Apple “fan”. With “fans” like him who needs enemies.
Disagree completely. I love the AppleTV because it gets my iTunes content into the living room. I already have a DVD player (and an HD DVD and Blu-ray player). This unit does exactly what I need it to do and it does it very well. In the future, I’m sure it will do a lot lot more, but that will be even better!
Interesting number of rants and rave reviews of this product.
What the article points out is more about the business proposition.
All this hoopla about Internet downloads of Movies is hype at it’s best.
Just as Hybrids are the rage for Environmentalists and energy conservationists so are the Internet Download services for the Geeks.
Toyota has not bet it’s farm on the Hybrid, maybe in 20 years we shall see the Hydrogen car and similarly the Internet Download services.
For the foreseeable future, all the services coming to market are from established companies. Apple is getting there but it is a niche and they are not betting the farm on it either.
Walmart and Netflix will continue to be prime sources for movie distribution.
I really like my AppleTV. In fact, I’m even happier with it than I thought I’d be when I decided to buy it. I use my computer to record broadcast TV (via ElGato’s EyeTV), and the AppleTV makes that content very conveniently available. On top of that, I love being able to access the music on any computer on my network, all in one place, right at my ‘entertainment system.’ I agree that they don’t have the photo navigation completely figured out, but this isn’t really a problem for me and I suspect they’ll improve that eventually anyway. I have no regrets about my purchase, and I think your ‘review’ may be premature.
I have to agree with the majority of commentary here. I think you have somehow missed the point of the Apple TV. It’s not a DVD player (but like one it doesn’t need a volume control). It is its own beast to play digital content. Music and photos are a side benefit, but it’s music capabilities alone make it worth more than the $300. It’s like the iPod for the home theatre.
Video–TV shows and movies–are great on the Apple TV, even with out HD (yet). Previously, I would hook up my laptop to the TV when I wanted to play downloaded content or iTunes content. This is much more elegant, and cheap. It’s exactly what I need. (I thought I wanted a whole PC connected to my home theatre, but because I was short on cash bought this instead, and now am way happy about this choice).
As far as the shortcomings, I agree with many of your points (but it doesn’t qualify as a dud yet, as someone said, wait until the completely discontinue it before you say something like this).
The Apple TV is a 1.0 product (and now you have a 1.01 version with the big HD you wanted, though I don’t use mine at all except for photos. I stream everything else). Some things it needs:
1. More video codecs support & less lock in to QuickTime and iTunes purchases
2. Open the thing up to developers and amazing things will happen. Apple is not preventing the hackers, but we need SDKs, and this thing will take off. (see #4)
3. iTunes HD content. This must have been a mistep by Apple, because it doesn’t make sense. I agree with you here. It requires a HD TV, but then iTunes doesn’t offer HD video files (well no HD TV shows or movies). I think they miscalculated how long it would take to get the studios onboard for HD content or how to get it implemented on the store (download bandwidth could be a big issue, and there are rumors that Leopard will have some sort of built in bittorrent client to help with this).
4. More internet content accessible (radio, video and widgets!!). YouTube is a good start, but iTunes can access streaming radio streams, so it should be a no brainer for ATV. ATV should also be able to run OS X Widgets, or maybe ATV-only widgets. This would enable ATV to access all sorts of internet data and applications– weather, sports, stocks, wikipedia, the list is endless.
All in all, I find this a great 1.0 product, and I hope that they at least sell enough to keep development going with the commitment they gave the iPod.
And despite the fact you thought the iPod was a winner from day 1, most people did not. In fact, everyone was pretty damned surprised when Apple had this massive hit on their hands.
It’s almost like you haven’t really tried to use the ATV. People I know who used to call Apple customers artsy fartsy, nerds, or rebels now call them “trendy.” Now that’s enough to inspire me to write a bad review!
Awesome article, thanks! I had no idea it was lacking a dvd-drive… that’s just shameful.
As for the Wii comment at the end though, I’d like to correct you on one point. No one outside the game industry knew the Wii was gonna sell like hotcakes… most everyone in the industry from fanboys to publishers (with the notable exception of EA) were convinced it would sell like, well, like it has.
Imagine streaming media to every display or hi-fi in your home as easily as choosing a TV channel. (Media housed in a network-attached storage (NAS) device; who wants to leave an entire computer on?). No company has produced a cheap/simple interface solution that can be used in every home. Give the hobbyists some hardware (Apple TV), listen to what the public want, and you could end up with the future. User collaboration is shaping our web…why not let it shape our homes…
I use my Apple TV for exactly what it was designed and built for and I’m very happy with it. Just because it didn’t blow away the Tivo and completely dominate the industry doesn’t mean it’s a dud. I think the article writer is just pandering for a story that sells magazines/hooks readership. I say booo.
I couldn’t disagree with your take on the Apple TV more. Me thinks you needed hits on your “Grouchy Geek” blog and decided the Apple TV was a ripe target for off-the-wall, ill-founded and naive criticism. Sure, the Apple TV doesn’t have HD content available through the iTunes store…but I seem to remember a time when DRM-free music also wasn’t available. Your criticism might be founded if Apple TV lacked HD capabilites…it does not.
Next, it is obvious the Apple TV internet interface does not allow purchasing, yet. How difficult would it be for Apple to roll out an update that enables it? There is already plans for YouTube content via the unit and that will require interactive communication from Apple TV to YouTube servers… how far fetched is it to expect the same interactivity via iTunes?
No sir, you are just plain wrong on nearly every point. You needed to drum up hits so you pointed out temporary stumbling blocks inherent with any technology. You will eat your words.
Apple TV is the iPod 5 years ago.
People said no one would buy all their music online. All the teens I know haven’t bought a cd in 5 years.
Now people say, “who wants to get all their video content from the internet?” Well, like music first, this is the next trend poised for huge take-off.
Finally, adding a DVD player to the Apple TV would be as ridiculous as adding a CD player to the original iPod. DVD’s are on their way out, soon to be replaced by BLUERAYS or HD-DVDS, if those even last… who needs DVDs when future Apple TV’s will have HIGH RES support??
Apple doesn’t sell DVDs, or Music CDs, nor will they ever. So, there is no need for CD players on their music device or DVD players on their TV device. Adoption may take some time, as it did with digital music, but this time it will happen faster, and IT WILL HAPPEN.
The rate of technological changes doubles every 18 months. (Moore’s Law). The Apple TV has huge potential… don’t underestimate it!
It is certainly not the wow product like the iPod but I think it is a good value and bridge for my content from the office to the living room, and it can be enhanced. I think the YouTube function will be great fun!
Now EMI videos will be posted on YouTube. So I can create a playlist of videos for a party. Add to that the YouTube-Apple partnership and I can then stream music videos for a kick ass party.
Thanks for the writeup Brent. While I agree with many of your points, Apple TV is technically a 1.0 technology. So just like any young tinker toy, there is plenty of room for growth. Apple is good at the patience game as well as listening to user feedback. Thanks articles and comments such as this one, Apple is carefully weighing global feedback and will strategically implement new features one at a time. While M$ tends to go absurdly overboard from the start, Apple products decry feature bloat to the extent that many of their implementations start out on the sparse end.
Wow. What a completely misguided and hateful article.
First, the AppleTV can do HD resolution — 720p to be exact. As hinted by Steve Jobs yesterday at the “All Things D” conference, movies will be forthcoming from the iTunes store that will be in HD resolution. Don’t call the AppleTV dead until it is mature!
I can also take my own HD content from my Sony HDV camcorder and recompress it into a format the AppleTV can view. That’s the ONLY way, other than hooking my camcorder directly to my HDTV, that I can view the content. You should be grouchy about the HD-DVD vs. BluRay way and why there is no consumer HD standard that we can put our content into. (Don’t bother telling me there are burners out there. They are ludicrously expensive and are still not a “standard” because neither HD-DVD nor BluRay have conceded defeat.)
As the hackers have found out, the Apple TV is an extensible machine with an easy-to-program “plug-in” type architecture which allows Apple (and hackers) to add features, like DivX playback and an RSS reader. (Source: appletvhacks.net)
Let the AppleTV mature and then see what it becomes. The new, 160GB version is available starting today. I’m sure that is not the only thing up Apple’s sleeve at this point.
It seems like the AppleTV is more for price conscious folks where the MacMini is better suited for people who are more advanced and willing to pay higher for more features & functionality.
Those photos in your article were what i would expect from a two-bit website run by a teenager, not Fortune magazine. It just shows you have no class.
Apple TV is GREAT!
People think you can only get content from the iTunes store. I use many applications such as Tubesock or Handbrake to add content.
Tubesock allows me to go to many Youtube and with a click of an applet within Safari the YouTube video is downloaded, converted, transfered to iTunes, and transfered to my Apple TV. I now have the best of Youtube on my Apple TV.
Handbrake takes all of my DVD’s and rips them and encodes them for Apple TV so I can get rid of all my DVD’s just like I did with CD’s when the first iPod came out.
This is a first generation media center for Apple, it blows the competition out of the water.
I have every media center and game system and nothing is as good as Apple TV.
Xbox360 - LOUD! feels very cheap and clunky. Fun to play games on but that is it.
PS3 - LOUD! more elegant than the xbox 360 but needs better media management tools
Wii - No networking to add content but probably the funnest game system of all the systems.
I also have Tivo, Verizon Fios, and Slingbox.
Apple TV is the best.
Another thing you should do is go to the iTunes store and within the Podcast section you can look at video podcasts. Find the ones that are higher rez for Apple TV. The quality is great and the podcasts are getting better.
If you have an Apple TV you understand once you do the things I mention above. If you have not purchased one you have no idea of all that it can do and the experience of using it.
You know, there is a system that allows you to download video content, use your home network as a media center, using music, viedo and pictures all stored on your hard drives and play them all through your tv. Its called the Xbox 360. It has a removable hard drive (in 20 and 120 GB) a dvd player that can be upgraded to an HD DVD player as well as wifi access. If you want all of those things you said the apple was lacking, there is your answer, other wise I think the Apple TV is more than fine for what it does and its cost.
though i agree with many of the points made by brent. I wouldn’t call it a dud. In fact, its promising to hear about the YouTube feature coming up.
My main gripe. It takes awhile to download movies, but music and showing pictures features are great.
The things you want are not what the average consumer wants. We have DVD players, we have large storage on our computers, and we have a better interface for buying TV & movies (iTunes)–come on, think about it seriously: do you really want to type in an iTunes search using the little remote picking out one letter at a time? And the TV shows I’ve bought off iTunes look just fine on my 42″ plasma, no complaints about the quality whatsoever. I love my AppleTV–it does exactly what it’s supposed to without complexity or extraneous functions.
Ugh,
What a grouch. Me thinks you’re obsessed at what it isn’t
rather than what it is…Typical of this sort of critique.
Personally, I like the forward motion this product
represents for Apple. That it can even offer such a device
that play nice with their other devices is wonderful. Nobody else is doing this…
btw, the link to the updated youtube post:
http://http//grouchygeek.blogs.fortune.com/2007/05/30/apple-tv-youtube-a-better-product/
is wrongo…..I hate it when bloggers don’t get their
links correct (which means they aren’t paying attention)
If I remember correctly, just about everyone was calling the iPod a dud for about the first 6 months after its release.
I agree the AppleTV needs quite a bit of rejiggering. The new 160GB options tackles one of my biggest peeves with it (lack of storage). I don’t see lack of a DVD drive as its main problem.
The main problem, as I see it, is that 1) Apple currently doesn’t have any HD TV programming. I’d gladly ditch cable and go to an AppleTV with season passes for my favorite shows, but not with them only available in standard res. Sorry, I paid $1500 for my HDTV, and if it’s not in HD, I’m not buying it. 2) While subscriptions aren’t really all that great for music, they make much more sense for DVDs. The problem is that right now, the bandwidth costs are prohibitive for Apple to offer a DVD rental download at the price point it needs to hit to be successful (under $5 per download). So Apple is trying to make the purchase option work.
I predict that within one year Apple will be in the DVD downloadable rental business, and will have their TV content upgraded to HD. When that happens, the AppleTV will appeal to a much wider market.
I have hours of downloaded movies in ITunes for my 5 year old daughter, including old Walt Disney movies that I have converted to digital format. The AppleTV has been a dream come true for people that have already began to create a collection. These “shortcomings” everyone is talking about sound like people trying to find any detail possible to bust Apple’s bubble. Who needs a DVD drive? AppleTV works from up to 5 pcs or macs at the same time. Not to mention that Apple has just scratched the surface of the version of OSX installed on AppleTV. You want to turn up the sound? Turn up your TV…it probably has a remote. Already upgrades have been implemented allowing YouTube streaming. The AppleTV interface can be changed at the blink of an eye, which makes this a beautiful product for the future.
The development of products like Apple TV is linked to the approach user have on digital contains.
Apple has taken advantage on how MP3 formats were distributed among all of us when the iPod was presented.
That is not happening the same way with the MP4 for video contains.
Jobs is forcing that change. Not all of us are getting that message. DRM are locking contains in all iPods. Getting rid of the DRM will allow to share easily video contains that can fill our Apple TVs ?
Amazing. Really. Did you even use it? Or just decided to write review without using it? CNN seems to allow that sorta stuff a lot on it’s “news” site.
Well just what I expected finally happened. Now you can stream from Youtube to the TV tube with AppleTV. Think about it, now family videos, videographers, anyone can post on to YouTube and share with anyone (family, friends, clients) their videos to the TV.
Initially, I was going to wait for the second generation but decided to buy one anyway. I thought the limited disk space was going to be a problem but streaming from 3 different Itunes libraries works great. It doesn’t have tons of features and options but it is simple, elegant and it just works.
This was an insipid article written by a technological malcontent lacking even a modicum of vision.
The AppleTV is amazing. Everyone who I’ve demoed it for has found it to be brilliant, and has either rushed out to buy one or has it on their wishlist.
My guess is this article is a cry for attention more than anything else…
speaking as an industrial designer, if the iphone doesn’t have a removeable battery, which i know it won’t, I say it’s a piece of &#*&$% *^&$#(*&#( &$%#(&%^*^&$. Yeah.
I love my Apple TV. I transcoded — is this the new polite word for “ripped”? — my DVD collection to my Mac using Handbrake & VisualHub. Now, when the wife wants to put on one of the ‘Baby Einstein’ videos for my daughter, it is three clicks away.
Unfortunately, this use, which would otherwise be a killer app for the Apple TV and its competitors, has been rendered illegal by the DMCA. (I won’t get started about ‘fair use’ and the fact that it had previously been legal to make a backup copy using tapes.)For example, I have no doubt that Apple would be first in line with improving iTunes to let you “transcode” your DVDs directly to the Apple TV or your system if it weren’t for this law. Additionally, Apple certainly can’t promote this use for the system without running afoul of industry lawyers.
Drew Grgich
We love our new Apple TV. We don’t watch television, but we have favorite shows like 24 and Heroes. We simply download those episodes into our iTunes and stream the shows (commercial free) through our Apple TV and onto our gorgeous 46″ HD LCD screen. It is truly awesome!
Spot on. What Apple TV needs: HDDVD player, 1080 playback, a new remote that allows easy purchasing directly from iTunes, upgradeable 3.5-inch hard drive or the ability to add an external drive via SATA (I’d even take USB 2.0).
In addition, iTunes needs rentable movies and a lot of movie content in HD (even if it’s only 720).
I use a Mac Mini and Front Row for the above. I purchase stuff from iTunes using a wireless keyboard and mouse, which I keep on my coffee table. Hopefully, I’ll be able to add an HDDVD drive soon. I have a 500GB external drive connected to the Mini, which sits in the TV cabinet. The connection to the TV is DVI to HDMI and the audio connection is courtesy of the Mini’s digital audio out. If Quicktime can play it, I can view it on my TV.
The Apple Tv is a Ipod for the TV, I think some people are trying to replace the tivo and that is not what it is for. There are some short falls with it but Apple is not trying to make it a Tivo. It is what it is and that would be a Ipod for your tv.
I purchased Apple TV yesterday after reading your review. Usually I am hesitant to buy a product if I find a negative review. However, it was easy to see from your article that you completely do not understand how great this product is. The photo viewing features alone make it worth $300. As an added bonus it’s the ultimate way to experience a collection of music. Also, you can convert all your DVD movies to mpeg-4 and have those available through the same menu system.
The 40 GB drive is plenty of space to sync all your family photo albums. The wireless streaming of music and movies works flawlessly! I’ve spent thousands of dollars on electronics over the past ten years. This is my favorite so far.
I have an Apple TV and it is awesome. It has liberated literally hundreds of home movies from my hard drive to my TV - I never would have burned all of those to disk. I also now can scroll through my music collection from wherever I am with ease.
I think that you miss the point entirely in your “review” - remember that this thing only costs $300; what did you expect?
If you put an optical drive in it, you would have a mac mini. The point is for it to be a media extender, not the be all media device. I think that a year from now, after many features have been unlocked or updated and they have killed the mac mini, many may change their minds about the Apple TV.
I have an AppleTV. In general, I like it, but in its current incarnation, it has some serious shortcomings.
I would like to be able to shut the damn thing off when I am not using it… It generates quite a bit of heat and I don’t want to waste electricity using the appleTV as an expensive space heater. I can’t believe that Apple didn’t think more Green in this area.
I dislike having to store content on my Mactintosh in order to make it available to my AppleTV and iPod. There needs to be an easier way to push the content up to the device and then remove it from the host computer. Or, as some have suggested, enable the content to be dirctly loaded into the AppleTV.
The good news, is that some of the glaring problems can be solved by updating the software, or the policies that Apple uses to try and drive consumers to purchase content from the iTunes store.
The AppleTV could be a successful platform, if Apple opens it up a bit.
But, I still want to be able to shut it off when I am not using it…
You’ve missed the point of the Apple TV completely and it amazes me.
It doesn’t need a volume control. It doesn’t need to play dvds. It doesn’t need to allow you to purchase.
All it needs to do (and all it claims to do) is enable you to see what’s on your computer on your TV.
Don’t you already have a dvd player? Don’t you already have volume controls on your tv/stereo remote?
It’s a simple device for a simple purpose.
There’s room for improvement of course but you say that of the Wii or the ipod. The apple tv is a simple goal, acheived.
careful, careful. I remember reading a lot of these tirades after the initial release of the iPod in 2001. Don’t want to be eating your words, now do you? Just a matter of time before your intellect catches up and you’ll see why the Apple TV is genius. I wouldn’t expect it out of you though, yet anyways.
I love my Apple TV.
Streams all my DIVX and XVIDs - in HD - from a USB drive attached to the Airport Extreme.
It’s just a pity I had to modify the device to do this.
Fortunately I did not have to open the box and violate the warranty.
I wholeheartedly agree with this “review”, the Apple TV could have been so much more.
I live in a part of the world where Movies and TV shows are not available via iTunes (Australia) so the Apple TV has little value to me, although I do have one.
Apple TV needs:
- a much larger HDD (Already on the way , I know)
- the ability to add DVD playback via an external USB drive.
- the ability to playback MPEG2 encoded content such as that recorded with EyeTV
These additions would make the lack of available content via iTunes much less of an issue.
Apple TV is a great start in bringing ease of entertainment to the living room. The initial version delivers on its promise, but lacks many of our desires for the perfect convergence of PC\internet technology for the couch potato. As for turning my TV into an iPod its great, but I would love to see it include internet download of content and playback of DVD content from network connected devices.
Come on now, this “review” seems more like flamebait than anything.
IMHO, Apple TV performs exactly as advertised, which is pretty rare for many tech products (I’m looking at YOU, Microsoft!). It lets users seamlessly and elegantly display the contents of their iTunes libraries on their TVs. That’s it.
Now, if you don’t see the value in the product as offered, that’s one thing. You’re not the target market, don’t buy one now, wait for Rev. B, etc. However, there are obviously (based on the comments to this article alone!), plenty of people out there (myself included) who looked at the features the Apple TV was offering and said “hey, this seems like a pretty nifty product - I think I will buy one,” and are completely happy with the actual performance of the product.
To claim that Apple TV’s “most highly touted feature” is that it (sorta) requires an HDTV is a total cheap shot. That’s like saying Windows Vista’s most highly touted feature is that it requires 512 MB of RAM (or is it 1 gig?).
The videos the iTunes Store sells aren’t HD? No, really? So what? Neither are the DVDs I get in the mail from Netflix. Neither are 90%+ of the channels that come through my cable box. If iTunes ever starts “renting” movies (and they manage to increase the size of their inventory), Netflix is GONE - at least at my house.
One thing I don’t see mentioned very often is how great the Apple TV is for watching video Podcasts. One of the main reasons I bought Apple TV was so I could watch video Podcasts from my couch instead of my desk or on a tiny iPod screen. Maybe most people haven’t yet discovered video Podcasts…but I highly suggest taking a trip though the Podcast directory on iTunes and subscribing to a few. I’ve got everything from NY Times content, to actual HD Podcasts from the Washington Post (they look GREAT!), to Nightline, to NBC Nightly News, to all sorts of tech geek-type Podcasts, Podcasts about food, nature shows, wine, politics, animation, clips from “The Man Show,” indie rock music, etc., etc., ad infinitum. I get enough content from video Podcasts alone that I’m starting to question the wisdom of paying for cable TV any longer. I subscribe to the Podcasts in iTunes, they download in the background, and then automagically sync themselves over to my Apple TV. And after I watch them, they self-delete. I love it. Some of the Podcasts have pretty awful resolution, but most of them look just fine, some of them are at or near HD-quality, and many more look sharper than regular broadcast TV.
The recently announced “YouTube upgrade” sounds pretty nifty as well, although I’m really concerned that the “Garbage In, Garbage Out” principle will kind of put a damper on the whole “YouTube on Apple TV” experience (resolution-wise, at least).
I will admit that it would be totally cool if I could browse TV shows and movie trailers from the Apple TV and then somehow purchase the videos without having to walk over to the computer. That would be a really great feature and I expect we’ll see it someday, via a no-cost software update automatically downloaded from Apple.
I am rather miffed that Apple is now selling Apple TV with the option to get a larger hard drive, because, IMHO, the small-ish hard drive size is the only real weakness of the Apple TV. I mean, sheesh. This thing has only been shipping for what, 3 months? Apple couldn’t have figured out that a 40 gig hard drive was kinda weak 3 months ago? I’d gladly pay the extra $100 to get 400% more storage space! Actually, though, the 40 gig hard drive has been less of a hassle than I originally thought, because the streaming works so well that it’s really not a problem to stream content from my computer that just wasn’t “A-list” enough to make the cut to be synced with my (nearly always full) Apple TV.
If the iPhone works anywhere near as well as my Apple TV does, I’ll consider that $600 well-spent.
The problem with most journalists who write about high-tech stuff is that they aren’t high-tech at all and don’t get it. I know it sounds like a stretch, but you should please do some better research before you write an article like this.
I’m not an Apple fanboy or anything, but I like to listen to my music, podcasts, and some tv shows on my iPod. The Apple TV in it’s current form is an extension of this that allows me to easily listen/watch this content on my TV. Oh and by the way, I’m watching on a 3 year old 27″ tube that isn’t HDTV. Apple TV doesn’t require HDTV, it requires a TV with component inputs. Of course I can’t expect you to know what that is, but since you should be able to just regurgetate facts, you should have known this before you wrote the review. Also, you should remember that many people poo pooed the iPod when it first came out, but it’s introduction has probably saved Apple AND the music industry.
I don’t like Apple computers, but they make some pretty good consumer electronics with very intutive and simple to use interfaces and in a few years you’ll be eating your words.
Totally disagree with your narrow assessment. The intent of the devise is to centralize your digital media. Being an avid traveler and producer of personal travel video, A-TV makes a great respository for our memories, all in HD. And, I’ve transfered a number of my personnally owned DVDs to A-TV. Convenience is the buzz word - watch what you want when you want without rumaging through a disordered stack of DVDs. And, of course music is easily accessed. Photos? The 160 GB hard drive takes care of that, but I’ll bet you that photo streaming will be available soon. The new addition of U-Tube is evidence of Apple’s committment to future improvements.
The issue at hand is not that the Apple TV is a dud or the iphone will be a dud (The fact that it’s Cingular is enough of a dud for anyone) Can you say unlocked iphone yet?. It’s more of that Steve Jobs is just a slightly hipper Bill Gates. They both want the same things but Jobs is not enough of a human being to admit it yet. They both want the whole wide world to use only thier products and not the competition’s to the point that they no longer listen to the public because the public does not know the industry or what they are talking about.
Also Apple has a nastly habit of NOT ADMITTING ANY problems with it’s products and then quietly fixes them and then lies about it. Come on, the first release if the ipod video had a screen so soft that it would scratch slipping it in and out of it’s own shipped velvet pouch (That was velvet on the OUTSIDE, not inside!) Then all of a sudden, you cant scratch them anymore. If you ask any of those black shirted guges with nose rings and ear streaching hoops what they did, they say we didn’t do anything. It’s the same ipod. Liars.
You will see, the apple TV will get updates to do this and that to quiet the public and they will say that they planned these updates all along.
I will bet the ipohne (Spelled correctly) will be so slow to type anything that you will wish you never sold you’re blackbetter on craigslist.
But all thier products are indeed sexy. Thats because they outsource most of their designs to european companies like Frog Design to make them look that way.
So Steve is the cut throat businessman he always whished to never be. The industry will do that to you.
As for Apple buying NeXT, I saw that coming 10 years ago.
If Apple is reading this, or more to the point, if Steve Jobes reads this, I have this to say,
Steve,
We love the fact that you are a visionary of moder technology. You always have been. But please take note on this bullet points.
1, if you make a product that has a short coming or design flaw, admit it and fix it. Even if it costs millions. OR better yet, ACTUALLY allow the public to test it for a 6 month period. Put them in places like Apple Stores and let the public fondle them and email you their findings. If you implement them, give that person a apple card for lets say 50% all purchases for a year. That says a lot.
2, dont be a microsoft and MAKE everyone use your software like Itunes for everything. Give people a choice. The fact that your Apple TV REQUIRES iTunes means I wont buy it.
Creat option packs for products that fall short out of the box. Some people dont need all the wishes but the fact that we cantg even have them no matter what the cost just stinks. If I could snap a DVD drive, Raid Array and composite or VGA video module under my Apple TV, now we are talking. Give Kolidiscape a run for thier money…
Or a subscription thing. Let me buy airtime to record off the TV. I’ll pay $5 a month to do that.
And location free Apple TV upgrade? I mean, it’s got a network jack guys..Sont and Slingbox do it. How about attacking those dudes? If your TV thinggie did “HD slingbox” AND serve media for $299, Slingbox files chapter 11 whthin 10 days. Period.
I’m still waiting for OSX for my Dell guys…. Now more than ever because it seems that Microsoft refuses to admit that Vista stinks. Thats why major PC companies are shipping XP pro again. Notice? The animal is hurt, step in for the kill Steve..
IN FACT, if you released a stripped down OSX for FREE on the internet, you will bury the Linux market or at least put Unix in every home. AND sell a lot of copies of ilife to pay for it all along with Final Cut Pro (Just think of Final Cut Pro on half a million assorted Dell, HP and Alienware laptops where Pinnicle now resides???)
You know the money is in the software anyway, ask IBM.
I mean, we love your toys, and your getting rich pumping them out. Can I get my Powerbook in green please. I miss that stuff.
If the Apple TV is such a dud, and the reviewer writes about what can make it better, then make that product. Obviously Fortune will provide an opportunity for marketing (this article provides evidence of that), all of the components are well known (discussed in the article), so don’t just sit on your hands and complain about the shortcomings of the Apple TV- do something. And let’s see how Mr. Schlender’s box compares to the other computer (Mac and PC) to high-def video boxes currently offered. If he is so smart, here’s a clear chance to smoke the competition, including Apple, and make some real money. If he’s not an engineer, he can certainly hire them for such a great opportunity. That is, if he actually knows what he’s talking about, but I expect he’s probably not an engineer, and will balk at the opportunity. Time will tell.
Terrible review. Did the author even use an Apple TV? I used one for the first time last week in a friend’s home and it was super-simple, and we watched a few tv shows with no complaints. I did find the blacks a little off on some downloaded content, but not enough to mind much though I’m not a videophile.
I have some hesitation about grabbing one for myself, part of which is taken care of by the 160GB model coming out tomorrow. But what really gets me about this review is how short-sighted it is and how little the author understands that customers want simplicity and something that works when they plug it in, rather than heavier specs that come at the cost of usability.
Actually, this review isn’t terrible since its goal seems to be to attract controversy and anti-Apple diggs. Nice troll.
I love my Apple TV… It is fantastic!!! everyone I know that has one, loves them… This is going to be a very big platform for the brand without a doubt. Jobs knows exactly what he is doing on this one…
We’ll know Apple TV is a dud if and when they discontinue it. Until then it has potential if they can add the improvements the majority of people want. If they fail to do this for whatever reason they’ll have the opportunity to learn the lesson Thomas Edison did when inventing the light bulb. One more thing that doesn’t work. 
I just purchased an Apple TV at the local Costco thinking that it would allow all 3 of our Macs to store their various content for general watching on our HD TV. However, only one computer’s content can be accessed at a time, storage on the Apple TV is not an option and the videos are certainly not enhanced with the uploading. I think we have many other devices at our disposal that do a better job, this product does nothing to advance technology at our home. Maybe iTunes should offer better movies. Who cares if I can get YouTube on widescreen HD? Most of the vids aren’t worth the pixels. It is going back to Costco tomorrow.
I really love my AppleTV. I have music playing constantly on my nice audio system in the living room. I actually watch all of my video podcast I have subscribed to. In fact, there are several podcast in HD and the quality of the video is easily better than what I get through Comcast. Take note: this is rev. 1 product. Take a look at the first iPod or the iTunes store when it opened on day one. The story is not over.
Apple TV could benefit the way old school video stores (remember VHS?) bolstered their inventory — OPEN ITUNES TO INDEPENDENT FILMMAKERS!!!
There is TONS of content - HI-DEF CONTENT - available if Apple would only do for FILMMAKERS what it did for indie-musicians and open up the iTunes to indie-filmmakers.
But no - Mr. Jobs has his Disney-Board-Sitting-Nose firmly ensconsed in BIG MEDIA’S ASS.
This play with Youtube is head-in-the-sand desperation move. He knows he needs indie-content - but he doesn’t want to scare his rattle his big media buddies!
You can’t be serious. Since when has Apple started out of the gate with the best of the best in any product. They enter an arena wary of the competition, stalking the prey, waiting for the right moment to pounce and then KILL THE MARKET. They will do the same with the family room entertainment device (AppleTV) and mobile product (iPhone). It just amazes me how many people want to see Apple fail. They will do and say anything to attempt to effect that eventuality and then remain on the sidelines as they watch the rocket take off (as in the iPod which had the same naysayers at the beginning). Oh please, just get with the program!
Steve Jobs said just today during the Google/You Tube annoucement
( http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/apple-make-youtube-content-available/story.aspx?guid=%7B873FA3D8%2DA3F5%2D4D1C%2DA549%2D27217C1BF30C%7D )
that apple TV was just a hobby.
Hobby defined by the oxford american dictionary is:
1 an activity done regularly in one’s leisure time for pleasure
It may be a vehicle for apple’s content, however, I’m sure there will be evolution on apple TV for a better product as feedback comes back in.
Having read the comments thus far, I find it interesting that so many are cries in the wilderness stemming from loyalty to a brand. Regardless of who makes it, a product either works or it doesn’t. Mr. Schlender’s comments are well-reasoned and well-taken. The oftentimes shrill attacks betray a need to believe that everything Apple and Steve Jobs sell is “insanely great.”
For a version 1 product the Apple TV is great. Sure it doesn’t toast my bread for me nor does it play my 7.1 surround sound audio.
BUT
It plays 720p 24fps video (and I didn’t have to buy into an HD-DVD player that might not survive the format war) it plays my music - podcasts - music videos - iTunes bought TV shows and movies, and displays photos. This is a great product for version 1!
The one thing I’d like more of is true HD content. Guess what? It’ll be coming, in fact look around the iTunes store, there already are independent producers offering HD material. Look out on the web, you’ll find stuff there also.
Stan Timek
There are two main things that Apple TV needs (which it probably will get in the near future, despite Steve Jobs’ promises otherwise):
1. Renting movies - instead of simply purchasing - from iTunes. This will mean that we could rent in iTunes and stream them to Apple TV.
2. DV-R. Why did Apple release the Apple TV, which has a hard drive, without the ability to be a DV-R? That is disappointing!
Is it a dud? Possibly not yet. They do need to add more features, though. And I don’t mean just adding the ability to stream YouTube videos. Until then, I won’t be purchasing one.
The worst thing about Apple TV is I don’t understand it. It doesn’t do anything I want it to. I don’t need it. It must be a marketing committee project. It has nothing I want.
You’re so cute
And so wrong
In the long run.
What did you say about the iPod
During its first year?
Huh??
He must have spent a whole ten minutes working on this piece of journalistic flotsam, recycling criticisms of the Apple TV that have been beaten to death on the internet forums in order to declare it a “dud” and thereby “prove” that Apple is not infallible. Wow, what a news flash. And this, in turn, “proves” that the iPhone MIGHT be disappointing. Whaaat? He makes my head spin.
I especially enjoyed this gem: “Apple TV’s most highly touted feature is its weakest one: It requires an HDTV, but the video you download is so low-res that it looks as fuzzy as plain old broadcast TV. It’s sort of like how the Zune digital music player’s touted Wi-Fi connection only lets you temporarily “lend” music to another Zune.” Yeah right, sort of like that. Not.
No, it is not a dud but Fortune is. It is boring and tendentious - a kind of People Magazine of business.
At one time it was worth chewing on. Now it is only expensive cotton candy worth spitting out.
I love my AppleTV
I think you article is un-fair and misses the point. How easy is it, for most people, to download a movie to your computer and instantly watch them on your wide screen? The movie services I’ve seen expect you to watch the movie on your computer.
My wife and I listen to our music, show anyone who will watch hundreds of pictures in great slide shows with our music. We watch some TV shows without subscribing to their Cable Networks. We even found a 10-year-old cancelled TV show where we watched the complete season, Murder One; good show and available on iTunes.
Our biggest problem is content, we need more movies on iTunes and I think we will see them soon.
I’ve read Fortune a few years now and enjoy the great writing. Your article was a cheap shot, especially your pictures.
JER
I guess it all depends on what you expected. I can convert movies from WMV, AVI, MOV, MKV all to the AppleTV format (see http://www.burningthumb.com to see the software that does that) and transfer/watch them on my wide screen TV. For me that would be enough — no more burning plastic platters.
The YouTube video (coming soon) will be enough to keep the kids on it (they currently watch YouTube using the Wii web browser - now that is lame).
Anyway if you expect too much you’ll be dissapointed. I’m not.
I see from your comments that you are anti apple that is unfortunate when one does not look at a company objectively. You should try to be just as critical to Microsoft and PC”S as well. Tech advances have abounded well from Apple.
Guys, to tell you the thruth i am really dissapointed at Apple for letting all us down with the expected Apple TV. I know there are a lot of flaws, specially the ones about not being able to play DivX or Vobs but the really one that i was expacting was the ability of broadcast a movie on a DVD being played by the superdrive. I have tons of movies on original dvds and i have not being able to access my superdrive using Apple TV tojust play my movie at a different location. I still have to keep a dvd player around. If i am going to hassle to play my dvd movies, i woul djust connect my powerbook to a tv and bammmm, extra super duper powerful Apple TV.
For know my newly acquired apple tv is garbagebound.
Hopefully the new firmware or the next generation will allow that or include a dvd player in the box.
I actually own an apple TV and love it. I downloaded the movie “Queen” on it this weekend, and the quality, while not HD, was absolutely fine. The ability to view photos is what is truly amazing, however. If you take high megapixal photographs, you can view them as never before via Apple TV. As for all the Grouchy Geek’s gripes, he needs a little patience. Apple TV works seamlessly now, and will steadily improve as newer versions and additional firmware is released.
After months of using the device I have to agree that the best feature is the photo slide/screensaver is the best… but you know what? That’s enough. A $299 box to get my ginormous HDtv to show my 5000+ baby pictures… how much was that 10″ digital picture frame again?
What you buy off iTunes is no where near the best quality but that’s not a limitation of the box. I’ve transcoded my DVDs to h.264 but the best quality comes from transcoding my on air HD recordings to h.264. Then you can see what the box can really do (without opening it up). Once bandwidth (or whatever Steve’s problem is) clears up, I fully expect him to say “this isn’t good enough” and crank up the res. Does Steve seem like the guy who would settle for less if he doesn’t need to?
Apple missed a HUGE oportunity by not giving the AppleTV games. The videogame market now is in limbo with no clear winner. Sure, the Wii is great, but can you get your hands on one? XBox 360 is another Microsoft me-too product and the ultra expensive rumble-less PS3 is a failure.
This is what they should do: rename the unispired AppleTV to iConsole. Sell classic arcade games and some new ones, use a trick from the book of Nintendo and choose gameplay over graphics. Use the remote and perhaps the iPod as a controller. Make it a family all-in-one living room device. Karaoke, trivia, TV channels, and you got a hit.
Right now, you’re right, it’s as lame as the Zune.
It seems to me that the real point of this article was to let Brent quietly sneak in a prediction that the iPhone was going to be a failure 
But seriously, the AppleTV was clearly a “chessboard” move by Apple, and an effective one at that.
True, it is not all that it could have been for all peoples, but that wasn’t its intent: its intent was to do a couple of core tasks reasonably well and to establish a foothold in the marketplace that people could clearly see that had the same potential as the iPod - - that’s why the content for it is a module within iTunes, instead of a new, stand-alone product.
The HD content will eventually come: the iTunes business model has proven to its skeptics that it works and makes money, so its not “ground-breaking” work, but merely an extension. Companies want to make money and being able to sell content without having to create a physical product is particularly appealing.
On to the TiVO.
There’s invariably TiVO comparisons, but what people miss when comparing differences in features is that this is merely a repeat of the “buy vs rent” paradigm.
The AppleTV uses the “buy” paradigm. If you buy the unit and do nothing more, it costs you nothing more: its monthly costs are zero, so its lifecycle cost is contained.
But on the TiVO, you need a paid subscription to effectively use it, which fits the model of a rental. This is why they can sell the basic box for cheap: the TiVO’s lifecycle costs are open-ended, so they’ll make their money back on the monthly fees.
its no coincidence that TiVO no longer sells a pay-one-price “lifetime” service contract.
At TiVO’s current rate struture, after only 1 year prepaid, the maximum price difference in favor of the TiVO has narrowed to roughly $20. Depending on which Service Plan you choose to buy, the AppleTV probably becomes cheaper (lifecycle costs) between 14 and 36 months.
-hh
endgadget link to steve jobs live at D 2007 http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/30/steve-jobs-live-from-d-2007/
AppleTv is “a hobby”.
I agree with many posters here that Apple will evolve AppleTV into something much better in the years to come. But I also agree with Brent’s review of the AppleTV as it is NOW. Its crap now. One day I may say (and I hope to do so) its a great product, but for now its crap.
The AppleTV will flourish when Jobs/Apple allows it to play other video formats (non-apple ones). Once they open it up for Divx and the like it will be a hit. People dont mind converting a few shows and movies for the ipod–its pretty fast since your converting to a smaller screen, but most people dont want to convert when its going to take hours!
There are a few hacks to force the appleTV to play divx, xvid and a few other formats but its a crapshoot at best.
And if your one of those people that dont think “pirates” and other downloaders matter think again. Most of them are walking around with ipods and would love a product like this at home. I would, if it wasnt crap.
I completely agree with the critique. I believe the AppleTV should include much more than it does at present. Here is my list of features that could have made it a great product:
- A coffee warmer
- A 5 disk DVD changer
- Blu Ray
- HD DVD
- A video game system
- A full wireless keyboard with a button labeled “internet”
- A dock to charge my robotic vacuum cleaner
…and many more items that I don’t have time to list. Darn it Apple, why couldn’t you guys just give it more features?! More! More! Oh yes, and keep it at $300 please. Thanks.
Maybe the Apple TV really is Steve Jobs doing his best with the genre. Maybe he doesn’t get it.
Interesting that you say the iPod was NOt the product of someone with a tin ear. But the iPod’s success has to do with its size, its UI, its simplicity, all things that have nothing to do with the quality of the music. And the quality of the music is INCREDIBLE to anyone raised on computer speakers…but not high fidelity. Tin ears rejoice at the iPod; the rest of us accept that it is what it is.
By the way, in the name of ease of use, why is the blog organized with the latest comment on top? Why do I have to scroll to the bottom, scroll up to read DOWN to the end of a comment, then scroll up, then scroll down to read to the end of a comment, repeat repeat repeat…could it be that someone here doesn’t get how people read?
I think you’re absolutely correct. I’m an apple fan and customer, but this apple tv is not useful. It doesn’t solve any problems that consumers have, it solves problems that apple has–namely they want to be able to bridge the gap between your computer and your tv before their competitors. Why pay them to solve their problems?
Can you fanboys stop already?
AppleTV is not a “revolutionary product”. There has been streaming video devices out for years now.
If by “revolutionary product” you mean the first to be tied into the great Apple monopoly then I apologize.
.mov phhht!
Why would someone want to turn on their TV just to listen to music? (in response to a comment below)
If you want to stream music then get a slim device. No TV required.
Now if you want to stream video from your computer skip the AppleTV and wait for the mass of products that will be out when the N standard is finalized. I am sure there will be a few products that will suite everyones needs including Vobs(dvds in a folder) and DivX.
The AppleTV is great if you already have a big TV and Apple computers with large iPhoto collections. A big screen TV is the BEST way for a group to view your digital pictures. Before the AppleTV I had to mess with cables to hook my laptop to the TV, and the result was low resolution because of the S-Video output. Now I can see the screen’s full HD resolution because the AppleTV has HDMI output. We can now easily view our slideshows with music on the big TV.
Regardless of the product, there will always be someone who wants it to do and be more than its design. I think that most people are looking at the Apple TV as an all-in-one multimedia solution. It obviously was not intended to be such. I believe that Apple TV’s primary purpose is to provide a relatively inexpensive means of liberating people from their Macs (PCs) so that they may enjoy their media elsewhere in their homes. To that end, I believe that the Apple TV serves its purpose.
For a $300 product, the Apple TV cannot be expected to be the latest in multi-media marvels (although some may argue that, in some sense, it is). Those who want features such as direct purchasing of media, a DVD player, etc should look toward the Mini with the addition of a wireless mouse and keyboard. The Mini can also act as a household media server with the addition of an external drive. The Apple TV was obviously not intended to fulfill this role.
I think that it is a bit irresponsible for a professional journalist to write a technology review landblasting a product just because the product doesn’t meet his (or her in the abstract) personal desires. It is even more irresponsible for a professional journalist to disparage a product that hasn’t even been released yet (iPhone). Hopefully, Fortune isn’t so careless in their financial analyses as well.
i agree with the geek and i’m an apple fan. appletv is a great concept, but poorly executed. similar to the Newton it was released before it’s time. why release a product requiring hdtv when still a lot of folks don’t have hdtv, now they’re only appealing to a niche audience. and no dvd, no way to buy movies directly from i-tunes, no widescreen hd movies to buy (or rent), limited sharing, no volume, and from what i read quicktime issues. for you people who it’s a good “first step” yes it is, but are you saying you’ll trash your new appletv and buy a new one when/if they come out with one with aa lot more features - if so, you are willing to just keep spending $300 every 2-3 years for every upgraded console? not everyo
I was very enthusiastic about purchasing an Apple TV until I thought about it and realized that it didn’t support any of my primary usage scenarios, recording from the TV and DVD playing. Now I realize that if they had included this that the cost would probably be a lot closer to that of a Mac mini. While not everyone would be willing to pay that much, I would have.