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nice little demo of the apple TV system for those who are interested. i have to say the menu system kills MCE in simplicity/useability (but probably lacks some functionality) but it certainly looks nice with the animations/transitions etc.
Yeah I have to say that I am extremely disappointed with this product.... It's a great price, but is definitely no HTPC replacement.... I love the fact that My media center can play DVDs and record TV onto the hard drive.... this box has no TV, no guide, and only a measley 40gb hard drive! Ipods now are much larger than 40gbs so I don't see what was the benefit of Apple skimping here! and the fact that they could have easily kept it at the same size as a mac mini and included a DVD drive.
I am a big mac fan in terms of the way they package a solution where they supply highly stable Computers because they design the OS, and package it to work with specific hardware, which is mass manufactured. This way mac makes sure it works, otherwise they would get millions upon millions of complaints. The innovation in Mac OSX is also a great accolade to Apple.... But It seems that they sell themselves short in the HTPC market... So many people have issue with the stability o their MCE and here is a great opportunity for Apple to capitalize and instead they deliver a 1/2 assed solution, purely dominated buy the user having to download and pay for content.
Next to the iphone, this seems like such a pathetic product.... Mind you the price tax is sure to attract some people. I'll wait for the "Generation 2" model which hopefully has a built in tuner and hard drive.... in other words when apple builds a complete solution.
It's a nice small box though and seems to work fast. I can't understand why MS haven't gone this way and made a dedicated device with built in HDD. With dedicated hardware it could be made rock solid... Course, then there'd be no need for the site I guess..
Cheers,
Arkay.
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The box said 'Requires Windows XP or better' - so I installed Linux . . .
I don't think you'll ever find FTA TV integration with this product other than its ability to place shift recordings from a networked computer.
AppleTV is a VOD device, designed specifically to interface and download (read: generate bucketloads of money from) TV programs and movies purchased from the iTunes store.
This functionality is largely lost on the Australian market, as unlike the US, the iTunes Australia store does not presently have the rights to offer TV and movie downloads.
The 40Gb HDD is more or less for buffering or 'parking' these downloads, rather than long term storage.
I feel Apple had their future iTunes revenue stream in mind first and foremost with this product, rather than a fully funtional, all encompassing 'Media Centre' style device as we know it.
This may be a smart move in the long term (when the FTA model eventially breaks down), but I fear Apple may be a little bit ahead of their time with this product, particularly in Australia with its limited high speed broadband availablity.
It's a nice small box though and seems to work fast. I can't understand why MS haven't gone this way and made a dedicated device with built in HDD. With dedicated hardware it could be made rock solid... Course, then there'd be no need for the site I guess..
Cheers,
Arkay.
They have and its called the xbox 360 - Microsoft have announced an xbox 360 iptv version for later this year.
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Impact: Not only by name, but the force I want to use with my Media Center
No doubt Appal will market it as "Apple re-invents TV" or some such garbage (sorry, that should be trash).
There are any number of media streaming devices that do it all now & aren't tied to iTunes.
Even the X360 has been unlocked from MCE to some extent, but as a combo with an MCE machine, there's no comparison. With the DVD capability along with the obvious software & relatively easy hardware upgradability (there'll be larger hard drives soon enough & HDMI will no doubt come), the X360 seems like it will be able to morph in to whatever it needs to become (such as an IPTV STB). About the only thing it seems that it can't become is a stand alone PVR, but what if they added support for something like DigitalNow's Dual USB tuner & a 120GB hard drive? The MPEG2 decoding is already there, so it's not such a massive leap. Instead of being a Media Center Extender, it could potentially become a Media Center outright.
Justin
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VMC32: Asus M3N78-EMH HDMI, 4850e, TMG A2 CPU Cooler, 2x1GB Kingston HyperX 800, 2 x HVR-2200 (4 tuners), 500GB Samsung, NSK2480B. Connected to a Metz 32 inch LCD.
Office/Server: Abit A-N78HD, BE-2350, 2x1GB Kingston HyperX 800, 2 x AverTV Duo (4 tuners), CoolerMaster Centurion 5 Tower.
Last edited by logifuse; 19th January 2007 at 02:38 PM.
Ive been told by sources that there are no plans for HDMI for the 360, based primarily on the fact that Sony have not or will not be releasing PS3 with HDMI. This is a shame because it was something i have been waiting for. Im sure though by say 2010 when the next Microsoft console comes out HDMI will be in it.
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No doubt Appal will market it as "Apple re-invents TV" or some such garbage (sorry, that should be trash).
Apple Lets You Watch TV In Your Living Room Thats what im thinking. lol.
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Microsoft have announced an xbox 360 iptv version for later this year.
The thing i am thinking about this is will it be available in Australia? Are there or will there be any Networks using IPTV, I certainly hope so, The xbox is slowly becoming an essential part of the living room for Home Theatre enthusiasts or for any family for that matter.
Ive been told by sources that there are no plans for HDMI for the 360, based primarily on the fact that Sony have not or will not be releasing PS3 with HDMI. This is a shame because it was something i have been waiting for. Im sure though by say 2010 when the next Microsoft console comes out HDMI will be in it.
It's odd that they're shying away from HDMI. You'd think they'd be on the HDCP bandwagon, yet by delaying it (or by leaving it half pregnant), they might actually be killing it.
Despite that, I'm still expecting to see HDMI on the X360 before the end of it's run - it's fundamentally PC based & you would assume (sorry, not right on the technicals of the 360) that it's video would be "natively" DVI, & therefore it should be HDMI capable.
