Apple TV Pros and Cons

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What are the pros and cons of Apple TV? What is the latest version and are there plans to launch a new version? Can I my iMac as a dvd player and view the movie on my HD tv?
 
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What are the pros and cons of Apple TV? What is the latest version and are there plans to launch a new version? Can I my iMac as a dvd player and view the movie on my HD tv?


Pros:

If you are heavily invested in itunes this is the only streamer that can get your content to your tv.
If you use all apple products, they will interact well with apple tv.

Cons:

Apple locks out all competing storefronts. If you use Ultraviolet, which most studios support today, you will not be able to get Vudu, Target ticket, Cinema now, M-go, Flixster or any way of playing your movies.

Lack of Apps.....Compared to non locked down streamers like Roku, Apple tv hardly has any apps at all, and no App store like Roku does.
 

Slydude

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For me the Apple TV has proven an easy way to get my iTunes library housed on a network drive to my stereo and TV. I had tried several pieces of server software running on the Mac but ran into several problems:

1. Less than stellar directions for setup / configuration
2. Did not play nice with the Samsung DBD player which could supposedly push the content to the TV/Stereo.
3. Not only did some of these programs have limited support for stuff in the iTunes format, on some programs I had issues with common formats like .mp3. Some files played correctly and others did not.

I concede that the Samsung Blu Ray player may have been a less than stellar choice for the "front end" but it should have worked given that the apps in question were supposed to work with it.

With the Apple TV things are just working. I do have Home Sharing turned on because much of the stuff in my iTunes library is not yet "in the cloud". That means my Mac has to be on for that content. The up side is the ATV is recognized in iTunes so I can be sitting at the computer and send music to the ATV in another room so it plays through the stereo.

Two annoyances that I have found so far are:

1. To play Amazon Prime content I have to use my iPhone or iPad to send it to the Apple TV. This is ridiculous IMHO.
2. There is some ESPN content that I can view from my computer that I cannot view on my Apple TV because my provider is not one of those listed on the ATV.
 

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For those streaming movies from multiple sources and one of them is iTunes, really need both a Roku and an Apple TV currently.

The other advantage of the Apple TV is the ability to stream from your computer via Airplay for all the stuff that is still online, but not available through either of the above. So, you could still watch your Ultraviolet content (for example) via the Apple TV.
 

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I hadn't thought of that. I haven't experimented with ultraviolet. I don't have time to watch the content I already have access to.
 
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Wireless mirroring from the Mac,iPad and iPhone ain't bad on the ATV3 .
 

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It works quite well. That's how I've played the few Amazon Prime videos I've tried. The Amazon app works fine on my iPhone and iPad. I can then send it to the Apple TV. I just think it is ridiculous that there isn't an Apple TV app to play it directly.

Note: My machine is old enough that Airplay doesn't work for that. Even if I could the Mac is in another room so I can't use it to push the Amazon content to the TV.
 
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It works quite well. That's how I've played the few Amazon Prime videos I've tried. The Amazon app works fine on my iPhone and iPad. I can then send it to the Apple TV. I just think it is ridiculous that there isn't an Apple TV app to play it directly.

I guess I don't give it much thought as its one of the apps on my Panasonic Plasma .
 
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Note: My machine is old enough that Airplay doesn't work for that. Even if I could the Mac is in another room so I can't use it to push the Amazon content to the TV.

You need Air Parrot mate. Worked well for me, when I had one of those that didn't Airplay to my ATV. Worth the 10er :)
 

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I actually tried it a few weeks ago and liked it. Had to experiment a bit with the settings but it works nicely. I'll be kicking in a 10 spot soon.
 
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I actually tried it a few weeks ago and liked it. Had to experiment a bit with the settings but it works nicely. I'll be kicking in a 10 spot soon.

Good stuff. Squirrels make some good Apps, and have been trying out their SlingShot which is a great way for Screen Sharing, Video Conferencing and so on for the Corporate market. They have a 30 Day trial, and me and my 10yr old have been having some fun,
I also have their Reflector, which I use for some Apps, to have them on the Big Screen (iMac) while I type away on my MBP. . . They are up there with Avatron with their OTA Capabilities now.
 
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If you own other Apple hardware, don't give it a second thought get the Apple TV. Mirroring via Airplay is more than worth it. I also own a Roku and it is not as versatile for my use, since I do have other Apple computers. Also, don't let others convince you that Roku is better because of all of the apps and channels. I have seen them, and 98% of them are terrible. If you enjoy old D grade Kung Fu movies, and silent movie westerns, then the Roku might be up your alley.
 
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I've had no issues with Apple TV, though I honestly expected some connectivity glitches. I'm not as media-hungry as some people though, I mainly watch Netflix and YouTube and listen to my iTunes library, though I do like exploring some of the free stuff on the Smithsonian Channel and Crunchyroll.

AirPlay is great for when I want to watch movie files from my iMac, but it does not mirror the DVD Player, unfortunately. I have to switch over to my blu-ray player, which is kind of a pain. But you can mirror VLC player, which plays DVD's too.
 
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If you are all in with Apple and have or want all your video in itunes, apple TV is your ONLY choice. Apple will not allow any competition like Vudu or any of the UV storefronts on Apple TV.
 
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It was a little more money but I bought a refurbed Mini and use that as my entertainment hub. Full access to iTunes and to everything available on the web for viewing. Not sure about apps but really don't need them as I can go to Hulu and Netflix's web sites to view content.
 
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Vudu is not "competition" that is "not allowed" -- they haven't written an app for the Apple TV yet. Perhaps they will. Ditto Amazon Prime -- ball's in their court, not Apple's.

Frankly, not supporting Ultraviolet is a huge PLUS for the Apple TV as far as I'm concerned. Flixster was the worse digital video experience I've ever encountered -- and that includes spending much of the 90s trying to figure out how to make MS video formats play on Macs!
 
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I just tried the trial edition. Not impressed. It said it couldn't connect to Apple TV (3rd generation). Also looked at the Airparrot remote in Itunes and they want $7.99 for it?
Not for me thanks
 

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What kind of remote application are you looking for? In other words, what are you trying to control? There are a number of remote programs in the App Store. Some of them are free.
 
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The Airparrot remote. I see, I'm new to the forum. I was replying to the post about Airparrot but evidently didn't do it correctly.
 

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No problem. I kinda thought that was it. There are several remotes there that control the Apple TV. Apple added one recently that controls the Apple TV from an iPhone or iPad. I think it is geared to work with the Apple TV 4 but I've tested it with the Apple TV 3 and it works well.
 

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