TUAW says "Is the Apple TV being replaced?"

[frankiepdx]

http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/27/rumor-is-the-apple-tv-being-replaced/

We just got an e-mail from an anonymous Apple reseller, stating that they received an e-mail from Apple with instructions to remove all Apple TV displays and literature and to destroy them (which I assume means throw away the literature, send back the Apple TVs) by September 30, 2008 at 5 PM. Additionally, the e-mail says that there will be a webcast "kick off" on September 30.

Incidentally, September 30 IS a Tuesday (and the last day of the September quarter), making all of this information, very, very interesting.

So, what does this mean? Could this potentially be the introduction of the Mini/Apple TV hybrid we've all been begging for? Is this related to "the brick?"

[Tilpots]

I'd love for this to be true, but the source from the article is more than questionable. Hopeful, but I'm not holding my breath.

[kfordham281]

I absolutely love my AppleTV! I hope they don't stop working on the AppleTV software if this rumor is true.

[Peace]

This is interesting only because when 10.5.5 came out there was a Front Row update. The Apple TV got no update. In the past when a Front Row update came out the Apple TV got an update also.

We will see.

[Tilpots]

Anyone know TUAW's accuracy in their predictions?

[liketom]

Anyone know TUAW's accuracy in their predictions?

the quote Engadget/Macrumors and Digg most of the time :D

[frankiepdx]

Anyone know TUAW's accuracy in their predictions?

Go through the posts on the rumors list and make your own decision.

http://www.tuaw.com/category/rumors/

[ipedro]

This sounds like bullschmitt. The source is fishy and there's been no other indication of other retailers reporting the same thing.

:apple:tv might get an HDD boast or hardware refresh at the October 14th event to ready it for Christmas, but I don't see it being replaced or discontinued.

[Wanderer]

I am seriously glad I saw this. I have a couple of Wally World gift cards burning a hole in my pocket and was thinking about getting an AppleTV this afternoon. I'll wait now.:p

[frankiepdx]

I am seriously glad I saw this. I have a couple of Wally World gift cards burning a hole in my pocket and was thinking about getting an AppleTV this afternoon. I'll wait now.:p

I was thinking about a Mac Mini........so now we wait.

[Tilpots]

Go through the posts on the rumors list and make your own decision.

http://www.tuaw.com/category/rumors/

They summarize other people's predictions... so that page is no help. This seems to be something they're predicting exclusively.

arn usually has a backstory on predictiors and their accuracy. Not expecting to hear from him on this rumor because it's not even remotely substantiated, just want to know if anybody recalls them being correct on past predictions of their own.

[abhimat.gautam]

TUAW did post a prediction about the "Mac Fusion" before WWDC 2008 (link (http://www.tuaw.com/2008/06/08/rumor-mac-fusion-a-new-developer-mac/)). However, this news about the Apple TV has some form of evidence backing it, and I wish it turns out to be true :D.

[QuarterSwede]

arn usually has a backstory on predictiors and their accuracy. Not expecting to hear from him on this rumor because it's not even remotely substantiated, just want to know if anybody recalls them being correct on past predictions of their own.
My guess is that he's researching it now.

[frankiepdx]

They summarize other people's predictions... so that page is no help. This seems to be something they're predicting exclusively.

Where else would you find TUAW posts about rumors?

[arn]

Anyone know TUAW's accuracy in their predictions?

TUAW is very loose about their rumors, and will publish things if they are remotely interesting without much concern about accuracy.

So I would trust a random post by them as much as I trust a random unconfirmed submission. Which is to say not that much.

But, reseller communications should be verifiable... so we'll see if we hear more about it.

arn

[Tilpots]

TUAW is very loose about their rumors, and will publish things if they are remotely interesting without much concern about accuracy.

So I would trust a random post by them as much as I trust a random unconfirmed submission. Which is to say not that much.

But, reseller communications should be verifiable... so we'll see if we hear more about it.

arn

Thanks, arn. I know we'll hear more about it if you do.

[zedsdead]

It's about time. I just hope it is true. Love my Apple TV, but as we all know it needs a kick in the behind.

[kornyboy]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

Wow. I didn't see this one coming if it is true.

[shadowmoses]

I think that a Mac Mini/Apple TV hybrid of some kind is on the way for sure. DIdn't expect this so suddenly though, expect rumors to be rife from Monday.....

ShadoW

[Peace]

I think that a Mac Mini/Apple TV hybrid of some kind is on the way for sure. DIdn't expect this so suddenly though, expect rumors to be rife from Monday.....

ShadoW


I too believe this "hybrid" is coming as I've said many times. It's just a matter of when.

TUAW may just be passing along an unsubstantiated rumor or it could be true.

As far as the Apple store. They almost always have the item for sale regardless of it getting an update.

If this rumor is true. Like arn said we would start seeing confirmations from other resellers.

I did a quick look at Best Buy and Amazon. They had them for sale online next day shipping. The Best Buy B&M stores showd about a 50/50 in stock.

[Gerg]

Their follow-up states that some are suggesting that the license for using the images in the promotional materials expires on September 30th, thus they must be removed. It may be a false alarm.

[Peace]

Their follow-up states that some are suggesting that the license for using the images in the promotional materials expires on September 30th, thus they must be removed. It may be a false alarm.

Those are comments and email from readers. Nothing new from their "source"

[creator2456]

Could this be the 'Brick' that is being passed around??? We wait and see.

[swingerofbirch]

I cannot say where I work or anything, but at the place where I provide services, the full line of Apple products are sold, and I don't think I have come across a customer interested in buying an Apple TV in the last six months or so.

I think of the Apple TV as being similar to the Airport Express--they both do a lot of things and have cool niches, but it's not easy to sell because it's not great at one thing, it does lots of little things. I could see them re-branding Apple TV as part of the Airport line up. Like Airport TV. Or Air TV. If it were part of that family, I think expectations might drop for it a bit which would be a good thing.

[Dagless]

Damn, I've been building up my iTunes collection somewhat in the hopes that when I get my own place I can hook up an :apple:TV and stream all them lovely files.

Hope it's not true, or that they're replacing it with something better.

[DavidLeblond]

If they add the ability to watch Hulu and abc.com on there, I'd be all over it in a heartbeat.

[Dejavu]

If true, please Apple release an Apple TV that can take 3.5" hard drives so capacity isn't an issue. 40GB and 160GB are ****! And make it 1080P and faster too.

[Chris Rogers]

I cannot say where I work or anything, but at the place where I provide services, the full line of Apple products are sold, and I don't think I have come across a customer interested in buying an Apple TV in the last six months or so.

I think of the Apple TV as being similar to the Airport Express--they both do a lot of things and have cool niches, but it's not easy to sell because it's not great at one thing, it does lots of little things. I could see them re-branding Apple TV as part of the Airport line up. Like Airport TV. Or Air TV. If it were part of that family, I think expectations might drop for it a bit which would be a good thing.

Or how about Apple Air EVERYTHING instead of TV?

TV, Music, Pictures, Airport, Hard drive all in one. :D Why not throw in a computer too?

This would then mean there will be 'fire sales' of the current ones?

[nzguy]

This kind of fits with the talk about the "brick" and a couple of pictures I've seen with the new macbook besides a wireless black device about half the size of apple t.v. Maybe with the launch of the new macbooks they are combining the apple tv and the time capsule to make an all in one hub which wireless connects to everything. This would make sense, as both devices probably arn't selling that well, they are always trying to simplify, why not chuck one more device out.

I guess the only problem would be connecting a printer that's not wireless, you
wouldn't want to have your printing siting beside you t.v.

Would be good to see an overhaul of the time machine anyway, I was going to buy one when i get the new macbooks (when they finally come out), but the feedback on the apple website and other places is horrible. They need to assure me it's gunna be as smooth as the rest of their products before I pay the premium.

[Steve Jobs=God]

Best not be true, i've just ordered my ATV!

[frankiepdx]

Best not be true, i've just ordered my ATV!

If true, I'll be using mine as media extenders.

[Aldaris]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

Steve has often stuck to "appleTV is a hobby". A refresh might be there, and probably is. A few points:
1. AppleTV did not get a software update with iTunes 8
2. AppleTV cannot purchase HD Television shows directly.

An update to go 1080p would be great, I'm not sure if that would require a hardware update. A larger storage/external storage solution would be great. An optical drive for DVD/BluRay support would be a logical direction eventually- a one step solution for most entertainment needs- with iTunes store support and rentals.

Although a random anonymous email still is suspicious to me. Anyone else hear anything?

[The Awesome]

I am seriously glad I saw this. I have a couple of Wally World gift cards burning a hole in my pocket and was thinking about getting an AppleTV this afternoon. I'll wait now.:p

I was thinking about a Mac Mini........so now we wait.

Damn, I've been building up my iTunes collection somewhat in the hopes that when I get my own place I can hook up an :apple:TV and stream all them lovely files.

Hope it's not true, or that they're replacing it with something better.

Yeah, I hope Apple TV and Mac Mini get improved.

[fastbite]

The link to all of this will be the iphone.

[KenBox]

I was in Target, last week and all apple TVs are on clearance.

[Chris Rogers]

I was in Target, last week and all apple TVs are on clearance.

how much?

[TheSlush]

If they add the ability to watch Hulu and abc.com on there, I'd be all over it in a heartbeat.

Holding our breath on that?? :)

[squeakfoo]

I'm not an authorized reseller, but I'll give you the info that is causing this rumor.

Dear Valued Apple Reseller,

As you know, Apple's applicable Policies and Practices, including changes and additional requirements that Apple may have in connection with those, apply to you under the Apple Authorized Reseller Program. At this time, Apple would like to inform you of an additional important requirement pursuant to the Policies and Practices regarding the removal and disposal of certain Apple TV fixtures.

This communication serves as official notice of the requirement, pursuant to the Policies and Practices, that you remove the Apple TV fixtures produced by Apple no later than 5pm local time on September 30, 2008. You will be required to destroy the specific fixture appearing in the picture below. Apple's licensing rights to the images referenced here expires at the end of this month. Continued display of the images may lead to legal action by the licensor.


While the terms of your Apple Authorized Reseller Agreement and the Policies and Practices require your compliance with this notice, in this case, Apple would prefer to receive an email confirmation of your compliance with this request no later than 5PM local time on September 30, 2008.

You may send the confirmation email to: channelpromo@apple.com and your Apple Account Executive.

You may remove the Apple TV unit in order to keep this operational at your demonstration station. As a reminder, please note that all Apple TV demonstration loops were to be deleted no later than July 30, 2008.

Once again, you must comply with the requirements in this letter and complete these actions no later than 5PM local time on September 30, 2008. Failure to comply with the instructions above may result in termination from the Apple Authorized Reseller Program. We would like to help you avoid that so please send the requested confirmation on or before the stated deadline.

Please remember that this letter and its contents are Confidential Information of Apple under the terms of your Apple Authorized Reseller Agreement and shall be maintained as required under those terms.

We appreciate your compliance with this requirement.

Sincerely,

Apple Channel Sales
Apple Inc.

[RemarkabLee]

Whatever a new device would be called, I hope it has a fuller implementation of h.264 profiles and can handle higher bitrates and resolutions.

I had to sell on my Apple TV because couldn't playback h.264 files at close to blu-ray standard. :mad:

[Peace]

Rumor Squashed.




Next ?

[Tilpots]

Rumor Squashed.




Next ?

iSpaceships next Tuesday!:eek:

[ReanimationLP]

I wouldnt be surprised if the Apple TV gets rebuilt with more RAM, a dual-core Atom processor and a GeForce 8200m/9300m graphics card, then uses a SATA 2.5" disk drive.

I guess with all that they could sell 1080p content then too.

[xenotaku]

Maybe they are combining the :apple:TV with the TimeCapsule which is what should have happened a long time ago.

[aswitcher]

Apple TV + Timecapsule would really rock.

[ipedro]

I'm not an authorized reseller, but I'll give you the info that is causing this rumor.

Dear Valued Apple Reseller,

As you know, Apple's applicable Policies and Practices, including changes and additional requirements that Apple may have in connection with those, apply to you under the Apple Authorized Reseller Program. At this time, Apple would like to inform you of an additional important requirement pursuant to the Policies and Practices regarding the removal and disposal of certain Apple TV fixtures.

This communication serves as official notice of the requirement, pursuant to the Policies and Practices, that you remove the Apple TV fixtures produced by Apple no later than 5pm local time on September 30, 2008. You will be required to destroy the specific fixture appearing in the picture below. Apple's licensing rights to the images referenced here expires at the end of this month. Continued display of the images may lead to legal action by the licensor.


While the terms of your Apple Authorized Reseller Agreement and the Policies and Practices require your compliance with this notice, in this case, Apple would prefer to receive an email confirmation of your compliance with this request no later than 5PM local time on September 30, 2008.

You may send the confirmation email to: channelpromo@apple.com and your Apple Account Executive.

You may remove the Apple TV unit in order to keep this operational at your demonstration station. As a reminder, please note that all Apple TV demonstration loops were to be deleted no later than July 30, 2008.

Once again, you must comply with the requirements in this letter and complete these actions no later than 5PM local time on September 30, 2008. Failure to comply with the instructions above may result in termination from the Apple Authorized Reseller Program. We would like to help you avoid that so please send the requested confirmation on or before the stated deadline.

Please remember that this letter and its contents are Confidential Information of Apple under the terms of your Apple Authorized Reseller Agreement and shall be maintained as required under those terms.

We appreciate your compliance with this requirement.

Sincerely,

Apple Channel Sales
Apple Inc.

Thanks for posting that. It looks like the photos used in the ad are the ones featured in the original :apple:tv video. The use of those photos were the target of a lawsuit against Apple for unauthorized use. Apparently, Apple settled by buying the rights to those photos, rights which will expire on Sept. 30.

Apple is in fact allowing the :apple:tv unit to remain. They simply want the collateral to be destroyed.

So this rumor is nothing more than a misunderstanding and some wishful thinking.

[gkarris]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

The new Mini and AppleTV will share common parts. Just like the Aluminum MacBook family.

[lewisd25]

I'd love to see a new Apple TV with Slingbox-like capability, allowing you to watch your cable tv or satellite locally and remotely thru iTunes. The new Apple TV would contain a live program guide, and include "Genius" that would make suggestions on what tv shows to watch based on your viewing habits. Plus, the usual features like built-in hard drive (w/ eSATA port on back), integrated iTunes store, movie rentals, etc.

[eleven59]

i just dont see the concept of the :apple:tv going away.. "hobby" or not... apple has just put way to much effort and such establishing itunes as the place to get your movies, shows and music... therefore they need something to output those special files onto your tv.. which is where most of us still prefer to watch.

hopefully it is a mini/tv combination- power of mini with easy tv viewing of :apple:tv...


what still perplexes me is the lack of blue-ray.. apple supported it.. and even if its the last media for movies and even if that doesnt happen for 5yrs or more... wouldnt having an :apple:tv with blueray make it an even easier decision for consumers to want to buy the :apple:tv? thus introducing them to the ease and future of downloading everything...

i understand they want to push the future forward but blue ray is still "new" and at best we will have a few years of transitioning... so why not transition with the technology if it means grabbing future customers??

the downside to blue ray in :apple:tv??? well this is apple, so that means a $1500 :apple:tv!!! ;)

[Vikz]

uuuum... i work at a apple reseller store in PR and we haven't heard or been told of anything like this. :confused:

[ipedro]

what still perplexes me is the lack of blue-ray.. apple supported it.. and even if its the last media for movies and even if that doesnt happen for 5yrs or more... wouldnt having an :apple:tv with blueray make it an even easier decision for consumers to want to buy the :apple:tv? thus introducing them to the ease and future of downloading everything...

i understand they want to push the future forward but blue ray is still "new" and at best we will have a few years of transitioning... so why not transition with the technology if it means grabbing future customers??

the downside to blue ray in :apple:tv??? well this is apple, so that means a $1500 :apple:tv!!! ;)

Well, aside from this rumor being shown to be a misunderstanding – :apple:tv is not being discontinued – I'll address your BluRay comment.

Although BluRay won the format war against HD-DVD, that war went on for too long and it's becoming apparent that both will lose in the end as a media format. Adoption has been slow and digital online distribution is beginning to take hold.

Most people are happy with their DVD collection. Without the online features of BluRay 2.0 being heavily advertised, the majority of consumers can't see the benefit and aren't adopting the technology with the critical mass that is needed to make it a success. By the time 2.0 is finalized and the prices come down enough to satisfy the broader market, digital distribution will already be in people's homes with devices that are quite inexpensive to make.

I'm skipping BluRay and have gone straight to :apple:tv and I can see many people doing the same.

If anything, the next :apple:tv will be a refresh with a bigger HDD and a more attractive price.

[Penguinwrangler]

What's preventing them from making this a DVR device as well?

[Rocketman]

Retail set top boxes.

[AtHomeBoy_2000]

Last night I was thinking, might it be smarter to work out a deal with Tivo to connect up with iTunes?

Or, maybe for full on into the DVR market WITHOUT monthly subscriptions.

Either way, I dont think the Apple TV worked quite how they had hoped.

[AtHomeBoy_2000]

What's preventing them from making this a DVR device as well?

Tivo's patents have caused some issues with other companies.

[ipedro]

What's preventing them from making this a DVR device as well?

Try telling the TV networks that you're going to enable their potential iTunes customers to record their content for free.... and see how many of those TV networks keep their content on iTunes.

A DVR goes against the iTunes ecosystem business model. You and I'd love to have it but we can't have both a DVR and a healthy iTunes store. I'd rather have the latter.

[corinhorn]

I wish Apple would simply produce an actual TV with all the streaming and iTunes Store stuff included.

[gkarris]

Makes sense that it's just the marketing materials - the movie "Cars" is featured and that's a bit old at this point...

Apple's website is more up to date than the store materials:

http://www.apple.com/appletv/

Makes sense that it's time to update the store materials as well...

[Tilpots]

Try telling the TV networks that you're going to enable their potential iTunes customers to record their content for free.... and see how many of those TV networks keep their content on iTunes.

Yeah, the Networks pulled all the content from cable and satellite subscribers and all those damn Tivo owners...:rolleyes: Please find a new argument, this one is soooo wrong.


A DVR goes against the iTunes ecosystem business model. You and I'd love to have it but we can't have both a DVR and a healthy iTunes store. I'd rather have the latter.

The ecosystem thing again, too? The iTunes business model = sell more hardware. That's it.

DVR is on the horizon for Apple, maybe just not this Tuesday.

[KenBox]

how much?

I believe it was 192.99

[sushi]

Maybe they are combining the :apple:TV with the TimeCapsule which is what should have happened a long time ago.
Agree.

Apple TV + Timecapsule would really rock.
Yes it would.

As multimedia storage requirements increase this would make sense.

Who knows, maybe we will see a small NAS type device that combines the Timecapsule and Apple TV functions.

[SilverRubicon]

deleted

[mambodancer]

Why this would even be reported erroneously as a rumor is just irresponsible on TAUWs part.

I get weekly eMails from Apple through service source and sales web including the eMail reported in this thread. At no point in the email did Apple ever hint at anything other than, "Please take down these marketing materials because the material and the licenses they advertise expire on such and such a date."

In fact, having worked in retail for over 25 years, this is an extremely common thing to do from almost ever vendor. The exact same kind of communication occurred when the ads featuring the Chinese basketball player and the actor that played mini-me expired. We were requested to take down the card board cutouts and destroy them.

TAUWs reporting this as "rumor" was a blatant attempt to grab attention. Shame on them!

[mambodancer]

I was in Target, last week and all apple TVs are on clearance.

Target is an authorized Apple reseller for the AppleTV? Not in my state it isn't.

[jaw04005]

What's sad is this is the only (although fake) rumor to come up about the Apple TV in months.

What's going on with this product? Why wasn't the software updated to support iTunes 8's HD labeling? You can't stream content to the device without getting duplicate entries for the SD and HD versions of each TV episode. Not to mention not being able to purchase TV shows on the device or the lack of Genius play list support.

Ridiculous on Apple's part.

[mambodancer]

Well, aside from this rumor being shown to be a misunderstanding – :apple:tv is not being discontinued – I'll address your BluRay comment.

Although BluRay won the format war against HD-DVD, that war went on for too long and it's becoming apparent that both will lose in the end as a media format. Adoption has been slow and digital online distribution is beginning to take hold.

Most people are happy with their DVD collection. Without the online features of BluRay 2.0 being heavily advertised, the majority of consumers can't see the benefit and aren't adopting the technology with the critical mass that is needed to make it a success. By the time 2.0 is finalized and the prices come down enough to satisfy the broader market, digital distribution will already be in people's homes with devices that are quite inexpensive to make.

I'm skipping BluRay and have gone straight to :apple:tv and I can see many people doing the same.

If anything, the next :apple:tv will be a refresh with a bigger HDD and a more attractive price.

I think you are right on this. I'm in the process of ripping my entire DVD collection via Handbrake to iTunes. ITunes 8 gives me a "netflix" look for my library but having the ability to watch when I want, on what I want (iPhone, iPod, my MacMini or thru AppleTV).

Having first purchased VHS, then Laserdisc and now DVD's, I look at the price of Blueray movies at Target for upwards of $25-50 and I just think to myself...nope, I've been there and done that.

I'm much more interested in high quality digital downloads that I can can then move from AppleTV or iMac to laptop or iPhone without the time and effort of ripping a DVD.

I've got to believe that a software update is not too far around the corner for AppleTV. HD sync and playback support, genius playlists and would they finally let me shuffle my Music Videos!

[quid squid]

here's hoping for 1080p :)

might not be any use to apple right now, but it woul dbe useful in the future. and i know a lot of other people as well as myself are holding out on :apple:TV until this happens. i would have bought one awhile ago, had it not been for this. i don't want to buy one and have to replace it a year or two down the road because i want more.

[Saladinos]

The ATV isn't going anywhere. They released the iPhone remote software for it, and continue to update it frequently. That at least shows some commitment.

I'm not a fan of the AppleTV anyway. The idea of streaming your iTunes content to your TV is cool, but most consumers don't use iTunes enough to make the ATV a must-have. I've only started buying movies from iTunes recently, and I'm still not sure about it. Prices are too high, there aren't any HD movies, and you can't burn them to DVD-Video. I bought Goodfellas the other day for £6.99 from iTunes, when I can buy it for £3 from a store. I paid extra for the convenience of downloading and the iPhone transfer, but I don't know if it's worth paying more than double for that. If Apple wants to make ATV more attractive, they need to make the iTunes store more attractive, and start getting people used to buying digital media. In the UK at least, people still think 'movie store' rather than 'iTunes' for movies.

That said, I do like the ATV interface. I'd really like that for Front Row. I hate Leopard's FR - it's better than Tiger, but still nowhere near as good as the WMC I used to use. ATV take 2 is better than Leopard's FR, albeit still not as good as WMC in my opinion.

[jaw04005]

The ATV isn't going anywhere. They released the iPhone remote software for it, and continue to update it frequently. That at least shows some commitment.

Frequently is a relative term. The Apple TV has only had one major software update in its 18 month product lifetime.

There have been a few minor updates:

7/07 - 1.1 firmware (added YouTube support only)
2/08 - 2.0 firmware (Take 2 redesign, added rentals, store, etc)
3/08 - 2.0.1 firmware (bug fixes, added genre support)
7/08 - 2.1 firmware (added iPhone Remote, Wish List and MobileMe support)

ATV take 2 is better than Leopard's FR, albeit still not as good as WMC in my opinion.

It's not as full featured as Windows Media Center. However, Microsoft has all but abandoned Windows Media Center in favor of a more vertical approach—such as the XBOX 360, AT&T U-Verse and MediaRoom.

They even moved the entire WMC team off of Media Center for an entire year to work on Zune.

WMC had so much potential, but Vista's been out for two years and there have been no major updates to Vista Media Center.

I'm afraid it's been delegated to the same status as other failed Microsoft technologies like "Smart Displays".

Thurott has said on Windows Weekly they don't even mention it anymore as if there's little active development.

[BoulderBum]

This may be nothing, but it piqued my curiosity. The "major product transition" Apple mentioned in their last quarterly conference call turned out to only be a minor iPod update that left me thinking "Is that it?!?" Maybe there's a little something more coming...

Apple TV is my favorite gadget in the universe (and I have many, including an iPhone 3G) and I'm almost amazed it hasn't caught fire like the iPod did. I figured the "major product transition" would have been some Apple TV update (maybe integrating the Wii-like remote they patented and transitioning it into a casual gaming platform with an App Store).

Digital downloads and on-demand content are the future, and I'm sure Apple will do whatever they can to own movies and TV shows like they own digital music.

An Apple TV revamp would make sense to bolster languishing sales and own the future of video distribution at a time when XBox 360, PS3, Amazon and others are catching up with Apple in terms of online rentals and movie services.

[jmadlena]

Yeah, the Networks pulled all the content from cable and satellite subscribers and all those damn Tivo owners...:rolleyes: Please find a new argument, this one is soooo wrong.



Maybe it's because the cable and satellite companies don't sell TV shows at $1.99 and $2.99 a pop? Streaming shows is all that they do, that is how they make money and how the networks make money.

Apple is nothing like that. They want to sell it, not give it away. If Apple sold a DVR, then why would anyone purchase shows from the iTunes store? Only if they happened to miss an episode and the show wasn't on for another few months. That and older shows. But taking away new shows is a big hit on revenue.

The ecosystem thing again, too? The iTunes business model = sell more hardware. That's it.

DVR is on the horizon for Apple, maybe just not this Tuesday.

Also, the iTunes store business model is to sell more hardware AND break even. If they just wanted to sell hardware they would price the shows at next to nothing while still paying the networks the wholesale price.

I will agree that eventually Apple would like to release a DVR, if they could make it work in tandem with the iTunes store. But it would be very difficult to do that because all of the content providers pretty much hate Apple for their power in the market; they aren't going to let them do anything to reduce their profits.

[BRLawyer]

http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/27/rumor-is-the-apple-tv-being-replaced/

We just got an e-mail from an anonymous Apple reseller, stating that they received an e-mail from Apple with instructions to remove all Apple TV displays and literature and to destroy them (which I assume means throw away the literature, send back the Apple TVs) by September 30, 2008 at 5 PM. Additionally, the e-mail says that there will be a webcast "kick off" on September 30.

Incidentally, September 30 IS a Tuesday (and the last day of the September quarter), making all of this information, very, very interesting.

So, what does this mean? Could this potentially be the introduction of the Mini/Apple TV hybrid we've all been begging for? Is this related to "the brick?"

This is absolutely in line with Fry's "1 per household" promotion for MBs that ends EXACTLY on 30/9...new MBs and Apple TV anyone? ;)

[paduck]

someone mentioned earlier the fusion of Time Capsule and AppleTV. I think this is an excellent idea. I have long maintained that the current Apple Universe requires lots of hard drives/storage - and a fair degree of duplication.

Right now, Apple's central place of storage is your computer. That is where the biggest drive is. Everything else gets built from there - iPod, iPhone, Touch, ATV. However, the bulk of your file in terms of size is video and backup. Why not centralize that into some sort of "Apple Home Server?"

There are a lot of benefits. You don't have to have the computer on to stream video/audio. You are more efficient with available disk space. You have both Time Machine and shared server space to go with your iTunes Library/server.

Apple could add a multi-disk option for RAID1 or RAID5. You are talking about a device where you need availability and some sort of peace of mind - especially if your backups are on it!

It goes next to the TV where the cable Internet comes into the house - that would be convenient for a lot of people.

[kornyboy]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

Thank you Arn for all that you do by researching the rumors. This really would have been as shock if it were true.

[Peace]

uuuum... i work at a apple reseller store in PR and we haven't heard or been told of anything like this. :confused:

Maybe you just didn't see it.

Try telling the TV networks that you're going to enable their potential iTunes customers to record their content for free.... and see how many of those TV networks keep their content on iTunes.

A DVR goes against the iTunes ecosystem business model. You and I'd love to have it but we can't have both a DVR and a healthy iTunes store. I'd rather have the latter.

Tell that to Elgato.

[AAPLaday]

Biggest drawback for me is spending time to put all my films and tv series on it. Films arent so bad i guess but having loads of tv shows series it would take me forever to do. And then i dont think id watch them often enough to go through all that effort.

[ipedro]

Tell that to Elgato.

Elgato doesn't have a relationship with TV networks and doesn't have the responsibility of insuring sales on iTunes to keep those networks happy.

It's quite simple logic really: You wouldn't buy tv shows on iTunes if the same device that sells them to you also allowed you to get them for free.

TV networks wouldn't sell shows because everybody would be getting them for free so there would be no use in having them on iTunes. :apple:tv would become an expensive DVR with nothing to differentiate it from cheaper alternatives provided by cable companies.

[Dagless]

Apple TV + Timecapsule would really rock.

That would, actually.

[Tilpots]

Elgato doesn't have a relationship with TV networks and doesn't have the responsibility of insuring sales on iTunes to keep those networks happy.

It's quite simple logic really: You wouldn't buy tv shows on iTunes if the same device that sells them to you also allowed you to get them for free.

TV networks wouldn't sell shows because everybody would be getting them for free so there would be no use in having them on iTunes. :apple:tv would become an expensive DVR with nothing to differentiate it from cheaper alternatives provided by cable companies.

I really don't get why you can't understand the logic of incorporating DVR into the :apple:TV. You have no cable, but do have an :apple:TV and a separate DVR, correct? How much did that separate DVR cost? How much of that money went to Apple?

Do you buy new shows on iTunes that you get for free OTA? For the most part, probably not. And how much of that money goes to Apple or the networks?

Please believe me when I tell you that the networks are more than OK with giving away their newest content for free to the public. The advertisers pay for it, not you. And any money they do happen to make off of sales of older shows is EXTRA cash for them. They've already made their money when it was released, in fact they usually make a whole lot of money, even if the show fails.

I get my perspective from working at a big network affiliated TV station. We don't charge anyone but advertisers a dime to watch our content. We even offer classic shows on our website, also free. Where are you coming from? I appreciate your input on what the :apple:TV actually does do, I read many of your posts, but I'm really frustrated when you continue to use arguments that are in no way logical for what the :apple:TV does not do and why.

[I-Bot]

So everyone already says it's false but then why would all these stores have them on clearance unless they all wanted to get rid of them for some reason and what about that webcast "kick-off" then?

[squeakfoo]

So everyone already says it's false but then why would all these stores have them on clearance unless they all wanted to get rid of them for some reason and what about that webcast "kick-off" then?


Completely different e-mail from the other. I would say that stores are depleting their inventory because they aren't selling. People are probably going directly to Apple to purchase and not places like Target.

"Join Channel Program Manager Paddy Wong and Apple Channel East Regional Sales Manager Mary Philipsek for a "kick off" webcast for the 2009 fiscal year."

[jojo13]

CAn I ask a question

what is the Apple TV suppose to do???
I never got it
:apple: and who buys that other than fanboys??

[Ironduke]

This piece of **** has held the mini back:mad:

[arn]

So everyone already says it's false but then why would all these stores have them on clearance unless they all wanted to get rid of them for some reason and what about that webcast "kick-off" then?

From my understanding, Apple holds webcasts semi regularly with their retail channel.

arn

[bytownfan]

CAn I ask a question

what is the Apple TV suppose to do???
I never got it
:apple: and who buys that other than fanboys??

People who don't live near video stores.

[Michael CM1]

Well, aside from this rumor being shown to be a misunderstanding – :apple:tv is not being discontinued – I'll address your BluRay comment.

Although BluRay won the format war against HD-DVD, that war went on for too long and it's becoming apparent that both will lose in the end as a media format. Adoption has been slow and digital online distribution is beginning to take hold.

Most people are happy with their DVD collection. Without the online features of BluRay 2.0 being heavily advertised, the majority of consumers can't see the benefit and aren't adopting the technology with the critical mass that is needed to make it a success. By the time 2.0 is finalized and the prices come down enough to satisfy the broader market, digital distribution will already be in people's homes with devices that are quite inexpensive to make.

I'm skipping BluRay and have gone straight to :apple:tv and I can see many people doing the same.

If anything, the next :apple:tv will be a refresh with a bigger HDD and a more attractive price.

Holy mama, that's a nice fantasy. Problem is yer facts.

1) It's Blu-ray (or Blu-ray Disc).
2) Even if BD had been the only format from the start, the movies are mostly $30 when they come out new. Most DVD movies are $15-20 in their first week. That is THE reason the format is stagnating. But...
3) There was a big BD player price cut this week. Best Buy and Circuit City now have BD-Live-ready players for $300 from Samsung and Sony. That was about the price point that DVD started to take off at. I'll agree with you about the uber-crappy advertising that BD-Live is getting (or not getting). However, that's probably a minor issue to people who just want to watch HD movies. HD downloads have zero special features, so that's kinda moot between the two.
4) Digital distribution is hardly "beginning to take hold" if you mean being a primary distribution method. DVDs still play in anything and are frickin' cheap, which is why they're still going to be around for a good while. BD will probably co-exist with DVD since there are tens of millions of people who could care less about HD.
5) Digital distribution has its own format war. You can only play the iTunes movies and TV shows through iTunes, and iPod/iPhone or Apple TV. None of those are as seamless as a DVD player yet. Then there's another method for Hulu, might as well throw in Amazon, and hell, what about Netflix? Everybody wants their own stupid proprietary system because the stupid movie studios think that DRM prevents piracy. If I wanted to, I could use Mac the Ripper to pirate every single DVD I own. But I don't. It's just like I could start robbing banks and picking pockets, but I don't. DRM is hurting ALL video formats, but it really stymies digital video because of the 30 different playback methods you need instead of just DVD or BD.

The most important thing is BANDWIDTH. If digital downloads really took off the way half the people on here think in their pipe dream, the Internet would get clogged like crazy and ISPs would start capping usage. YouTube already provides a lot of clutter with a lot of really useless crap like, as Dana Carvey said, a cat peeing in a toilet. Most anything on there worth watching is, um, pirated.

So basically it's all a fustercluck and digital downloads aren't going to kill video formats like digital audio has slightly done.

[Michael CM1]

After my rant, I forgot about my speculation on this new ATV device!

If Apple wants it to take off, they combine ATV with either a DVD or Blu-ray player, if not a choice for both. Think of it as the "getting people in the store" method. Sell a $300 ATV+DVD or a $450-500 ATV+BD that is expandable using external HDDs. Make the firmware not suck like the present one (can we get playlists already? Bluetooth for a keyboard or a useful remote?).

The only way DVR software works is if it isn't a useless feature for people who have satellite. I may be wrong about this, but I can't use a TiVo-branded box with my satellite because then I don't have control over the programming info. I have a DVR in my Dish Network box, but all of these computer DVR devices and TiVo boxes are worthless to me. DVRs seem to be really tied into the service provider due to all of this, so I don't see the point of it in some sort of new ATV. If Apple knows how to get past all that, then by all means I'm for it.

But my real hope is they put a disc player in them. Then when I want a BD player with BD-Live, I can buy an ATV and also have my digital videos on my television. Two birds, one stone.

[tshort]

This weekend I picked up a 40GB :apple:TV, normally priced at US$229.99 for US$195.48 (15% off) at Target. Then if you open a Target credit card, you get another 10% off for a final price of US$175.93 (or so)!

I don't know if they are clearance at all Target stores. So, now I have a new toy! :)

[tshort]

The only way DVR software works is if it isn't a useless feature for people who have satellite. I may be wrong about this, but I can't use a TiVo-branded box with my satellite because then I don't have control over the programming info.

The TiVo Series 2 (https://www3.tivo.com/store/boxdetails.do?boxName=80hourseries2dt&boxsku=R64980) supports satellite.

[mrat93]

AppleTV on clearance at Target. Is this related?

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=571643

[akac]

The TiVo Series 2 (https://www3.tivo.com/store/boxdetails.do?boxName=80hourseries2dt&boxsku=R64980) supports satellite.

Also there is a Direct TV Tivo branded box. And a new one coming for the new H264 HD.

[darkyeffectt]

Hey guys!
Do not worry about Apple TV. On this site always make predictions entirely
accurate, so much so that sometimes I think they have
a kind of informant inside Apple or whether they are hackers who steal secrets
from Apple, but the fact is that until now haven't been wrong with any predictions about any new hardware or software.
The principal editor always leaves clues, then when you are looking
clear information. Read what it says respect the Apple TV.

I particularly like the final sentence. something like: Can a brick, break a
window? If you want light read for yourself...

http://applediario.com/2008/09/29/apple-tv-pasara-a-formar-parte-de-los-renovados/

[Michael CM1]

The TiVo Series 2 (https://www3.tivo.com/store/boxdetails.do?boxName=80hourseries2dt&boxsku=R64980) supports satellite.

That's good to know, although the service plan (which kept me away from TiVo when it first came out) is still shockingly high compared to the $5 or $6 that DirecTV or Dish Network charge. Unless some Apple-style DVR was cheaper per month and/or allowed video exports to iTunes/iPods, I don't think I personally would be into it.

I still have this feeling that something will happen in the next 5 years that will make us long for the early days of DVRs because advertisers are pissed that we aren't watching their crappy commercials. When Microsoft wants me to sit around for 60 seconds watching a commercial that has nothing to do with what they're selling, give me a break. There's also stuff like that dumb Life Water commercial from the Super Bowl that are just insanely stupid. I don't even have time for beer commercials. :)

[Billy Boo Bob]

Unless some Apple-style DVR was cheaper per month and/or allowed video exports to iTunes/iPods, I don't think I personally would be into it.
See, there's the kicker... Apple could (if legals allow it) create a seamless flow of recorded TV to iTunes and iPod. Just reverse the flow of how things go now (iTunes -> :apple:TV or iTunes -> iPod).

For those who say they'll never do it because it will cut into sales of TV shows in the store, well... I think a good look at the numbers of music sales when you can rip your own CDs could be an indicator.

Yeah, yeah... I know... Difference in price, whole different game, supposed to own the CD first, etc... But many people look at it as if the only TV show sales that :apple: makes are the brand new episodes that just came out last night (or within the last week)... There are plenty of older episodes of TV shows that you're not going to get into your DVR until they syndicate over to TNT/TBS/USA/Whoever. Same applies to movies. And keep in mind when you forget to set the DVR.

Then there's the shows that could be sold out of market (overseas) over iTMS. I know outside the US there's some serious limitations on TV shows like that, but there's still many changes to come (I would think) in that regard.

[Scarpad]

Well, aside from this rumor being shown to be a misunderstanding – :apple:tv is not being discontinued – I'll address your BluRay comment.

Although BluRay won the format war against HD-DVD, that war went on for too long and it's becoming apparent that both will lose in the end as a media format. Adoption has been slow and digital online distribution is beginning to take hold.

Most people are happy with their DVD collection. Without the online features of BluRay 2.0 being heavily advertised, the majority of consumers can't see the benefit and aren't adopting the technology with the critical mass that is needed to make it a success. By the time 2.0 is finalized and the prices come down enough to satisfy the broader market, digital distribution will already be in people's homes with devices that are quite inexpensive to make.

I'm skipping BluRay and have gone straight to :apple:tv and I can see many people doing the same.

If anything, the next :apple:tv will be a refresh with a bigger HDD and a more attractive price.


I own a PS3 but I have'nt bought a lot of disks, I've been mainly ripping my existing DVD collection to the ATV along with my TV shows. On my 46" Sony the content looks fine. Blu looks better but I find the convienience of the ATV hard to beat.

[Scarpad]

Apple TV is no more than an Itunes Media Extender. I bought it as such and for me it works fantastically. I encode my Hour long shows in Handbrake to a 800MB file and they look fantastic, and ai can box up my sets and get them out of my living space. What more could I want... I already have a DVR on my Direct TV amd a Blu Ray on my PS3 so they would be redundant.

[Sander]

Here's what I would like.

Put a DVD drive in the :apple:TV so I can pop in a DVD which is then instantly ripped to its hard disk (or better yet, to a NAS). After this initial ripping, you can watch the DVD off the hard disk.

This would of course make piracy easy (rent a movie from your local rental shop and watch it indefinitely after returning it). Actually, I wouldn't mind if the rip would be encrypted somehow so I can only view it on my particular :apple:TV, as my use case is that I already own the physical DVDs. The reason I want this is because my kids watch the same movies over and over again, usually handling the original media in such a way that they are rendered useless in a few weeks.

I tried doing this on a "homebrew" system using a KISS network player, but this has several drawbacks: The ripping process is a tedious, manual process, and the UI to the thing is not suitable for kids who can't read yet. They would grok cover flow, but obviously can't use the remote to scroll through a list and select the proper VOB file on my NAS.

Surely there's a solution for this use case somewhere - anyone know of a product which does this?

[Bubba Satori]

People who don't live near video stores.


What's a video store ? :D

[dynaflash]

Here's what I would like.

Put a DVD drive in the :apple:TV so I can pop in a DVD which is then instantly ripped to its hard disk (or better yet, to a NAS). After this initial ripping, you can watch the DVD off the hard disk.
Um, do you have any idea how long it would take the processor in the appletv to rip a dvd, even if it could ? Can you say "days" ? "Instantly Ripped" is pie in the sky even for a state of the art Mac Pro. As well, actually *using* the atv during this process for viewing previously created content would be completely useless.

[mattwolfmatt]

WHEW = I just bought one yesterday. I'm glad it's not going to be a three day old outdated device..

[mdntcallr]

the apple tv is a great machine, people just aren't educated about it.

We use it in our living room to:

Do music playlists
do music video playlists
play youtube content
and...
do ppv HDTV movies, it is much easier and better to use than Directv PPV. also... it really is a great piece of electronics.

if people knew how good it was, many would consider getting one.

[cantthinkofone]

I think the apple TV is a good idea in concept. But i can't justify buying one. if i had the extra money i might buy one. But i also need a tv :p

I just wish itunes had more content as far as movies and tv shows. I think what it has so far is very impressive.

[TuckBodi]

the apple tv is a great machine, people just aren't educated about it.

We use it in our living room to:

do music video playlists


How?

[Volante]

How?

Please explain, Billy. Or is this some clever trolling? :D

[MattZani]

If It was a PVR, i would definitely buy one, add the fact its a Time Capsule, and it would be perfect!

[TuckBodi]

Please explain, Billy. Or is this some clever trolling? :D

Explain how you do music video playlists. I've never seen that feature so I'd like to know how to do it.

[Volante]

Explain how you do music video playlists. I've never seen that feature so I'd like to know how to do it.

I was wondering the same, just pressed quote on the wrong message.

[jojo13]

apple tv take 2 was also a flop wasn't it?:)

[vandlism]

I want to be able to play music videos as part of a regular playlist. Say I am playing a regular album as a playlist on the AppleTV, but also happen to have music videos for some of the songs. I'd arrange the videos to take the place of the songs in the play order and be able to watch the video then whenever the song plays. Currently the video will play if you select it from the playlist, but if you are playing a playlist it skips right past.

[zedsdead]

I want to be able to play music videos as part of a regular playlist. Say I am playing a regular album as a playlist on the AppleTV, but also happen to have music videos for some of the songs. I'd arrange the videos to take the place of the songs in the play order and be able to watch the video then whenever the song plays. Currently the video will play if you select it from the playlist, but if you are playing a playlist it skips right past.

Video Playlists are something that Apple is not addressing, in both the Apple TV and iPhone. Very annoying.

[BoulderBum]

Has anyone heard what happened on the call? I don't see anything in the news, but today was supposed to be the day they revealed the announcement if there was one to be made.

[SilverRubicon]

Has anyone heard what happened on the call? I don't see anything in the news, but today was supposed to be the day they revealed the announcement if there was one to be made.

There was never an announcement scheduled for today. TUAW is smoking crack and apparently unable to read. The entire rumor came about from a mailing to Apple retailers instructing them to take down their current marketing materials for the AppleTV on Sept 30th. In the brain dead world of TUAW this meant "new product to ship this tuesday". If they had taken 30 seconds and actually read the mailing, Apple clearly stated that their license for the images in the marketing material had expired and needed to be removed.

[BoulderBum]

Ah, it appears that there was no product announcement.

http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/30/new-product-announcement-cancelled/

It was interesting to see how many people came out of the woodwork to give their opinion about what needed to change though.

Mine is that:

1. A Blu Ray drive might help sell the unit who otherwise might not see the point, but once you "get" Apple TV, you see why the drive isn't necessary.
2. PVR capabilities a la Tivo is a bad idea. Live TV, and scheduling recordings is the "old" way of doing things that requires too much work and patience. On-demand content is where the future is at, and Apple TV aces that capability!
3. The most compelling feature Apple could build into the next-gen Apple TV is a Wii style remote (which they have patented already) and support for an App Store that offers casual gaming like the iPhone. Apple TV would totally rock with such capability!

[SilverRubicon]

Ah, it appears that there was no product announcement.

http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/30/new-product-announcement-cancelled/

Never cancelled, never scheduled. Unless you're TUAW, you realize that Apple does not announce new products over a conference call.

[kjs862]

The Apple TV is a great product, if they are planning on replacing it, it should be something better.

[eleven59]

3. The most compelling feature Apple could build into the next-gen Apple TV is a Wii style remote (which they have patented already) and support for an App Store that offers casual gaming like the iPhone. Apple TV would totally rock with such capability!

you knwo that totally slipped my mind... a gaming system of sorts... espically if it already ran on an OSX platform....

which leads us back to just upgrading the video card??

very interesting!

[peharri]

It's a good product. It doesn't need replacing with something more capable, it needs to keep coming down in price and more done to provide content.

I'm waiting for an STB that provides the following:

1. Buffering (like AppleTV, unlike the Netflix STB) so HD works fine on sub-10Mbps connections
2. Subscription based access to libraries (like Netflix, unlike Apple iTunes)
3. Standalone functionality, no need to install software on a computer to get it working (unlike AppleTV, not sure about the Netflix box)

In addition, I'd probably buy a sub-$100 box that supports Hulu.com.

It's not hard to see AppleTV working in that environment. I'm surprised actually Apple hasn't leapt onto the subscription model, as it's theoretically much more user friendly. Just select the movie, wait for it to download, and watch it. How much easier could it be?

Blu-ray's pretty much DOA. Apple shouldn't be supporting such a lackluster and living-in-the-past format. I know that'll upset those who spend a few hundred dollars on Blu-ray players, but it really isn't going to succeed in any real way, and Apple is in a better position to spearhead better ways of delivering on HD's promise.

[Bubba Satori]

Blu-ray's pretty much DOA. Apple shouldn't be supporting such a lackluster and living-in-the-past format.

:rolleyes:

[BaldiMac]

3. Standalone functionality, no need to install software on a computer to get it working (unlike AppleTV, not sure about the Netflix box)


AppleTV does not require a computer to get it working.

[DeFett]

I all I want from Apple TV is:

a: Music Video playlists

b: wireless stream FrontRow from my mac so I can play DVD's and other movie files which wont play on Apple TV.

c: apps? possible something like a DIVX app that plays that format.

[blueflame]

is there any reason apple could not just better integrate the itunes store, the iphone and ipod line more with the apple tv?

they already have the remote app for iphone and ipod, what if all the games and apps you can download from the app store, could also be played on the apple tv, and on the computer?

why couldn't the ipods be the controllers?

I dont know, it just seems like the next logical step. they already have the developers for the touch platform, why not extend it into all their products and services? its just pure revenue for them
B

[Toe]

FWIW, they just updated to 2.2.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=573980

[snebes]

Confirmed reports on a certain Target clearance thread on the slimming wallet forum have shown that the AppleTV on clearance in stores that carry them. Although, it may only be on clearance as it is an "Online only" item according to target.com.

I do hope this is true, as I would love to get an AppleTV that could support 1080p MKV files and come with a decent hard drive size at a decent price.

Would love to be able to purchase those from the movie store as well, it would give my dog less of a chance to continue eating my DVD collection! Nothing is worse than coming how to find my irreplaceable DVDs or two separate sets of my OSX discs being chewed on.... why oh why does she have good taste??

[selowitch]

:eek: *anguished groan* Dudes! I have a refurb 160GB AppleTV sitting in its original cardboard box from the Apple Store that arrived today. Must ... not ... open ... until ... Tuesday. Right?

[Tilpots]

:eek: *anguished groan* Dudes! I have a refurb 160GB AppleTV sitting in its original cardboard box from the Apple Store that arrived today. Must ... not ... open ... until ... Tuesday. Right?

I haven't heard any real rumors of an update, but you never know if it's just "one more thing..."

[rhett7660]

Just picked up the 40gig (waiting for it to be delivered). It is a refurb from apple.com. Only going to be using it as a music device. If something else comes down the line I will think about it, but I don't for see it being updated until next year. So until then I am hoping I will have something to play my music in my living room. (Replacing my Escient Fireball SE-80 since I no longer have a windows box in my house.)

[SilverRubicon]

:eek: *anguished groan* Dudes! I have a refurb 160GB AppleTV sitting in its original cardboard box from the Apple Store that arrived today. Must ... not ... open ... until ... Tuesday. Right?

Why would Tuesday have anything to do with the AppleTV? Are you expecting an AppleTV update before or after the flying monkeys magically appear from stage left?

[BillyBobBongo]

:eek: *anguished groan* Dudes! I have a refurb 160GB AppleTV sitting in its original cardboard box from the Apple Store that arrived today. Must ... not ... open ... until ... Tuesday. Right?

Wrong! Open it...plug it in....enjoy!

[sneeks]

:eek: *anguished groan* Dudes! I have a refurb 160GB AppleTV sitting in its original cardboard box from the Apple Store that arrived today. Must ... not ... open ... until ... Tuesday. Right?

My refurb ATV arrived last Monday and I'm happily using it now. If something new is announced this week then I'll box it back up and return it within the 14 days exchange period. I have my doubts that it will be replaced by a new model this week, even if it is there is no guarantee it can be hacked which right now is important to me.

[Tilpots]

Why would Tuesday have anything to do with the AppleTV? Are you expecting an AppleTV update before or after the flying monkeys magically appear from stage left?

Have you not looked at the main page yet?:eek:


selowitch-

Keep the packaging tape handy, just in case...

[casw1000]

I am trying to decide if I should go ATV / iTunes or Vista Media Centre. I like both, but ATV is that much more slicker and 'just works'. However whilst all of these rumors persist, one thing I found strange today is where is ATV on the apple.com website?

I mean, look under products, in fact the only place to find ATV is in the shop.

I am going to try ripping on my Oct MP first before deciding if ATV is the right choice. So hopefully there will be some updates as I am hearing about no 5.1 sound and maybe some other limitations. either way when I went to check the specs today, I couldn't find ATV.

Also, there is no ATV under the buyers guide here. Maybe it's not warranted, but it is an apple product, so why no mention?

Regards,
casw1000
fold4life.com

[avigalante]

I am trying to decide if I should go ATV / iTunes or Vista Media Centre. I like both, but ATV is that much more slicker and 'just works'. However whilst all of these rumors persist, one thing I found strange today is where is ATV on the apple.com website?

I mean, look under products, in fact the only place to find ATV is in the shop.

I am going to try ripping on my Oct MP first before deciding if ATV is the right choice. So hopefully there will be some updates as I am hearing about no 5.1 sound and maybe some other limitations. either way when I went to check the specs today, I couldn't find ATV.

Also, there is no ATV under the buyers guide here. Maybe it's not warranted, but it is an apple product, so why no mention?

Regards,
casw1000
fold4life.com

It's under the iPod + iTunes tab on Apple.com

[casw1000]

My bad, thanks for the pointer. Now to try the dvd ripping and read up more on ATV. Hopefully this will do what I want.

Thanks again.
casw1000