Apple TV Update?

[aphxtwinin]

new update? i just got prompted to do an update...anyone got any info?!

[Tallest Skil]

What software do you have?

[NightStorm]

Yep, 2.3.1 is out. I've installed it but have no idea what is new.

[royalskrub]

hope it doesn't mess with boxee.

hulu just got pulled off Boxee yesterday, big suck :mad:

[mcdermd]

I downloaded and everything seems fine after re-installing audio and video codecs, Couch Surfer and vim. But yeah, it wiped out everything I had there previously. I wasn't running Boxee, though. Took it off after they cut Hulu.

[rhett7660]

I downloaded and everything seems fine after re-installing audio and video codecs, Couch Surfer and vim. But yeah, it wiped out everything I had there previously. I wasn't running Boxee, though. Took it off after they cut Hulu.

You and me both. Yup was prompted for an update. So far no complaints. Did a few movie and music tests. Doesn't seem to be any bugs... but then again, I could be missing something and not even know it! :)

[gcmexico]

anything new with the software update?

[jaw04005]

anything new with the software update?

It feels like there were a few bug fixes. Navigation appears to be more responsive. However, that could just be my particular device.

We won't know until Apple gets around to publishing the tech note.

[slapppy]

Is it snappy?

Seriously, does it fix the intermittent super slow download speed of HD content? It even does that on HD movie trailers. I have to reset the AE and Cable modem to temporarily fix it. Then its back to slow HD again after a day or so.

[mcdermd]

One thing I noticed is that it tells you when it is syncing with iTunes now instead of simply becoming unresponsive.

[skoops]

One thing I noticed is that it tells you when it is syncing with iTunes now instead of simply becoming unresponsive.

It did so in the last version too. I'm updating as we speak.

[Aldaris]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5H11 Safari/525.20)

I hope it fixes the issue of dropping from synced/streamed network computers all the time. We shouldn't have to restart one or the other any time we want to use ATV.

I'll download later :)

[j5045096]

This is crazy. After doing the update my aluminum MacBook now has firewire!! And what's more, my iPhone now records video!

Kidding obviously but question: how useful have you guys found ATV? I have a MBP and just hook up to my tv to watch iTunes content. Isn't that what ATV essentially does or is there more?

[kiranmk2]

I wonder if this corrects the problem of IR noise from LCD screens blocking the remote signal. Will I finally be able to take the scrap of paper off the front of my aTV?

[sgibson]

how useful have you guys found ATV? I have a MBP and just hook up to my tv to watch iTunes content. Isn't that what ATV essentially does or is there more?

You'll understand better when you have a wife :)

[Aldaris]

j5045096, AppleTV is incredibly useful, if you want it to be. Besides the obvious "front row" like experience you get with your MacBook Pro, you have the iTunes Store, which is great for the HD (720p), but nicer still is the way the file is downloaded, allows you to watch within minutes of buying or renting, so unlike your MacBook Pro, you can watch almost instantly.

I have two AppleTV's my own and one in the family room. Both synced to my iTunes Server based on a PowerMac G4, and then linked streaming to all the other macs in the house, (PowerBook G4, MacBook, Macbook Pro, iMac). So it's nice to share the households content.

Depending on your individual needs, you could either love it or be indifferent, but I think all AppleTV owners love this little "hobby" device.

[Aldaris]

Appleinsider (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/02/25/apple_updates_apple_tv_software_to_version_2_3_1.html) post with added notes

-Network Test Function!
"Another AppleInsider forum member notes that Apple has added a Network Test function to Apple TV under Settings>General>Network, which sends diagnostic information about your internet connection to Apple. This appears to be in response to a growing number of complaints that HD downloads suddenly slowed to a snails pace for some users around the holidays."

Looks like some features to look forward too, or at least fixes!

[iOrlando]

does updating get rid of any trace of boxee? including the link to download/update? so i would need to do the whole thing with the USB stick and such all over again? or just re-download boxee?

[shiseiryu1]

You'll understand better when you have a wife :)

I totally agree. There may be other devices that "do more" but they haven't yet matched the simplicity and elegance of the AppleTV.

[sneeks]

does updating get rid of any trace of boxee? including the link to download/update? so i would need to do the whole thing with the USB stick and such all over again? or just re-download boxee?

You need to run the patchstick again.

[sfbayrealtor]

Kidding obviously but question: how useful have you guys found ATV? I have a MBP and just hook up to my tv to watch iTunes content. Isn't that what ATV essentially does or is there more?

The ATV is very useful, ESPECIALLY if you patchstick it. Let's say you have some movie content lying around, perhaps, you've ripped your DVD library or home videos; just ftp into your ATV, upload them, and voila, a massive on-demand video library.

ATV is always connected to TV/Entertainment system, so no need to lug around a MBP and connect it. And for those less technically inclined (dare I say wife?), it's just so easy to use...

That's my 2 bits...

[thunderclap]

Depending on your individual needs, you could either love it or be indifferent, but I think all AppleTV owners love this little "hobby" device.

I loved it until Boxee lost Hulu. Now I'm thinking of creating a media server with a Mac Mini and a MiniStack external hard drive. I think it would better suit my needs.

[bbotte]

Downloaded thanks.

[sanPietro98]

And for those less technically inclined (dare I say wife?), it's just so easy to use...

I absolutely agree. It is so easy to use that both my wife and my 5-year-old can use it without problems.

[Shoesy]

I absolutely agree. It is so easy to use that both my wife and my 5-year-old can use it without problems.

Plus the price is certainly more compatible with family members.

[j5045096]

You'll understand better when you have a wife :)

Got one of those 6 years ago and two kids since. Apparently I didn't get the point. What is it?

[Shoesy]

Got one of those 6 years ago and two kids since. Apparently I didn't get the point. What is it?

I think the main benefits are:

1 The whole thing is set up for use with a remote control, including purchasing.
2 It is more likely to stay underneath your television than a laptop which presumably you use for other things.
3 Costs less (initially)

If you think you would be better off with your laptop plugged into your tv, chances are you are right.

[gkarris]

^^^ not to mention component video for older HD TV's or setups (I wired for component, not VGA or HDMI).

[dloomer]

I haven't yet tried it myself, but apparently you can "hack the hack" to get Hulu back onto Boxee.

http://lifehacker.com/5157615/how-to-reinstall-a-working-hulu-in-boxee?skyline=true&s=x

[hualon]

I absolutely agree. It is so easy to use that both my wife and my 5-year-old can use it without problems.

Seconded. This is EXACTLY why I have an :apple:TV!

[gcmexico]

I haven't yet tried it myself, but apparently you can "hack the hack" to get Hulu back onto Boxee.

http://lifehacker.com/5157615/how-to-reinstall-a-working-hulu-in-boxee?skyline=true&s=x
*
This hack does not work anymore...worked for 1 day I think, then Hulu changed something which broke the hack...still waiting for someone to come up with something:(

[JayLenochiniMac]

Does this update erase what's on the hard drive and re-sync to iTunes? I'm asking because I have contents on Apple TV that I've eliminated from the Finder on the computer (so as not to take up disk space).

[bilbo--baggins]

One thing I noticed is that it tells you when it is syncing with iTunes now instead of simply becoming unresponsive.

The old version occasionally told me it was syncing, but I too got frequent severe unresponsiveness from the Apple TV without it telling me it was syncing.

My iTunes library is about 1.2 TB, on a Firewire 800 Raid 0 (hardware) configuration.

[gutefahrt]

Is 1080i new? I was asked to change the resolution and that's what I've got now!

[nottooshabby]

I use AppleTV for a home media center. I bought a 500 GB firewire mybook external hard drive from costco for $150 or so at the time. Plugged it into my iMac and moved my iTunes libarary to it. Then I started ripping my DVD's using handbrake which creates an iTunes friendly file(turn on this option in the handbrake preferences). Then just double click the movie file after handbrake is done, iTunes sucks it in and puts it in the movies category. Paste in the movie cover clipart and sync to Apple TV. Now I have about 20-30 of the kids disney movies in apple TV and no more swapping out DVD's all the time out of the 5-disc changer. Not to mention the slide show while listening to music, etc. We also buy some TV shows off of iTunes. It's a good system. Could be better but worth the $200.

[Avenger23]

You'll understand better when you have a wife :)

Amen to that one there!!! I totally agree with you on that one. :)

[zedsdead]

You can actually navigate the "Music Videos" section with decent speed. Took friggin two years, but now it works well!

[pmpknetr21]

Does this update erase what's on the hard drive and re-sync to iTunes? I'm asking because I have contents on Apple TV that I've eliminated from the Finder on the computer (so as not to take up disk space).

Don't worry about that: you can update without needing to erase your library... Assuming there are no issues with your tv hardware wise. So far, there haven't been any updates to the tv that required a complete erase and install. None that I remember at least.

Hope this helps.

[minik]

I will do a factory restore and update later tonight. Over the weekend, I finally did the patchstick and put Boxee on it. I tried Boxee on my Mac and wasn't really happy with it. Boxee made my Apple TV a geeky box, which was pretty sad. It totally killed the easy and elegant of Apple UI.

Who's not impress with Boxee?

[rikers_mailbox]

Who's not impress with Boxee?

Well, I'm not that impressed with Boxee, per se. But I really enjoyed having Hulu. I know, Hulu streaming quality isn't that great but it was free and on-demand. And that's all I really want to watch TV shows like 24, BSG, 30 Rock, and others. I don't need the best quality for *everything* I watch (just Lost :cool:).

I will do a factory restore and update later tonight.

Just run the updater, no need to factory restore before you update. The update will effectively perform a factory restore as it installs. Tho, I haven't yet run the updater myself.

[darijoe]

Apple have now updated their Apple TV software updates (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3187) (on February 26, 2009) and lists the only new/improved feature in 2.3.1 as "Network Test":

Network Test sends information about your Internet connection to Apple in order to help improve download performance.

[Bosunsfate]

Is it just me, or does anyone else love it when the Apple TV reboots? Specifically I like the little start up video.

[blybug]

I absolutely agree. It is so easy to use that both my wife and my 5-year-old can use it without problems.
Had to do a double take on that after the first read...this guy has an :apple:TV and two wives!!?? :D:D

[chr1s60]

Well, I'm not that impressed with Boxee, per se. But I really enjoyed having Hulu. I know, Hulu streaming quality isn't that great but it was free and on-demand. And that's all I really want to watch TV shows like 24, BSG, 30 Rock, and others. I don't need the best quality for *everything* I watch (just Lost :cool:).

Haha Lost in HD is a must! I highly recommend Lost on Blu-ray.

As far as this update goes, I will probably wait a little before I finally update.

[GreatDrok]

Haha Lost in HD is a must! I highly recommend Lost on Blu-ray.

As far as this update goes, I will probably wait a little before I finally update.

You know, I debated getting a BD player but having spent a fortune on LaserDiscs, DVDs and then buying into HD DVD because it was region free and the player was cheap, I just didn't feel like buying into BD and not being able to buy discs from the US like I have with LD, DVD and HD DVD. I spent my BD player money on the ATV and it does me just fine for HD rentals. Choice is better than the BD rental section at my local video shop too. Oh and my 18 month old can even use it.

[jaw04005]

Is it just me, or does anyone else love it when the Apple TV reboots? Specifically I like the little start up video.

I copied the start-up video to my movies in ITunes, and usually put it in my custom TV Show playlist as a "commercial." :D

I still think the original Apple TV start-up video is the best.

[Bosunsfate]

I copied the start-up video to my movies in ITunes, and usually put it in my custom TV Show playlist as a "commercial." :D

I still think the original Apple TV start-up video is the best.

Score. You mind sharing how you did that? Sorry if it isn't obvious.:D

[minik]

Alright, my Apple TV is now on software 2.3.1. Network Test kept failing ~50% as it couldn't 'talk' to the Apple server.

[locust76]

how useful have you guys found ATV? I have a MBP and just hook up to my tv to watch iTunes content. Isn't that what ATV essentially does or is there more?

Laptop:
Expensive
Long boot time
Keyboard/mouse usage
File system navigation
No HD movie rentals
No Dolby Digital 5.1
HDD shared by apps/OS/content
Larger
Loud fans
Not as easy or quick to use as ATV
Trickery may be required to get it to work right on your TV

AppleTV:
Inexpensive
Short boot time
Remote control
Menu navigation
HD movie rentals
Dolby Digital 5.1
HDD dedicated to nothing but content
Small
Quiet (no fans)
Easy to use
Designed for TV usage, no trickery required, various TV formats supported from 480i up to 1080p

Basically, Apple TV is a small notebook with all the extra crap stripped away streamlined for living-room media center usage. Sure, you can't pack it up and take it with you on the road, but it's a LOT more convenient than hooking up a laptop to a TV.

[Fuchal]

Laptop:
Expensive
Long boot time
Keyboard/mouse usage
File system navigation
No HD movie rentals
No Dolby Digital 5.1
HDD shared by apps/OS/content
Larger
Loud fans
Not as easy or quick to use as ATV
Trickery may be required to get it to work right on your TV

AppleTV:
Inexpensive
Short boot time
Remote control
Menu navigation
HD movie rentals
Dolby Digital 5.1
HDD dedicated to nothing but content
Small
Quiet (no fans)
Easy to use
Designed for TV usage, no trickery required, various TV formats supported from 480i up to 1080p

Basically, Apple TV is a small notebook with all the extra crap stripped away streamlined for living-room media center usage. Sure, you can't pack it up and take it with you on the road, but it's a LOT more convenient than hooking up a laptop to a TV.

Apple TV: needs to be hacked to death to play normal common video formats

[Flhusky]

Laptop:

Basically, Apple TV is a small notebook with all the extra crap stripped away streamlined for living-room media center usage. Sure, you can't pack it up and take it with you on the road, but it's a LOT more convenient than hooking up a laptop to a TV.
What?!! I've taken my :apple: TV on the road before. Most if not all hotels have component video inputs on their TVs. Sure its not HD but beats watching CNN/Fox/Weather channel for hours on end :p

[refulgentis]

Apple TV: needs to be hacked to death to play normal common video formats
XviD with AC3 in AVI is not common. Neither is H.264 in MKV. The only formats suitable of being called common are MPEG-4 and MPEG-2, which is what broadcast television and content delivery rely on.

VC-1, an MPEG-4 variant, can be used on Blu-Ray so I guess that's 'popular' too, but it's not easily distributable in any common container.

Apple went with the latest MPEG standard with the best video compression, MPEG-4 with AVC (H.264). MPEG-2 has too large file size to be worth supporting by Apple, since they operate on downloads and limited space machines (note your DVDs (MPEG-2) can be compressed to 1/4 of their size with literally no loss of visual detail using MPEG-4).

[andrew0122]

This is crazy. After doing the update my aluminum MacBook now has firewire!! And what's more, my iPhone now records video!

Kidding obviously but question: how useful have you guys found ATV? I have a MBP and just hook up to my tv to watch iTunes content. Isn't that what ATV essentially does or is there more?

The Apple TV also allows for HD content rentals not currently avaliable in iTunes on your mac. That's the biggest difference. I think I'm going to update and see if it will give my Macbook Air a SuperDrive! Crossing my fingers!

[NightStorm]

Apple TV: needs to be hacked to death to play normal common video formats
Do we really need to derail the topic with yet another post about how the AppleTV doesn't satisfy your needs? Fine, we get it, you can't play all of your "content"... so go find a device that can. I'm really tired of seeing these comments show up in every AppleTV-related thread. My AppleTV has never been hacked, and I have over 1.2TB of content that is instantly available to it, all encoded in a normal, standard, and common format.

I've noticed syncing the iTunes library information (I stream everything) seems to work a bit faster in 2.3.1, but that could simply be due to the reboot.

[jcschlic]

I'd like to point out that with 2.3 I had MAJOR issues with the IR functions. To make a long story short, I thought my Apple TV had become useless.

With the new 2.3.1 update, everything is back to normal.

[mchalebk]

Most if not all hotels have component video inputs on their TVs.

"Most if not all"? Definitely not "all". In fact, I've stayed at hotels where they didn't even have composite inputs (coaxial cable only), though this isn't common.

I've done quite a bit of traveling in recent years and I would say that the majority of hotel rooms do not have component inputs. For travel purposes, I would suggest that an iPod is a better way to carry movies with you than the AppleTV. The AppleTV would be great if you could count on component or HDMI connections, but IMO you can't. Not to mention that iPods are designed to be moved around. (I wonder how much of a pounding an AppleTV would take in checked luggage.)

I will tell you one new bit of hardware I plan to take on longer excursions in the future: my Roku NetFlix Player that I just got. Granted, hotel internet is often not fast enough to support a decent quality picture, but if it is, this would be a great way to get a good selection of video while on the road.

[janesta]

:d

[janesta]

Well I have just had to register so I could post a comment.

What's all this about wives needing things to be simple on the tech front? lol

I will have you boys know, that I am a lady, I checked, and I have an Apple TV - my own one that I bought myself, along with a Mac Mini, an iMac G5, an iPhone (the original bought on its first day of sale), and several iPods!

It was my birthday 2 days ago, and I asked for (and got :D) the Logitech z-5500, and a second monitor for my Mini as I was getting bored of using it through the TV or screen sharing on iMac. Then I was straight to Apple Store to buy the wireless keyboard to sit next to my full size to work Mini.....its sooooo pwetty, and titchy, and cute.......:eek: eh, anyway

When I got Apple TV in January '08, I spent hours.....probably days.... ripping and decoding hundreds of my DVDs so I could get all my own content on, and then spent even longer adding full info for every TV episode and movie - including pictures and descriptions.....it took me frickin ages!!

But now I have almost 2.5TB of external drives full of stuff and its awesome! I love Apple TV - couldnt be without it now.

I came on here to research the new update after the last one knocked out loads of folks sound I wanted to check there was no problems with this one. I find a load of comments about how women need simple tech solutions....... shocking!! lol

Nah, I'm not surprised tho, most women don't have a clue, and it pis**s me off a little that they want to use it and experience it but as soon as something goes wrong, which it always does, they have no patience- then its always that it was a waste of money, or time! Thank god its not Stephanie Jobs, or else the first sign of trouble with a product it would be abandoned.

I just wanted to point out that we are not ALL that useless.... I don't know everything about technology, far from it, but I love it none the less. Don't clump all us females into the same category....... there are some exceptions about...... like I agree, men are better drivers overall - but I spend my holiday every year at the Nürburgring in Germany and I havent crashed yet!! lol

J;)

p.s. I'm not gay, butch, or manly.....I'm straight, I wear make up, and have long hair...... although I did kiss a few girls, but that was back in my party days, I don't do things like that anymore.....honest......:p

[pilotError]

I did kiss a few girls, but that was back in my party days, I don't do things like that anymore.....honest......:p

Pictures or it didn't Happen ;) :p

My wife is pretty adept at the technology, but she doesn't want to deal with the hassle, she just wants it to work. I'm pretty sure that's all the OP of that comment was trying to say.

[JonHimself]

Well I have just had to register so I could post a comment.......

Well that settles that argument :)

[srl7741]

I copied the start-up video to my movies in ITunes, and usually put it in my custom TV Show playlist as a "commercial." :D

I still think the original Apple TV start-up video is the best.

I second that request, that would be neat to have available.

Thanks

Edit* never mind, i just did that myself.

[janesta]

Pictures or it didn't Happen ;) :p


I don't have pictures, will video do?

[macmulisha]

[/QUOTE]p.s. I'm not gay, butch, or manly.....I'm straight, I wear make up, and have long hair...... although I did kiss a few girls, but that was back in my party days, I don't do things like that anymore.....honest......:p[/QUOTE]

i think IT just moved alittle

[mchalebk]

janesta,

It’s not so much that women demand simple solutions, it’s just that women are more sensitive to how things look. The reason why having a wife makes a difference is that most wives would much rather have a simple, elegant box connected to their TV than a computer with a bunch of visible wires.

That being said, I am reminded of a column I read in a stereo magazine many years ago. It had a picture of a VCR that was intended to represent what women really wanted: it was pink and had a single button on it.

[j5045096]

The Apple TV also allows for HD content rentals not currently avaliable in iTunes on your mac. That's the biggest difference. I think I'm going to update and see if it will give my Macbook Air a SuperDrive! Crossing my fingers!

I noticed the other day when I bought an episode of "24" that it was in HD (this was purchased on my MB Pro) -- are you telling me that there is HD content like this that you can't get on iTunes unless it's via Apple TV?

[NightStorm]

I noticed the other day when I bought an episode of "24" that it was in HD (this was purchased on my MB Pro) -- are you telling me that there is HD content like this that you can't get on iTunes unless it's via Apple TV?

Correct -- HD movie rentals are AppleTV exclusive.

[Robbadore64]

And for those less technically inclined (dare I say wife?), it's just so easy to use...

My 5-year old finds it easy enough to go through all his SpongeBob episodes on it (I ripped and tagged them of course). Now if only it can distract him enough to not notice the Wii died. sadness

Love my :apple:TV. The only thing stopping me from buying a 2nd is that I'm willing to hold out until the next model, whenever the hell that may come out...

[TuckBodi]

......:p

J you're hot. Are you single?

Oops off topic there for a moment! :--)

So I haven't upgraded yet but I think I'm hearing people say the response to the atv after boot is better and remote response? Is this true? My biggest gripe lately those two issues.

[jcschlic]

So I haven't upgraded yet but I think I'm hearing people say the response to the atv after boot is better and remote response? Is this true? My biggest gripe lately those two issues.

Yes I would concur that both of those issues have been resolved for me with the new update.

[Bregalad]

The ATV is very useful, ESPECIALLY if you patchstick it. Let's say you have some movie content lying around, perhaps, you've ripped your DVD library or home videos; just ftp into your ATV, upload them, and voila, a massive on-demand video library.

How anyone can describe 160GB as massive is beyond me. I have an iTunes library with nothing but music and it's over 190GB. I still have 60 more rock CDs and 100 classical, jazz, holiday, etc. ones to go. I've calculated that the 250GB hard drive I've set aside for iTunes won't be enough.

In case you haven't already figured it out, I rip everything into a lossless format because it takes so much effort to rip hundreds of CDs that I only want to do it once. Making an MP3 or AAC copy of a lossless file is easy; going the other way is impossible.

[bilbo--baggins]

I'd like to point out that with 2.3 I had MAJOR issues with the IR functions. To make a long story short, I thought my Apple TV had become useless.

With the new 2.3.1 update, everything is back to normal.

I'm seeing the same thing here. It was driving me nuts - thankfully it seems to working fairly normally now, although I've only used it briefly.

[slapppy]

So far, can people confirm that there will be no loss of 5.1 with this new update? :o

[kiranmk2]

I'm seeing the same thing here. It was driving me nuts - thankfully it seems to working fairly normally now, although I've only used it briefly.

So I can remove the bit of paper blu-tacked to the front of my aTV? great.

How anyone can describe 160GB as massive is beyond me. I have an iTunes library with nothing but music and it's over 190GB. I still have 60 more rock CDs and 100 classical, jazz, holiday, etc. ones to go. I've calculated that the 250GB hard drive I've set aside for iTunes won't be enough.

I think sfbayrealtor was referring to using a patchstick to add an external storage solution through either a usb hard drive or or via streaming from a
NAS unit which essentially reduces the internal disk a buffer.

[janesta]

That being said, I am reminded of a column I read in a stereo magazine many years ago. It had a picture of a VCR that was intended to represent what women really wanted: it was pink and had a single button on it.

lmao :D

[rhett7660]

Well I have just had to register so I could post a comment.

What's all this about wives needing things to be simple on the tech front? lol

I will have you boys know, that I am a lady, I checked, and I have an Apple TV - my own one that I bought myself, along with a Mac Mini, an iMac G5, an iPhone (the original bought on its first day of sale), and several iPods!

It was my birthday 2 days ago, and I asked for (and got :D) the Logitech z-5500, and a second monitor for my Mini as I was getting bored of using it through the TV or screen sharing on iMac. Then I was straight to Apple Store to buy the wireless keyboard to sit next to my full size to work Mini.....its sooooo pwetty, and titchy, and cute.......:eek: eh, anyway

When I got Apple TV in January '08, I spent hours.....probably days.... ripping and decoding hundreds of my DVDs so I could get all my own content on, and then spent even longer adding full info for every TV episode and movie - including pictures and descriptions.....it took me frickin ages!!

But now I have almost 2.5TB of external drives full of stuff and its awesome! I love Apple TV - couldnt be without it now.

I came on here to research the new update after the last one knocked out loads of folks sound I wanted to check there was no problems with this one. I find a load of comments about how women need simple tech solutions....... shocking!! lol

Nah, I'm not surprised tho, most women don't have a clue, and it pis**s me off a little that they want to use it and experience it but as soon as something goes wrong, which it always does, they have no patience- then its always that it was a waste of money, or time! Thank god its not Stephanie Jobs, or else the first sign of trouble with a product it would be abandoned.

I just wanted to point out that we are not ALL that useless.... I don't know everything about technology, far from it, but I love it none the less. Don't clump all us females into the same category....... there are some exceptions about...... like I agree, men are better drivers overall - but I spend my holiday every year at the Nürburgring in Germany and I havent crashed yet!! lol

J;)

p.s. I'm not gay, butch, or manly.....I'm straight, I wear make up, and have long hair...... although I did kiss a few girls, but that was back in my party days, I don't do things like that anymore.....honest......:p

Kudos... That is very nice!

But of course the last comment is what we all really want to hear about. Forget the apple tv.... lol.... j/k....... :)

My wife loves it to.. although she isn't quite as tech savy to rip movies yet,,, but she does no how to push buttons!

[jaw04005]

Score. You mind sharing how you did that? Sorry if it isn't obvious.:D

Just download it and add it to your TV show or Movie collection.

http://rapidshare.com/files/203050883/_Apple_TV_Original_.mov.html

Original Apple TV Opening

http://rapidshare.com/files/203054442/_Take_2_Intro_.m4v.html

Take 2 Apple TV Opening

[blackpond]

So, what's the deal? People getting on here and saying such as "Hey, so have any of you found your Apple TV to be useful? Is it better than plugging in a laptop?" etc. etc. Is Apple.com down? Go read about it yourself. I've owned one for almost two years now. Yes, I find it useful. Yes, it's better than plugging in a laptop. It took me 20 minutes on Apple's site to realize that. Go buy one already. :rolleyes:

[neil51]

Have lost the 'ALL HD', 'Genres', 'Search' options on the 'MOVIES' option, after running the 2.3.1 update. Even tried switching countires then switching back to New Zealand which has worked before. Any other NZer's have this issue??

[chachat]

Greetings - Would anyone be willing to post these on another site for access, it seems that the download limit was reached on the original Rapidshare?
Cheers...



Just download it and add it to your TV show or Movie collection.

http://rapidshare.com/files/203050883/_Apple_TV_Original_.mov.html

Original Apple TV Opening

http://rapidshare.com/files/203054442/_Take_2_Intro_.m4v.html

Take 2 Apple TV Opening

[pilotError]

I don't have pictures, will video do?

Kudo's! I'll give you that one ;)


Love my :apple:TV. The only thing stopping me from buying a 2nd is that I'm willing to hold out until the next model, whenever the hell that may come out...

I've been waiting for that too. I kept hoping the next gen will have the nvidia chipset. Now if they would only remove that stupid code and allow me to connect directly to my NAS I'd be a happy camper.

[65StangBoy]

So far, can people confirm that there will be no loss of 5.1 with this new update? :o

As far as I can tell this update has fixed the 5.1 problems introduced with the 2.3 update. I was in the process of moving all my movies to another server and also adding the small 2 channel audio file to get all my 5.1 movies working. I just copied over a movie that only has 5.1 audio and it played perfectly where after the 2.3 update it would not have. Can anyone else confirm?

[Yvan256]

Still no setting for 4:3 support. :(

My TV can do 480i, 480p and even supports 1080i but there's no "letterbox" setting. If only the :apple:TV could support 4:3 TVs...

P.S.: yes I knew there was no 4:3 support when I bought it, but still, a simple software update would fix my problem.

[takuzinis]

Still no setting for 4:3 support. :(

My TV can do 480i, 480p and even supports 1080i but there's no "letterbox" setting. If only the :apple:TV could support 4:3 TVs...

P.S.: yes I knew there was no 4:3 support when I bought it, but still, a simple software update would fix my problem.

After updating to 2.3.1 I was able to get correct output on 4:3 CRT. Call it “letterbox option” or 853*480i resolution but now this is possible.
See step 2 in my submission:
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=658621

[srl7741]

After updating to 2.3.1 I was able to get correct output on 4:3 CRT. Call it “letterbox option” or 853*480i resolution but now this is possible.
See step 2 in my submission:
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=658621

That's great news, thanks for the link and help on that. :)

[Yvan256]

After updating to 2.3.1 I was able to get correct output on 4:3 CRT. Call it “letterbox option” or 853*480i resolution but now this is possible.
See step 2 in my submission:
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=658621

See my reply in that thread.

[dbarth4]

Just updated. Can't really confirm that IR problems are really gone, but it looks better.

However I noticed that volume control on the remote is now gone: instead of lowering or raising the volume, the '+' key now give you the progress bar in TV shows, and a second press gives you the the summary of the episode.

[jouster]

I totally agree. There may be other devices that "do more" but they haven't yet matched the simplicity and elegance of the AppleTV.

I thought you were going to say the "simplicity and elegance of a wife!"

True. Wives are great. They're just costly to run. I *did* get an AppleTV for mine, and she likes it. She also like baubles, though, which Apple doesn't sell - yet.

[Tweeksy]

As far as I can tell this update has fixed the 5.1 problems introduced with the 2.3 update. I was in the process of moving all my movies to another server and also adding the small 2 channel audio file to get all my 5.1 movies working. I just copied over a movie that only has 5.1 audio and it played perfectly where after the 2.3 update it would not have. Can anyone else confirm?

Errm, can't confirm this exactly, but they have definatley been looking at audio compatibility. I had an issue with a single file that wouldn't play the audio (in 2 channel) worked in 2.2, the sound stopped working in 2.3 and now it is working again in 2.3.1!

[dynaflash]

As far as I can tell this update has fixed the 5.1 problems introduced with the 2.3 update. I was in the process of moving all my movies to another server and also adding the small 2 channel audio file to get all my 5.1 movies working. I just copied over a movie that only has 5.1 audio and it played perfectly where after the 2.3 update it would not have. Can anyone else confirm?

Confirmed: Just did a test with an ac3 only m4v and it played dd on my onkyo just like 2.2 did. I'll be damned.

FWIW: I don't know that I would trust it will stay this way in future updates ... ymmv.

[Rich1963]

Janesta-

I think I will clarify what alot of my bretheren have been saying in a lousy way. My wife and I have a 'traditional' home life, as in, I go to work, she stays home and tends to the kids, cleans, runs errands, pays bills, and yet she still finds time to run a part-time small business out of the home. This being said, I will happily acknowledge she works twice as hard as I do during the day, and any 'issue' that crops up unannounced is another headache for her.

That being explained, what makes the AppleTV ideal for her during the day is the simplicity of having 3TB of movies, TV shows, and music easily accessible and not having our son grabbing one of 500 discs in it's case (or sometimes not) to build a road for his matchbox cars, or just running off with it where it is never seen again (side note here-if you have a 4 year old and are missing ANYTHING and haven't been able to find it, check your furnace vents in the floor. Odds are your son/daughter discovered they are easy to remove and have turned them into permenant storage for God only knows what).

The AppleTV is something simple, it works, it simplifies her life (and by extension mine), and she doesn't need nor have to sacrifice her time to screw with it because some idiot designer decided that more buttons on the remote or menu settings somehow makes it 'better'.

Amen.

P.S. Also check your basement if you have a sump pump cover covering a sump hole. Many wrenches and sockets from my tool set were able to be 'reclaimed' when this location was discovered. Unfortunately, I discovered it AFTER the pump injested a 7/16th deep well.

[qrayg]

Apple TV: needs to be hacked to death to play normal common video formats

If by "hacked to death" you mean plug in a USB jump drive and reboot... then yes, it needs to be hacked to death.

[dynaflash]

Rich1963 ... couldn't have said it better myself. :)

[Sehnsucht]

Pictures or it didn't Happen ;) :p

:D :D :D

[Cap41]

is boxee working with 2.3.1. i have heard yes and no, dont want to upgrade until confirmed working.

[jaw04005]

However I noticed that volume control on the remote is now gone: instead of lowering or raising the volume, the '+' key now give you the progress bar in TV shows, and a second press gives you the the summary of the episode.

We've never had volume control in TV shows, video podcasts or movies. It was only recently introduced for music and music videos in the 2.3.0 update.

Apple expects you to use your TV remote to control volume on video sources.

[TraceyS/FL]

Pictures or it didn't Happen ;) :p

My wife is pretty adept at the technology, but she doesn't want to deal with the hassle, she just wants it to work. I'm pretty sure that's all the OP of that comment was trying to say.
I can be the opposite - ther eis no way my STBXH would know how to buy an :apple:tv and get it working. NONE. Heck, he can barely handle the managed account he has on the kids eMac.

He's the mechanic. I was the System Admin.

Janesta-

I think I will clarify what alot of my bretheren have been saying in a lousy way. My wife and I have a 'traditional' home life, as in, I go to work, she stays home and tends to the kids, cleans, runs errands, pays bills, and yet she still finds time to run a part-time small business out of the home. This being said, I will happily acknowledge she works twice as hard as I do during the day, and any 'issue' that crops up unannounced is another headache for her.

That being explained, what makes the AppleTV ideal for her during the day is the simplicity of having 3TB of movies, TV shows, and music easily accessible and not having our son grabbing one of 500 discs in it's case (or sometimes not) to build a road for his matchbox cars, or just running off with it where it is never seen again (side note here-if you have a 4 year old and are missing ANYTHING and haven't been able to find it, check your furnace vents in the floor. Odds are your son/daughter discovered they are easy to remove and have turned them into permenant storage for God only knows what).

The AppleTV is something simple, it works, it simplifies her life (and by extension mine), and she doesn't need nor have to sacrifice her time to screw with it because some idiot designer decided that more buttons on the remote or menu settings somehow makes it 'better'.


Thanks for this great summary. THis is why i am planning out what to do. We have a 400 disc DVD player, but well, it's still a PITA. Thanks Sony for losing the names of files when the power is out after a Tornado. But the ability to have our stuff at the touch of a button is what i'm after....

I'm a stay-at-home mom with 3 kids, anything that can make my day-to-day life run smoother i'll take!

[Rich1963]

Tracy- I too can attest to Sony building a POS of a DVD carousel. I had the 300 disc model a few years ago, and after painstakingly entering all of the disc info. for our music and DVDs, it lost them during a momentary power outage. And then broke 2 months later when I scooted it back 3 inches on it's shelf to dust under it. Never again.

While the AppleTV is not the end all to HTPC's, it makes that Sony carousel look like an RCA wind-up phonograph from the 20's. You will love the results after you get a 100 or so DVD's into your library. Just make sure you've got some sort of redundant storage. I get more paranoid by the day about the digital safety of my collection due to the expanding time I've put into my library.:D

[TraceyS/FL]

Tracy- I too can attest to Sony building a POS of a DVD carousel. I had the 300 disc model a few years ago, and after painstakingly entering all of the disc info. for our music and DVDs, it lost them during a momentary power outage. And then broke 2 months later when I scooted it back 3 inches on it's shelf to dust under it. Never again.

While the AppleTV is not the end all to HTPC's, it makes that Sony carousel look like an RCA wind-up phonograph from the 20's. You will love the results after you get a 100 or so DVD's into your library. Just make sure you've got some sort of redundant storage. I get more paranoid by the day about the digital safety of my collection due to the expanding time I've put into my library.:D

We had the 300, got it replaced under the Best Buy service plan! LOL!! It survived a cross country move, but really, 2 hurricanes and 1 tornado outage (about 3 weeks total) in the last 5 years.... i'm not typing them again!

My mom has bought the kids almost all their DVDs, and she buys 2 copies. Lucky for me - they have been importing htem into their ATV, so i have no work and we will have a backup!

I'm looking forward to it... perhaps as a gesture of good faith i should offer up the Sony to the soon-to-be-ex??? :D

[Rich1963]

2 hurricanes, a tornado, and now an ex-husband? What did you do to upset God? Unknowingly piss on an indian burial ground or something? You don't live next door to a neighbor that owns a 'domesticated' chimpanzee or wild tiger, do you? Might want to stay indoors.;)

[TraceyS/FL]

2 hurricanes, a tornado, and now an ex-husband? What did you do to upset God? Unknowingly piss on an indian burial ground or something? You don't live next door to a neighbor that owns a 'domesticated' chimpanzee or wild tiger, do you? Might want to stay indoors.;)

LOL! I need some humor this week....

Not sure - that infamous Hurricane season of 2004 hit us hard here in Central Florida (i'm sure that was a, "Welcome to Florida" thing - we had an earthquake on the way out of CA too! LOL!!!), then the Groundhog Day Tornado wipe out all my neighbors to the south. We were the only house in our neighborhood without damage. But gee, going without power gets after awhile.

As for the ex - well, that is best left untold for the next few weeks. My lawyer might slap my hand again!

Back to the topic at hand, i'm really really itching to get my :apple:tv. You guys make it hard to resist! I guess i might see version 2 by the time the divorce is settled and i have access to some funds.

But overall - believe me, i'm staying inside these days! LOL!!

[nüb]

I wonder if this corrects the problem of IR noise from LCD screens blocking the remote signal. Will I finally be able to take the scrap of paper off the front of my aTV?

Yeah. I have a cute little purple piece of a Post-It covering mine. I should patent a little sticky to cover 3/4 of the :apple:TV IR sensor. Then sell them for $5 a piece!:eek:

[TwinCities Dan]

I wonder if this corrects the problem of IR noise from LCD screens blocking the remote signal. Will I finally be able to take the scrap of paper off the front of my aTV?

What is this "noise" problem? I have a 52" and a 47" LCD within 2 feet of my :apple:TV and have never has a problem with my remote? :confused:

[dmouck]

Janesta-

That being explained, what makes the AppleTV ideal for her during the day is the simplicity of having 3TB of movies, TV shows, and music easily accessible and not having our son grabbing one of 500 discs in it's case

I have seen multiple posts of people who have several hundred gigabytes or even terabytes of media that's accessible by the ATV. Forgive the n00bish question, but how are people doing this? I have been syncing my iTunes on my Macbook to my ATV, so the same data is on both locations. Obviously people don't have 3 TB drives in their Macs (do they?) I read about streaming to the ATV, is this what people are doing? I have several gigabytes of data that I would prefer to store elsewhere so it doesn't fill up my Macbook or ATV hard disk.

Thanks!

[kiranmk2]

What is this "noise" problem? I have a 52" and a 47" LCD within 2 feet of my :apple:TV and have never has a problem with my remote? :confused:

With the update to 2.3, Apple introduced the ability to use 3rd party remotes. I guess they tweaked the IR sensor sensitivity too. A lot of people reported the remote becoming sluggish after the update and someone took a digital video camera and pointed it at their screen and saw that it was giving off a lot of IR noise. Whether this was the cause or not, putting a piece of paper in front of the ATV IR sensor cured the problem for me. I think there are a lot of LCD screens that give off IR (mine is a samsung) - it happens for about an hour after the TV is switched on. I haven't checked whether Apple fixed it yet, cos recently my TV has been on for a while before I use my ATV. The bit of paper is gone, so I'll see soon, but I've heard it's fixed.

[dernhelm]

With the update to 2.3, Apple introduced the ability to use 3rd party remotes. I guess they tweaked the IR sensor sensitivity too. A lot of people reported the remote becoming sluggish after the update and someone took a digital video camera and pointed it at their screen and saw that it was giving off a lot of IR noise. Whether this was the cause or not, putting a piece of paper in front of the ATV IR sensor cured the problem for me. I think there are a lot of LCD screens that give off IR (mine is a samsung) - it happens for about an hour after the TV is switched on. I haven't checked whether Apple fixed it yet, cos recently my TV has been on for a while before I use my ATV. The bit of paper is gone, so I'll see soon, but I've heard it's fixed.

ya know, if Apple just implemented the CEC standard, this stupidity would just go away altogether.

[Trajectory]

I'm interested in digitizing my DVD movie collection so I can watch them on the ATV. Where's the best place to find out how to do this?

[rhett7660]

I'm interested in digitizing my DVD movie collection so I can watch them on the ATV. Where's the best place to find out how to do this?

You can start here by looking at the threads on ripping movies. You can also check the audio/music threads on how to rip music!

[Trajectory]

You can start here by looking at the threads on ripping movies. You can also check the audio/music threads on how to rip music!

Thanks! I've been looking at a bunch of those threads, but, there are too many options and recommendations which makes it a bit confusing.

[srl7741]

Thanks! I've been looking at a bunch of those threads, but, there are too many options and recommendations which makes it a bit confusing.

Forgive my threat hijack for a moment.

Here is a very short start.

Download HandBrake (http://handbrake.fr/) insert a DVD into your Mac. Quit the movie, open Handbrake and select the DVD as the source media. Use the presets on the right hand pane, select "Universal" then click start. When it's done move the file into your iTunes Movie folder and add it to iTunes. Be sure to add the new movie to your playlist and your done.
You now have that DVD movie in digital form and can be played from various devices.

Now it's time to come back and begin reading through all the threads on various related topics. There is a ton in great information here just not all in one place.

Hope that helps?

[GreatDrok]

Have lost the 'ALL HD', 'Genres', 'Search' options on the 'MOVIES' option, after running the 2.3.1 update. Even tried switching countires then switching back to New Zealand which has worked before. Any other NZer's have this issue??

Same here. I can still search the iTunes store but everything else is gone. Trying a factory restore (since I had some hacks installed) but it looks to me like something has changed for us Kiwis :-(

Incidentally, I noticed my ATV did an unrequested reboot today which seemed odd at the time. When it had restarted that was when I noticed that all the movie options had vanished.

EDIT: Reset to 2.1, still nothing in Movies other than 'Trailers' 'My Movies' and 'Search'. Something at iTunes must have changed.

EDIT2: Updated to 2.3.1 and it is still showing the same thing.

EDIT3: Looks like I'm not alone. Lots of people discussing this on the Apple forums so I assume someone at Apple is going to notice and fix this.

EDIT4: Someone on one of the forums tried changing stores which I did since mine was still not showing the store. Switching to Australia brought the menu back, and when I switched back to NZ the menu was still there so it looks like it has been fixed. *Phew*

[CyberDufus]

This issue:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9088362#9088362

has been fixed in the 2.3.1 Update. The music navigation is a beautiful thing now. I can't wait until I've finished ripping my 2,000 cds now.

[soup4you2]

I have seen multiple posts of people who have several hundred gigabytes or even terabytes of media that's accessible by the ATV. Forgive the n00bish question, but how are people doing this? I have been syncing my iTunes on my Macbook to my ATV, so the same data is on both locations. Obviously people don't have 3 TB drives in their Macs (do they?) I read about streaming to the ATV, is this what people are doing? I have several gigabytes of data that I would prefer to store elsewhere so it doesn't fill up my Macbook or ATV hard disk.

Thanks!

I've currently have about 8Terabytes of data that I stream to the AppleTV though the wireless from my Mac Pro. Works like a champ. I'm starting to move the content off the drives on the Mac Pro and purchasing some Drobo units that i can use as a nice NAS device. I already have 1 Drobo filled with 1TB drives, plan on purchasing another here really soon.

[hualon]

I've currently have about 8Terabytes of data that I stream to the AppleTV though the wireless from my Mac Pro. Works like a champ. I'm starting to move the content off the drives on the Mac Pro and purchasing some Drobo units that i can use as a nice NAS device. I already have 1 Drobo filled with 1TB drives, plan on purchasing another here really soon.

I have the exact same setup. I only wish that I could come up with an inexpensive method of allowing the :apple:TV to synch with the Drobo without having the power-sucking Mac Pro turned on all the time.

Suggestions?

[bucksaddle]

I only wish that I could come up with an inexpensive method of allowing the :apple:TV to synch with the Drobo without having the power-sucking Mac Pro turned on all the time.
Suggestions?

Mac mini? :D "It uses up to 45 percent less power when idle than its predecessor at 13W, according to Apple"

Sorry - i forgot you said an inexpensive method