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This is what the Apple TV SHOULD be like (and what I'm buying instead)

S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
http://www.johnlewis.com/230645020/Product.aspx

This is what Apple TV should be like (but not need Windows Media Player to stream, obviously!).

But being able to record two off-air channels simultaneously, archive TV shows to USB, expand the HDD with a USB external drive (and fill it with movies!), get VOD movies, stream movies, music and photos (for PC users annoyingly) and all in a smart-looking box - what more can one want? Even not being able to stream from my Mac, I'm not going to wait any longer for an updated ATV (which, looking at Apple's current track record, would likely be seriously lacking anyway) and will buy the FetchTV tomorrow.

I LOVE the idea of saving TV shows to my Macbook Pro if I want. No Apple TV for me!
 
LucasLand

LucasLand

macrumors 6502a
Mar 6, 2002
756
92
New England
since it sells in euros and "enables you to download hundreds of movies and TV shows without subscription ", it is something a european country can get away with, but not in usa
 
S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
Why is this not possible in the USA? Do you not have pay-per-movie VOD? Isn't that exactly how the iTunes store currently works via the Apple TV?
 
stridemat

stridemat

Moderator
Staff member
Apr 2, 2008
11,364
863
UK
Why would this type of product not be able to be sold in states?

I really want to drop some money on an Apple tv, but it needs to offer something much like the one the OP linked.
 
S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
The Mac/EyeTV/ATV just seems really cumbersome to me (especially considering I have a MBP - the idea of having to have it tethered to an aerial cable whenever I want it to record something and then exporting it to an iTunes-friendly format to watch on the ATV doesn't appeal).

http://www.which.co.uk/reviews-ns/fetchtv-smartbox-8000/smartbox-8000review/index.jsp

http://www.fetchtv.co.uk/

It looks great to me but, if I'm honest, the reason I've made this thread is to see what others think before I get excited and buy one, so thanks for the input.
 
S

Shuttleworth

macrumors regular
Dec 23, 2008
196
0
UK
The EyeTV now has the ability to stream live TV to an iPod Touch or iPhone whenever you are connected to the internet (you need to buy the EyeTV app for a couple of quid). It can also stream your recordings over the internet to the same devices or another computer if they have been converted to the iPod format. Also recordings done by EyeTV can be shared by computers on your local network.

No idea if these features are of use to you, but they are perhaps one advantage of the EyeTV option over this box.

http://www.elgato.com/elgato/int/mainmenu/products/software/EyeTV-app.en.html
 
S

shevans

macrumors member
Feb 25, 2007
62
4
Herts, UK
As Cave Man says...

Content vage and details very lacking! The movie covers on the website are not exactly new or exciting either. At FROM £1.99 a movie you could get stung.... At least with an Apple TV you get what is on iTunes and with a bit of creativity not limited to the UK store.
 
S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
I have the EyeTV and have the iPhone app. Nice idea but not too practical in my view. It would be lovely to schedule a recording from my iPhone if I could also schedule someone to wake-up my MBP and plug in the aerial!

I currently have a Virgin Media box and have only once rented a movie. Admittedly the movies on the FetchTV look a bit lame - just like the movies available on Apple TV.

roidy said:
I think I'll stick with ATV, I like to own content not just rent for 24 hours.
Click to expand...

Not sure what you mean there. It'll still play your own content (It'll stream if you install Windows Media Player or you can use the USB to load your content into it or even plug in an external drive full of your own content. Renting for 24hrs is just one of the features - same as Apple TV.

Also, the product in that YouTube video is the old model so doesn't really count here.
 
OllyW

OllyW

Moderator
Staff member
Oct 11, 2005
17,196
6,799
The Black Country, England
The media streaming details are a bit sketchy, will it even work with a Mac?

I've already got a Freeview PVR and Apple TV so it doesn't seem to give me a lot extra over my current set up. If you are looking for a better networked media player to go with your Virgin Box, this new QNAP looks very interesting.
 
S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
OllyW said:
The media streaming details are a bit sketchy, will it even work with a Mac?

I've already got a Freeview PVR and Apple TV so it doesn't seem to give me a lot extra over my current set up. If you are looking for a better networked media player to go with your Virgin Box, this new QNAP looks very interesting.
Click to expand...

I have said it won't stream from a Mac but, despite that, it offers a lot more than the current ATV.

My Virgin Media box is slow, cumbersome, doesn't record and, even if it could, doesn't have two tuners. It's rarely switched on.
 
G

GermanSuplex

macrumors 68000
Aug 26, 2009
1,529
29,960
I'm not impressed.

You can do essentially the same thing on the Apple TV. You pay for what you want. I've downloaded several series of TV to watch on the Apple TV. Many podcasts are full-length shows that are free of charge, there are decent priced movie rentals that you can watch at decent-enough prices...

I don't see what the huge difference is. I'm not really all that hassled by switching back and forth between my cable box DVR and the Apple TV either. My cable subscription isn't that badly priced and includes more commercial-free programming and movies on demand than I could ever care to watch.
 
roidy

roidy

macrumors 65816
Dec 30, 2008
1,027
22
Nottingham, UK
ss957916 said:
Not sure what you mean there. It'll still play your own content (It'll stream if you install Windows Media Player or you can use the USB to load your content into it or even plug in an external drive full of your own content. Renting for 24hrs is just one of the features - same as Apple TV.

Also, the product in that YouTube video is the old model so doesn't really count here.
Click to expand...

What I mean is I like to buy my content outright so I can still watch it in years to come like I can on the ATV and not just rent it for a limited time. I know you can use USB to load your own content but you've still gotta get that content from somewhere and none of your DRM'd iTunes content is gonna play on it.

Yes the hardware may be old in the youtube video but it's a good bet it's all based around the same firmware, even the bloke in the video says it's the same as an old NetGem box just with a different firmware.

If you could purchase content to keep forever then I'd take another look at it. However if you only ever want to rent stuff and if the selection of content rivaled iTunes then it might stand a chance.
 
J

Jaunty

macrumors regular
Oct 13, 2004
111
3
London, England
ss957916 said:
I have said it won't stream from a Mac but, despite that, it offers a lot more than the current ATV.

My Virgin Media box is slow, cumbersome, doesn't record and, even if it could, doesn't have two tuners. It's rarely switched on.
Click to expand...

Sorry to drag up this thread, but why on earth haven't you got a V+ box? 3 tuners and overall a great experience.
 
S

ss957916

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 17, 2009
861
0
Jaunty said:
Sorry to drag up this thread, but why on earth haven't you got a V+ box? 3 tuners and overall a great experience.
Click to expand...

Cos I don't want to pay for subscription TV - I'll just be paying money for a load of utter rubbish I'll never watch.

And to update this thread - that FetchTV was crap! I took it back a few days after buying it and got Apple TV. My Apple TV is certainly nothing special (only 40 or 160GB hard drive - what's that all about?!) with all it's freezing-up, no HDMI output and no Freeview tuner etc. but at least I no longer need a DVD player sitting under my TV.
 
W

wombat888

macrumors 6502a
May 10, 2008
541
0
Not sure why this would be preferable to an Apple TV even setting aside interface and iTunes.

And then - there's interface and iTunes. Maybe this has as good an interface, but then again, maybe not. And it's very unlikely it works with iTunes.
 
shinji

shinji

macrumors 65816
Mar 18, 2007
1,329
1,515
wombat888 said:
Not sure why this would be preferable to an Apple TV even setting aside interface and iTunes.

And then - there's interface and iTunes. Maybe this has as good an interface, but then again, maybe not. And it's very unlikely it works with iTunes.
Click to expand...

It does tv streams from Hulu. At least in theory.

Also plays more formats. Don't know about iTunes integration, but http://www.boxee.com if you want to try the beta
 
Bye Bye Baby

Bye Bye Baby

macrumors 65816
Sep 15, 2004
1,152
0
i(am in the)cloud
I must say of all the ATV competitors that I have seen, nothing outdoes what the ATV says it will do. For what it promises it is the best thing on the market.

Having said that I would like a couple of changes. The ability to watch 1080P content, to be able to stream to other devices (iphone ipad etc).

Not really interested in DVR. TV on the whole is pretty lame.
 
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