Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Selling Apple TV Near Cost?
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
More Meat
Would like to see 1080p compatibility. Also, there are no options to download Blu-Ray movies.
Also want a much larger drive. You can only store 100+/- movies on the larger disk that is offered.
I would purchase an Apple TV with the idea that I could get rid of my physical library and have everything digital.
LC
Would like to see 1080p compatibility. Also, there are no options to download Blu-Ray movies.
Also want a much larger drive. You can only store 100+/- movies on the larger disk that is offered.
I would purchase an Apple TV with the idea that I could get rid of my physical library and have everything digital.
LC
If my memory is good, Apple started selling music way after the iPod was introduced. So that would have been a very bed idea.
In the long run, something like ATV is going to win out. I am on the verge of getting an ATV, maybe one more revision and I'll be ready to get one. I was considering Blu Ray, but then I heard Bill Gates (of all people) make a salient point about both Blu Ray and HDDVD eventually losing out to downloadable content because it is cheaper and more convenient. As usual, Apple beat MS to the punch by having both the product and the delivery system in place, it's just a little bit ahead of its time.
Now, instead of a shelf full of Blu Ray boxes I'm thinking it's worth waiting until ATV is just about perfected. At that point, I can see my entire collection in coverflow on the TV I'll watch it on, and not have all of that clutter.
Then again, it may take a while, because for the ATV to have all of that content available on demand, it would have to have a huge hard drive. Probably more of an issue for people who watch movies regularly.
I can see where ATV is going though, and I think that it is generally where things are going to go in this market.
I'm sure that some savvy individuals will hack the ATV so that it plays downloaded content. It's already been done, so there is no reason to think that it will not be an option in the future. It seems that any company that wants their product to succeed has to leave a backdoor in there somewhere.
Now, instead of a shelf full of Blu Ray boxes I'm thinking it's worth waiting until ATV is just about perfected. At that point, I can see my entire collection in coverflow on the TV I'll watch it on, and not have all of that clutter.
Then again, it may take a while, because for the ATV to have all of that content available on demand, it would have to have a huge hard drive. Probably more of an issue for people who watch movies regularly.
I can see where ATV is going though, and I think that it is generally where things are going to go in this market.
I'm sure that some savvy individuals will hack the ATV so that it plays downloaded content. It's already been done, so there is no reason to think that it will not be an option in the future. It seems that any company that wants their product to succeed has to leave a backdoor in there somewhere.
I bought one last March and was disappointed when the 160GB model was released only 2 months later. Now that same 160GB unit is only $30 more than I paid for mine, however my wife and I have enjoyed using ours - and to my surprise - a lot more than SHE expected we would. She can sit mesmorized by the screensaver of library photos as she listens to music. It's always a great background setting as well as a conversation piece at parties. We also find ourselves using the YouTube feature to watch videos on a big screen that might normally look crappy on a computer monitor.
+1
I'm also out of HDMI ports, so I use the
tv's component outputs. I have it set to 1080, and it looks great. One of these days, I'll pickup a HDMI expansion box, but I'm also out of optical ports - need one reasonably priced that does both.
But, Apple just tied AppleTV more closely to the iPod (with the ability to move movies purchased on AppleTV to your computer and iPod, right? So, in some ways, Apple has made a serious move to neutralize any question of market penetration. Tell your average iPod owner that an AppleTV-purchased movie can be moved effortlessly to their iPod and Netflix downloads can't, what effect do you think that will have on buying decisions?
Okay, now let's go down the list of things I listed previously and see where Netflix equals or exceeds Apple.
hardware - not even close, Apple has this one in the bag.
software - not even close, Apple has this one too. In fact, wasn't Netflix still working on Mac compatibility?
digital delivery - As far as I know, Netflix does not have the infrastructure for this. That's a lot of time, money and effort. As their business grows, they will have to address this. Apple already has it done with iTunes.
customer service - Equal, I'd say.
user interface/experience - Not sure. Haven't used their download service, but is it as intuitive and easy-to-use and integrate with media players?
DRM - Although I loathe DRM, a site's ability to guarantee content owners some protection via DRM is critical. Netflix has no experience with this.
format compatibility - Apple allows a few formats to be used in their "environment" and allows users to shift movies to iPods and their computers. Does Netflix allow that kind of movement? I don't think they do.
I would like to thank our American friends down under (the 49th) for subsidizing our Canadian
TVs with movie rentals we can't get ourselves.In return, could I get you some oil, or fresh water maybe?
I would like to thank our American friends down under (the 49th) for subsidizing our Canadian
In return, could I get you some oil, or fresh water maybe?
"... Blame Canada ..."
Slowly I've been ripping my DVD library to H.264 MPEG4 with AAC audio. Just like music, I find it really nice not to have to have a huge set of shelves just to house all my media..
Its too bad that Hollywood paid off Congress with the DMCA so that there will never be an easy way for users to rip their movies directly into iTunes like music. This would ease the transition to all digital purchases for movies... The digital copies Fox launched is a good step but what about the huge number of DVDs people aready own. The studios are too greedy expecting everyone to repurchase that content as a digital file when we all have it sitting on our shelves anyway.
I think that it would be nice if they coupled theTV with Time Capsule to make a big home media server, but at the same time; I wonder what the point of buying any movie in digital format is, if you can rent the same content On-Demand for <$3.00... Of course the answer is if you intend to watch the movie more than 3 or 4 times... Still, even if you do, it still may be difficult to justify purchasing a movie, since you have to pay for the storage as well...
The digital rental model looks to be a slippery slope for the studios to me as they will eventually lose lots of money if everyone decided to do this. How many people buy movies now and watch them only 1 time... Plenty... If everyone only rented because a movie is always available, studios are potentially losing 3/4 of their revenues not including some gains from the decreased distribution costs...
This coupled with the fact that eventually the cable/DSL providers will get it together and compete here, make it hard for me to see Apple getting too far in digital rentals. Also, internet neutrality isn't totally a reality yet and certainly if the Cable/DSL providers wanted to get ugly they could throttle or ban incoming/outgoing traffic from iTMS... Certainly the FCC has some fair competition rules and measure but who knows under what guise the ISPs could justify doing it...
Finally, I do agree that a subscription model (especially for TV shows) could be a good idea. Especially if Apple can figure out how to give away their set-top box for free. The hardware is priced right but American's are used to paying nothing for their set-top boxes. I know some Tivo user's would beg to differ, but the vast majority just get the free one from their cable provider...
If digital content distribution for movies catches on, perhaps the market will grow due to impulse purchases and make up for lost revenues due to rentals...
Its too bad that Hollywood paid off Congress with the DMCA so that there will never be an easy way for users to rip their movies directly into iTunes like music. This would ease the transition to all digital purchases for movies... The digital copies Fox launched is a good step but what about the huge number of DVDs people aready own. The studios are too greedy expecting everyone to repurchase that content as a digital file when we all have it sitting on our shelves anyway.
I think that it would be nice if they coupled the
TV with Time Capsule to make a big home media server, but at the same time; I wonder what the point of buying any movie in digital format is, if you can rent the same content On-Demand for <$3.00... Of course the answer is if you intend to watch the movie more than 3 or 4 times... Still, even if you do, it still may be difficult to justify purchasing a movie, since you have to pay for the storage as well...The digital rental model looks to be a slippery slope for the studios to me as they will eventually lose lots of money if everyone decided to do this. How many people buy movies now and watch them only 1 time... Plenty... If everyone only rented because a movie is always available, studios are potentially losing 3/4 of their revenues not including some gains from the decreased distribution costs...
This coupled with the fact that eventually the cable/DSL providers will get it together and compete here, make it hard for me to see Apple getting too far in digital rentals. Also, internet neutrality isn't totally a reality yet and certainly if the Cable/DSL providers wanted to get ugly they could throttle or ban incoming/outgoing traffic from iTMS... Certainly the FCC has some fair competition rules and measure but who knows under what guise the ISPs could justify doing it...
Finally, I do agree that a subscription model (especially for TV shows) could be a good idea. Especially if Apple can figure out how to give away their set-top box for free. The hardware is priced right but American's are used to paying nothing for their set-top boxes. I know some Tivo user's would beg to differ, but the vast majority just get the free one from their cable provider...
If digital content distribution for movies catches on, perhaps the market will grow due to impulse purchases and make up for lost revenues due to rentals...
What annoys me mostly is Apple's focus on the US market and not at all in Europe. Apple is just as popular in Europe as they are in the US, they simply just lack the lower pricing, same products. The new cheap AppleTV is nothing without rentals and we don't have that yet! (more a problem with EU but...) Only three countries have the iPhone and most people I know are actually planning to buy one when it comes out, and if it doesn't in the near future they will buy it and unlock it themselves.
My point is that Apple has so many cool features going but as a Danish customer I still haven't seen half of what Apple is capable of unfortunately...
I can't wait to a couple of years when these quirks have been ironed out.
My point is that Apple has so many cool features going but as a Danish customer I still haven't seen half of what Apple is capable of unfortunately...
I can't wait to a couple of years when these quirks have been ironed out.
My point is that Apple has so many cool features going but as a Danish customer I still haven't seen half of what Apple is capable of unfortunately...
I can't wait to a couple of years when these quirks have been ironed out.
I feel your pain
http://www.wewantapplegreece.com/index.php/site/about
When you can buy an Xbox 360 with all of the functionality of the Apple TV and video games for the previous Apple TV price, it made sense for Apple to drop the cost. It also shows they're committed to the product, but they better not rest on their laurels. The cable and satellite companies already have boxes in most homes, with room to upgrade.
All this says to me is they're not trying hard enough, they're desperate for it to succeed, but they've not made it popular enough on it's own yet. When they make the same margins on it that they do on their computers or iPod's, then it'll probably be a worthwhile device.
The article makes it sound like it's fair for prices to be greater in Europe in the first place, let alone extortionately as in this case
I use my Xbox already to download HD movies. In addition I can either stream downloaded TV shows, legal DVD rips etc from my Mac or put the files on to my USB drive and plug it in. The Apple TV doesn't bring anything new to the table for me as far as I can see. Add in the fact the ATV is more expensive than my Xbox too....
The article makes it sound like it's fair for prices to be greater in Europe in the first place, let alone extortionately as in this case
I think we can expect a price drop once the rentals come on stream here. They sell at about cost in the US and make money from rentals. No rentals here, no profit, no price drop.....