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Apple Updates Apple TV to Version 5.0.1
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I've never had problems with Netflix on the ATV. (It's also rated as one of the better built in Netflix apps on a system.) For the most part, audio syncing issues are on Netflix's end or you ISP (especially Comcast who likes to screw with Netflix which they deny) 99% of the time... and it's either the stream, or the actual media they are streaming itself is off and will always be out of sync. There's an option to report problems that no one uses (They always post issues as a review, which is useless because no one will see that). Sometimes they just need to reload the actual content. Netflix servers also detect potential issues, and you'll get an email from them asking to rate the quality of a stream if their system thinks you may have encountered a problem. They'll often even throw you a discount for the month for such things for about 10%. With all that said...
The main differences in the various built in Netflix apps are simply interface and how they interact with the devices remote.
If you're consistently having issues streaming, it might be more to do with you connection to your wireless router. Maybe not, but my two cents. Or your ATV might be defective. Do you stream things via iTunes or home sharing much? Any issues there?
Man I can't believe they didn't take the opportunity to abandon that dreadful UI. I wonder if I take it an apple genius if they will know how to roll back the update. I don't care if I ever get another update from apple, I would rather have the old UI.
God forbid they implement any of the features that would make it useful, *cough cough* pull media from a NAS without the need for iTunes as a middleman *cough*...
Mine's still sitting in the box awaiting the good word from Firecore, hopefully it'll happen sometime this year..
Don't know why this got down voted so much. This has been one of my complaints from the beginning as well. I should at minimum be able to play files that are stored on my Time Capsule. Having to leave my computer on is really a waste. I don't know home many times I've had to go upstairs and wake up my system or power it on just so I can access my iTunes library from the downstairs AppleTV.
God forbid they implement any of the features that would make it useful, *cough cough* pull media from a NAS without the need for iTunes as a middleman *cough*...
Mine's still sitting in the box awaiting the good word from Firecore, hopefully it'll happen sometime this year..
get some medicine for that cough, quit moaning and get using iTunes & handbrake, works beautifully...
The way the icons move to the top when you first arrow down makes me puke a little each time. It's jarring.
Kind of exciting. Just got my first Apple TV a month ago, so this will be my first Apple TV update, whenever I get around to it.
I know, I know. What I said sounds a bit lame.
I know, I know. What I said sounds a bit lame.
It says that it specifically fixes netflix errors so maybe yours will be fixed by this update.
The new ones are fantastic. I didn't think I'd be as thrilled as I am. I don't turn mine off. I have it connected via HDMI to my Pioneer Elite VSX-33 AVR, from there to my Pioneer Elite 50". My NAS runs via Cat 6 to my current gen AEBS along with my Mac Mini. I have all my media servers and Plex in my Login Items. Turn it on, goes right into Plex, all my music, movies (even my 29GB Blu-Ray encodes play flawlessly with DTS surround sound), pictures run right through Plex, hardly ever have to use Lion unless I'm updating/tweaking something. The apple remote works perfectly.
If you have the money to spare, I'd highly recommend a Mac Mini as a HTMC over an Apple TV. The Apple TV is too limiting, even the compressed 1080P encodes aren't much better than the 720P versions. I did a test, compared my Blu-Ray's played in OS X, their handbraked encodes, and iTunes' 1080P versions. Course the Blu-Ray's won hands down, but my 1080P encodes blew away iTunes' and were as lossless as I could get from the original source. Plus DTS surround sound and the myriad of supported formats, to me it was a no brainer
.
I've done the same thing, but the Mini and a blu-ray drive are at least 6x more expensive than the Apple TV, i.e. it's not too surprising they're not comparable feature-wise. I do love having a full Mac connected to my TV for a mostly no limitations solution, even if it does cost quite a bit more.
Something like a Boxee box for a more standalone unit is probably a better comparison.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Still no "show" folders (for example, 
TV 1 could organize multi-episode movies like Star Wars, Star Trek, Rocky, Lord of the Rings, etc into a single line item folder. I miss that feature (now the movie list is so much longer with each item listed individually).
Same with TV shows (now every season is it's own line item).
I also miss having unique art tagged for each file (tv show episode) showing on the TV. Now, one image seems to be selected and used for every show in a season.
All three of these options worked great withTV 1.
TV 1 could organize multi-episode movies like Star Wars, Star Trek, Rocky, Lord of the Rings, etc into a single line item folder. I miss that feature (now the movie list is so much longer with each item listed individually).Same with TV shows (now every season is it's own line item).
I also miss having unique art tagged for each file (tv show episode) showing on the TV. Now, one image seems to be selected and used for every show in a season.
All three of these options worked great with
TV 1.Hopefully never. I tried the browser that one of the popular jailbreaks has, and I saw exactly why Apple has never bothered with it. Go ahead, try navigating a web browser with an Apple TV remote. It's a whole lot of miserable.
Sure, with an iPhone or iPad used as a trackpad and virtual keyboard it could work but, then you basically have Airplay mirroring...which already exists.
Normally I don't knock having choices, but even 5 seconds spent by Apple developing such a pointless tool would make me angry, knowing that they could have spent that time developing something new or improving something useful.
I have comcast and never had an issue with Netflix. And between me and my wife we watch a ton of Netflix and Hulu; and sometimes Comcast's streaming Xfinity.
When are they going to move the Instant Queue to the top of the damn Netflix options list? So ridiculous it isn't because that's where you want to go 99% of the time, instead you have to scroll down every time. Did anyone even test this stuff with real users?
Does this allow us to modify the clutter of useless icons?
The US sports and Netflix icons are redundant for most people outside the US. We don't need those on our screens.
(and yes, I have sent that request to Apple).
The US sports and Netflix icons are redundant for most people outside the US. We don't need those on our screens.
(and yes, I have sent that request to Apple).
Artwork and Genres
Speaking of the UI and how pathetic it is for an Apple product... Does anyone else wish they would centre the UI more around the artwork instead of lists of titles? What I really want is to be able to view my computer's TV show library by Genre and be able to scroll horizontally through a genre by artwork... Just like in the TV Shows Store screen or the Vimeo categories screen, as in a cover-flow-like interface. Then you scroll up and down to switch between genres.
Movies and Music should also behave that way. Or at least have the option to do so...
Can't believe they haven't implemented this yet... Apple TV really lets a lot of the brilliant features of iTunes that make our libraries so well presented on our computer go to waste
And what's with not being able to browse and purchase from the iTunes Music store from Apple TV?? Surely if you have iCloud enabled there is no storage problem. Weird.
Anyway, sorry for going off topic. Hope this update doesn't break anything like it has done many times in the past...
Speaking of the UI and how pathetic it is for an Apple product... Does anyone else wish they would centre the UI more around the artwork instead of lists of titles? What I really want is to be able to view my computer's TV show library by Genre and be able to scroll horizontally through a genre by artwork... Just like in the TV Shows Store screen or the Vimeo categories screen, as in a cover-flow-like interface. Then you scroll up and down to switch between genres.
Movies and Music should also behave that way. Or at least have the option to do so...
Can't believe they haven't implemented this yet... Apple TV really lets a lot of the brilliant features of iTunes that make our libraries so well presented on our computer go to waste
And what's with not being able to browse and purchase from the iTunes Music store from Apple TV?? Surely if you have iCloud enabled there is no storage problem. Weird.
Anyway, sorry for going off topic. Hope this update doesn't break anything like it has done many times in the past...
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Also, it baffles me why artwork from my computer's library usually takes much longer to finish loading on Apple TV than artwork on the iTunes Movies/TV Shows store screens. Considering those are being downloaded over the Internet and my library is on my local network. Just doesn't make sense in theory...
Apple TV = Hobby
Apple TV is still a "Hobby" to Apple. It's a very cheap and limited box. Don't buy it if you're looking for something that isn't drastically limited. The new Mac Mini's with an HDMI connection are an almost perfect media server. Almost completely unlimited in what you can do or view. Apple TV $99. Mac Mini $599. You get what you pay for. Quit complaining.
Apple TV is still a "Hobby" to Apple. It's a very cheap and limited box. Don't buy it if you're looking for something that isn't drastically limited. The new Mac Mini's with an HDMI connection are an almost perfect media server. Almost completely unlimited in what you can do or view. Apple TV $99. Mac Mini $599. You get what you pay for. Quit complaining.