AppleTV. Anything more than Front Row?

[mrat93]

I got my 24" iMac last week and one program I like alot is Front Row. Next week, we are beginning renovations on our home that expect to be done by December, and once they are done, we'll be getting a big widescreen TV. My question is, besides a slightly redesigned interface and YouTube, whats the difference between AppleTV and Front Row?

 

[levitynyc]

Apple TV is overrated. There isnt any HD content. DVD's look good on an HD TV, but no where near HD content. Now imagine paying 300 bucks to stream LESS THAN DVD content to a big screen TV. Seems like waste to me.

 

[grabberslasher]

Well for someone with a large HD movie collection (like myself!) I find the AppleTV a fascinating way to watch movies, and it's very useful.

I have, however, 'hacked' my AppleTV so I can use external USB storage, and SSH into it. So bascially, I just hook up my 1TB high def movie drive into it and it's awesome. Without hacking, the AppleTV is very limited, it's true. But luckily you do not need to take the device apart anymore to hack it - you can do it by booting from any USB stick or external hard drive. No warranty voiding, maximum enjoyment.

 

[mrat93]

Apple TV is overrated. There isnt any HD content. DVD's look good on an HD TV, but no where near HD content. Now imagine paying 300 bucks to stream LESS THAN DVD content to a big screen TV. Seems like waste to me.

That's what I thought at first. Then I got my Mac and downloaded HandBrake. I realized that this would be perfect for me and my family. My parents have several DVDs, yet they don't know how to use a DVD player. But with ATV, I could just rip their DVDs, put them in iTunes, and there it is! Whenever my older brother is home from school and he's not out at night, he stays home, watches DVDs, leaves them out and loses them. I have a strong feeling that this would benefit everyone in my technologically unadvanced family. But still I wonder if it's better to output audio and video from a Mac we already have to our TV.