No Apple Digital Video Recorder (DVR) Planned?

[gugy]

of course they're not planning a DVR. how would they sell TV and movie content if people were just recording it? 🙄

if you want DVR, just get an eyetv...

edit: fed-ex and peyton beat me to it!

Unfortunately, I guess EyeTV will be the only solution available. Too bad.
I wish a solution from Apple. That would be much better.
DVR is a great deal. Too bad Apple is not planning to have that.
But Steve also said the we would not see video on the ipod. So maybe that's a good hint that the DVR will be here soon.

 

[Cappy]

I personally never thought there would be an Apple pvr but was holding out hope. I think they want to get their itunes store off the ground more.

Does that mean Mac mini users will be without pvr capabilities, etc? Not at all. All it takes is someone to port over the MythTV project from the linux world which I believe has already started. MythTV is supposed to be a pretty nice pvr and media center config. The kicker is the need for a good tuner though. I'm not familiar with what all is available on the Mac side but my guess is usb2 is the only choice which unfortunately wouldn't be my first choice as an ideal solution.

Apple might even be counting on this to happen. They wouldn't need to develop it but it would still be there. That would keep some of the pressure off them from their affiliates with the itunes store who don't like the idea of pvr's.

BTW, one other argument to not including this facility with the the mac mini is note the price increase. One might wonder if they raised the price so that they could fit another product in under it...maybe a dedicated pvr/itunes video console?

 

[FaasNat]

Maybe not built in recording capabilities. But maybe a subscription service of the iTMS for TV shows (basically cable service). It would fit what he said about accessing content from the computer and putting it on the TV. The Mac Mini is a computer after all....

 

[superleccy]

Unfortunately, I guess EyeTV will be the only solution available. Too bad. I wish a solution from Apple. That would be much better.

IMHO, EyeTV is almost as good as anything Apple could come up with, especially when you compare it to the range of TV cards/dongles for Windoze.

I got my girlfreind a Haupaggue USB box for her Dell laptop, expecting it to be "Like EyeTV"... but it's not... in comparison, it's utter, utter cr*p. I did some research, and it seems that utter utter cr*pness is the norm for Windoze TV adaptops. Elgato EyeTV, on the other hand, really seem to have embraced Apple's "build it round the user" philosophy.

Maybe Apple should buy Elgato.

And look on the bright side, the new Mac Mini still has a FW400 port!

 

[superleccy]

The kicker is the need for a good tuner though. I'm not familiar with what all is available on the Mac side but my guess is usb2 is the only choice which unfortunately wouldn't be my first choice as an ideal solution.

Most of the Elgato range is FW400. My EyeTV410 hardware does not need an external power supply, and also has a FW400 pass-thru which is perfect for my Lacie. It rocks.

 

[gugy]

IMHO, EyeTV is almost as good as anything Apple could come up with Maybe Apple should buy Elgato.

And look on the bright side, the new Mac Mini still has a FW400 port!

good to know. I really want a DVR solution for my Mac. Elgato looks good but I wasn't sure about it. I was waiting for an Apple solution. I guess I'll look again into EyeTV.

 

[ja0912]

x

 

[chasemac]

If Apple made money either way, would they mind?

See also this earlier discussion about whether Apple might provide Tivo-like service for certain TV shows, via free downloads with commercials, through the Music Store.

🙂 I'm sure Apple wouldn't mind. Thanks for the link to discussion. I think I like DVDs myself.

 

[milo]

Some people are deluded, they want a Powerful Mini Mac + PVR for the bargain price of $499.

True. But some of us just want a stripped down Apple box with the bare minimum required to function as a DVR and media hub, at the cheapest price possible. I don't think that's unrealistic at all. They probably WON'T put DVR in the mini, it makes a lot more sense to create a box that's even cheaper and more specialized.

With hardware encode/decode, you don't even need a chip as fast as the core solo.

Hell, I'd even be very happy with an updated airport express that had codec chips and a tuner, that could stream video to and from another computer in the house.

OR...I'd probably also be happy with a $9.99 subsciption service for unlimited movies, assuming they upped the quality. With that, why would you have to buy any movies? That's not a TIVO killer, that's a CABLE TV killer. And netflix...


Never believe anything apple says about future products, they will NEVER admit something is a good idea until they have a product to announce. And if someone else starts selling a ton of DVR's (microsoft media?) there's no way they'll just sit there and give that market away. But DVR's for sale haven't taken off yet, simply because it's too expensive to build one at a price consumers are willing to pay. The only reason TIVO survives is their monthly fees.

They want you to buy it from them. Why would they make a product that makes the itunes store obselete? Duh!

Yeah! And if they're smart, they won't add CD ripping to iTunes either. If people can load in their own music, it would kill the iTunes store! Oh wait...

What I cannot fathom, however, is their notion that one should stream pathetic, tiny, awful-resolution iTunes videos to your TV.

What's stopping them from upping the resolution in the future?

Finaly! This is when I say I told you so.
I hope this will quieten those who have been dreaming about a DVR in a Mac Mini.

That statement sounds that much more silly after the dozen or so posts reminding of the promise of no video ipod...

 

[bigandy]

Some people are deluded, they want a Powerful Mini Mac + PVR for the bargain price of $499.

This is reality. Its not going to happen.

we can keep saying this, but is the rest of the bunch actually going to listen? 🙄

 

[BornAgainMac]

Apple's new slogan: "We can't do it."

At least EyeTV is making it simple. I really like the work they have done to make it better.

 

[MarcelV]

Looking at Elgato (not on topic, but help wanted)

Software looks great, but the boxes don't have an IR blaster at all. How can I schedule recordings and change the channels like I do with Tivo? Or would I need to look at a different solution? Which one?

 

[joemama]

If Apple really isn't considering a DVR, they're stupid.

Exactly. They are going to miss the boat on this. They are so consumed by people paying for FREE television shows they will be blindsided when the general public gets over this fad of paying for tv shows.

Dumb, D-U-M, dumb.

 

[zelmo]

Forget a DVR. All I want from Apple is a video iPod with Bonjour 2 capabilities, so I can either watch what is on the drive or access other media content on my network.

 

[Arcady]

I already have a DVR that can also play songs from iTunes and show my iPhoto library on my TV set. It is called a TiVo. Why do I need to connect a Mac in my living room? So I can watch crappy 320x240 videos that I have to pay for? No thanks.

 

[superleccy]

Software looks great, but the boxes don't have an IR blaster at all. How can I schedule recordings and change the channels like I do with Tivo? Or would I need to look at a different solution? Which one?

My EyeTV410 certainly has an Infra Red Remote, and it's great. However, the best way to programme your EyeTV is to get a subscription to tvtv.com (or the equivalent for your country), which costs about £15/year-ish. That gives you a fully searchable & personalised TV listings guide with 1-click record. This is Web-based so you can program your EyeTV from your own web browser, or from any web (or WAP) broswer in the world... handy if you're away from home and you suddenly remember you wanted to record something. Furthermore, data from tvtv.com is fully integrated into the new EyeTV 2.0 client, which is runs a little sluggish on my iBook (see sig) but it's good enough.

If your cable / sattelite provider broadcasts an electronic TV guide, then the EyeTV may be able to use that without having to pay for tvtv.com. Also many new EyeTV units come with a free tvtv.com trial.

Hope this helps.

Edit: You can also control it via your Bluetooh Phone & Salling Clicker if you really want!

 

[brepublican]

Pipe dreams. What use would a DVR equiped mini have? Unless you can have a HDD thats like 300GB. Its more reasonable to expect an AE that can stream video. And a video iPod. All I want to do is watch PhotoshopTV on my telly 🙂

 

[vashim66]

Looks like apple will not get my cash on my next computer purchase if this is true.

I've been waiting for a one-box solution to replace my High Def DVR cable box from comcast and my DVD player. A windows vista machine is looking more and more like a reality now.

The video apple is selling is terrible quality anyway -- It would look like crap on my HDTV.

 

[age234]

Exactly. They are going to miss the boat on this. They are so consumed by people paying for FREE television shows they will be blindsided when the general public gets over this fad of paying for tv shows.

Dumb, D-U-M, dumb.

Uh, free?

I don't know about anyone else, but I get something called a "cable bill" every month. And I probably don't watch enough TV to justify it.

Downloading TV shows is not a fad. It's the future of broadcasting. It's not going to be long before everything but live news throws off the harness of linear broadcasting. Everything will be some variation of what iTunes is now. Why should I wait around and plan my life around a TV show that comes on at 9:00 when I can get it whenever I want?

DVR is the bridge between the past and the future, granted. But Apple is already working on the future with videos on iTunes.

Sure, it's not perfect. I'm sure Apple would love to offer 1080 resolution videos, but guess what? The technology and infastructure isn't there yet. What are you going to do, wait 257 hours to download your movies? Then you'll complain that it's too slow. Seems like my fellow Apple fans are either ga-ga over stuff or whining like children (recently the latter).

 

[Trench]

Life Style

Apple is already has plans for a media center and its called life style. It's in one of the photos with the hi-fi ipod.
http://www.apple.com/ipodhifi/hifiyourhome.html

 

[ppc_michael]

Yes, and people wouldn't want to watch video on their iPods. 🙄

 

[Electro Funk]

Because a DVR can be sustained long term. People want to view content on demand in high quality. iTunes is fine for ipods but not a good solution for the living room. Why would I want to watch iTunes poor resolution junk on my 50" plasma?

My thoughts exactly... itunes video looks crappy on my 20'' Imac core duo... why would i want to see that debachel on a 46" DLP? Would look hideous!

Especially when most of my viewing is HD or a DVD on an upconverting dvd player w/ 1x1 pixel mapping to 720P...😎

 

[Some_Big_Spoon]

Nope, just greedy.

If Apple really isn't considering a DVR, they're stupid.

 

[Wigletbill]

I dare say it...

Apple is sucking wind pretty hard lately. I am confident when I say that all media will be delivered over IP for most of us (early adopters/techies) is 5 years. Why on Earth is Apple allowing Microsoft to kick its butt in the Media Center race? Can it even be called a race, now!?

Everything (entertainment related) will be subscription based in the future and the M$ model is working really well towards that end. I hate to say it but I wonder how much longer I will be a Mac convert!?

This really irritates me, sorry, don't mean to flame. I just wish my favorite-est company in the world would do something that resembles cutting edge for once. Hell, even reinterpreting the Media Center with Apple goodness and ease of use would be nice.

Get with it Apple. You are already behind in strides.

(And the directv deal with microsoft poses a VERY interesting opportunity for a great home theater set up right NOW.... bring on Vista. I'll work on a Mac and play on a PC.... scary times we are living in.)

J

 

[age234]

Apple is sucking wind pretty hard lately.

Just as they come out of the best year in the company's history. Yeah, they'll be out of business next week.