Revamped Apple TV to Offer Netflix Streaming?

[ChrisGonzales90]

There are an awful lot of brits (and other nationalities) working for apple in development, marketing and research. Fortunately the attitude of american is a little less inward-looking than the US population. Jonathan Ive is most definitely british and he's done as much to shape Apple in the last ten years as Steve Jobs. It's an international company. Welcome to the world.

PS. I really don't want to move the US. Your cell networks and broadband provision are so far behind the rest of the world it's laughable.

CDMA is pretty good. Remember, the reason the iphone gets so much pad press is because the bloggers and such are from the New York and San Fransisco area. Plus with us we hgave a 10 digit pone numbers, not 20 digits

but yeah, theres much more to life then cell phones.

as for Johnny ive, I only found out hes british untill recently and to be honest his i can handle, the rest are like nails on a chalkboard.

 

[nelmat]

If it can do MT2S, DTS/Doby HD Audio, and 1080P I'll buy several for the house

I think surround sound via an optical out is a possible - BUT no joy with 1080 - that content doesn't exist in the wireless/streaming world.

 

[deviant]

They will. You have a short memory. International roll out takes time, but it will come just as with the early days of iTunes. My bro has an original appleTV, it's fab and he streams lots of content from the house macs and windows machines, most of it not purchased from iTunes.

BTW, i read a quarterly report and did some math - the Apple TV had sold over 6 million units, over half of these outside the US, so plenty of people have them. it's actually one of the biggest selling devices of it's type.

When have they released the first apple tv ? Where are all the tv shows and movies in italian ? LOL ? international roll out ? Never happened here.(Personally i don't care.Dubbed movies and tvshows ? Not for me.But, just for the sake of argument)
Don't get me wrong.I love apple,i own plenty of their devices.But A a streaming netflix apple tv .. That doesn't make sense.I bet ya anything this ain't gonna happen.Will see tomorrow ? I guess so. Let's wait till tomorrow. Somebody's going to be disappointed.

BTW, i'm happy for your brother. Is his apple tv able to stream 1080p content ? What about dts 5.1 ? Ha ? . What about MKV's ? Mp4 just sucks. My mini do all those things. Yes it cost me 300-400 bucks more. But who cares.I love quality.Not crappy 720p with what ? AAC audio ? lol.

 

[paradox00]

WMC does not run apps indeed but Windows does As long as PC is connected to TV it's all that matters. In reality though I do not think that people want to run any apps on TV. The two obvious uses for TV are TV content and games. Anything else is available on computer, iPad, phone etc. TV is probably the least convenient option for running other types of apps.

You said way less than WMC, not way less than an HTPC. Honestly, if I was running an HTPC, WMC wouldn't be the software I used.

 

[rmatthewware]

Good, my Roku keeps breaking down. I'd love to replace it with something that has places I can go for actual tech support. I was thinking about getting the Apple TV anyway, but this definitely sweetens the pot.

 

[steve-p]

I'm very happy with my current Apple TV. That doesn't necessarily mean I won't buy a new one though, if it does new useful things that the original one doesn't. I'll be keeping the current one for it's present use feeding a high end audio system with synced lossless music via digital out though. If I just wanted to stream music, I would probably have bought something else. The syncing side of it is easy to use, and works well. Losing local storage is a backward step for my purposes.

 

[nelmat]

CDMA is pretty good. Remember, the reason the iphone gets so much pad press is because the bloggers and such are from the New York and San Fransisco area. Plus with us we hgave a 10 digit pone numbers, not 20 digits

but yeah, theres much more to life then cell phones.

as for Johnny ive, I only found out hes british untill recently and to be honest his i can handle, the rest are like nails on a chalkboard.

Who has 20 digit phone numbers? remember, we don't have start by dialling international codes - yours are long for us too type too from this side of the pond.

CDMA is OK, but we had 3G as standard years ahead of you guys, our average broadband speed is faster and more of the country is covered by the 3G network, we also have (free) wi-fi coverage across nearly every major city and town.

I' not talking about bloggers and press (ignored those for years) I[m talking about real world experience over there, my colleagues states side have appalling telecoms service compared to the UK in both arizona, washington state and san francisco...

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Or maybe, there is no way to stream anything about 720 currently, but when the content becomes available this should be a simple firmware update. Don't forget that Apple haven't actually announced that this thing only provides 720, it's all speculation. But in the absence of ANY 1080 streaming content currently available, it would serve no point.

...except that we can use Apple's iMovie to read in 1080i/p from camcorders, render it and play it in Quicktime, store it in iTunes and play it there too. But we have no TV way to go from iTunes to the 1080HDTV.

We don't have to have 1080p streaming content to warrant a 1080p TV. Apple gives us the tools for free with any new Mac to make our own 1080p content. Besides, the hardware has to lead before the content makes any sense to show up. A studio could put 1080p Avatar for TV in the iTunes store today, but if there's no TV's that can play it, it will completely fail as a "will they buy 1080p test?"

Get lots of 1080p TV's into homes and the content will quickly follow. Pressure the pipes with greater demand and they will expand. Accept limitations and the pipes won't expand. Etc.

 

[nelmat]

You said way less than WMC, not way less than an HTPC. Honestly, if I was running an HTPC, WMC wouldn't be the software I used.

I was drawing direct comparison to WMC - WMC does not have as many features/functionality as apple/iTV - end of. Who mentioned HTPC?

 

[goobot]

too many things coming this september. im runnin out of money!!!

 

[paradox00]

I was drawing direct comparison to WMC - WMC does not have as many features/functionality as apple/iTV - end of. Who mentioned HTPC?

I didn't quote you. I quoted lilo777.

 

[WiiDSmoker]

I think surround sound via an optical out is a possible - BUT no joy with 1080 - that content doesn't exist in the wireless/streaming world.

Surround sound is through HDMI. You can't do optical for high end audio codecs. And yes 1080P does stream just fine on my home network with CAT6 cords and my WD TV HD Live Plus. Not to be mean, but everything you said was wrong =/

 

[gugy]

The problem here is that your blu-ray rips aren't legal and, so Apple can't be seen to support them. The other boxes you mention might be able to theoretically stream 1080 from content providers, but currently NO content provider streams 1080. The digital copies of movies provided with major movie purchases aren't full HD.

This is a device to stream from your existing computers - mac or windows (the current apple tv already does this) so the size of storage is dictated by your existing capacity, not the box itself - that's why the price point is rumoured to be so low.

I do agree with you, i'm just saying that if this is about a streaming device with a low price point, I understand why 1080 and the large hard drive aren't there. You can use a less powerful processor, less ram, and therefore less heat issues/smaller form factor possibility.

I would just LOVE to see the option of a blu-ray drive for this new iteration, but I suspect it simply will never happen, although I'd love to be wrong.

I understand what you are saying.
The truth is...AppleTV is just another fancy way to consume iTunes content.
That's too bad because adding few simple features would turn this thing into something much better.
Maybe I could be wrong tomorrow. Let's hope for the best.

 

[nelmat]

...except that we can use Apple's iMovie to read in 1080i/p from camcorders, render it and play it in Quicktime, store it in iTunes and play it there too. But we have no TV way to go from iTunes to the 1080HDTV.

We don't have to have 1080p streaming content to warrant a 1080p TV. Apple gives us the tools for free with any new Mac to make our own 1080p content. Besides, the hardware has to lead before the content makes any sense to show up. A studio could put 1080p Avatar for TV in the iTunes store today, but if there's no TV's that can play it, it will completely fail as a "will they buy 1080p test?"

Get lots of 1080p TV's into homes and the content will quickly follow. Pressure the pipes with greater demand and they will expand. Accept limitations and the pipes won't expand. Etc.

Nope, as you've said, the capacity needs to be there - the studios have to see the demand. The telecoms companies have to expand capacity and remove streaming limits. That is not going to happen in the first 18 months of this device being released.

Your example re. avatar would use up a lot of people's bandwidth for the month. This is chicken and egg, Apple are merely making headway preparing the plate to serve your omelette. And when the omelette turns into roast chicken, they'll have a bigger plate ready and waiting for release.

 

[nelmat]

I understand what you are saying.
The truth is...AppleTV is just another fancy way to consume iTunes content.
That's too bad because adding few simple features would turn this thing into something much better.
Maybe I could be wrong tomorrow. Let's hope for the best.

The existing apple TV already does that - this is about iOS and apps integration - that is FAR more than streaming iTunes content...

 

[jamesnajera]

iOS -> Netflix App -> iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, (iTV)

 

[Torrijos]

iOS -> Netflix App -> iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, (iTV)

Exactly, most rumors these days are pretty ridiculous...

 

[nelmat]

When have they released the first apple tv ? Where are all the tv shows and movies in italian ? LOL ? international roll out ? Never happened here.(Personally i don't care.Dubbed movies and tvshows ? Not for me.But, just for the sake of argument)
Don't get me wrong.I love apple,i own plenty of their devices.But A a streaming netflix apple tv .. That doesn't make sense.I bet ya anything this ain't gonna happen.Will see tomorrow ? I guess so. Let's wait till tomorrow. Somebody's going to be disappointed.

BTW, i'm happy for your brother. Is his apple tv able to stream 1080p content ? What about dts 5.1 ? Ha ? . What about MKV's ? Mp4 just sucks. My mini do all those things. Yes it cost me 300-400 bucks more. But who cares.I love quality.Not crappy 720p with what ? AAC audio ? lol.

Think you miss the point, on many fronts. Nothing to stop you streaming your local language content and rips to your apple TV for the last few years. Oh, and he has 5.1 surround on his AppleTV. There is an iTunes store in Italy, just checked, so what is your gripe?

 

[lilo777]

I was drawing direct comparison to WMC - WMC does not have as many features/functionality as apple/iTV - end of. Who mentioned HTPC?

I do not think we can separate the two, can we? Is not PC the only way to run WMC? Unless one uses WMC extender (like XBOX), PC has to be connected to TV. Frankly, I think this is the way to go for living room entertainment. PC can do everything: gaming, storage, PVR, apps, TV/video/audio streaming, you name it. Why bother will all the individual pieces?

 

[pmjoe]

Netflix offers a subscription service allowing customers to receive DVDs and Blu-ray discs by mail while also accessing a library of streaming content through an increasing array of compatible devices such as TiVos, DVD players, and gaming consoles.

Did MacRumors intentionally leave out that you can buy a Blu-ray player that does all this for ~$150, and have been able to for some time now???

I posted what Apple needed to do software-wise with the Apple TV years ago, and they still have not caught up yet (and 1080p in 2010 is a no-brainer too).

 

[deviant]

Think you miss the point, on many fronts. Nothing to stop you streaming your local language content and rips to your apple TV for the last few years. Oh, and he has 5.1 surround on his AppleTV. There is an iTunes store in Italy, just checked, so what is your gripe?

U said it will take a while for netflix to stream content internationally.
There IS itunes store here in italy.Can u see any movies or tvshows there ? NO. And it ain't gonna happen with netflix as well.So making a device that can be sold just in US is stupid (stupid business decision)
Anyway,you ignored all my arguments about ITV netflix,so i repeat.We will see tomorrow.Do what i'm doing. Just wait a while.

5.1 surround is not the answer.I asked about FIRST - definition ,second - about AUDIO CODEC,not if it's surround or whatever.
U're just seeing what u wanna see,and ignoring the rest.Personally,i don't give a heck.Be happy with what makes you happy.
If it's lol 720p apple tv which can play just their mp4 or mov files,good for ya!

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

...and therefore a good reason to keep the price-point low and only put "just enough" into this device at this stage. Redundant capacity in a $99 device makes no sense when trying to keep it inexpensive.

What redundant capacity? I would bet the 1080p graphic processor would be cheaper than a 720p (max) processor. Why? Who really wants to build 720p MAX into their video devices any more?

Apple could build in 1080p chips, probably pocket a bit of extra profit, and continue to feed those happy with 720p all the 720p they want at the very maximum quality it can be seen. It's easy to use higher quality graphics hardware to display lower quality graphics software.

But that doesn't work the other way.

So if Apple wants to sell this to EVERYONE, they should build it so that the "1080p or bust" crowd gets what they want too. Who cares if 1080p content isn't available in the iTunes store yet? Who cares if some people's bandwidth couldn't handle it? Etc. If we wait until all the related problems are addressed before the hardware shows up, we're in for a very long wait.

On the other hand, build it in and let creative people find solutions that work for them. Apple sells more units that way.

 

[canyonblue737]

"Drool"
Though i'm buying at rev 2

This is revision 2.

 

[rikers_mailbox]

i hope this supposed iOS update for AppleTV makes the dang thing run cooler. AppleTV run ridiculously HOT. Too hot.

Netflix streaming on the AppleTV would be nice, but I am satisfied with the Netflix streaming on the Wii. The quality isn't the best, but it's surprisingly good and my gf doesn't have any problems starting it up and navigating the menus. The Wii-mote is about as intuitive as remote controls get.

 

[WiiDSmoker]

This is revision 2.

More like a re-try