I learned something in all my years (oh so many!) of writing — when you can’t think of a good title, take the easy route: alliteration! Does dancing have anything at all to do with DVRs or the topic of this post? No. But it still sounds good. “Style over substance” — that’s always been my motto. (Er, well, I mean, after my English teacher in high school suggested it. Several times.) It’s like music from Fall Out Boy: Does any of it make sense? No. Do people care? Apparently not. So that’s how I like to think of myself: The Fall Out Boy of the Mac web (or at least of MacUser).
Speaking of Fall Out Boy, do you think Apple TV needs DVR functionality? (Swoosh!) That’s one of the common complaints among Apple TV nay-sayers: Apple TV just adds; it doesn’t simplify (a staple feature of Apple products). All it does is append another box to your already four-box-high TV set. DVD player, TiVo, surround sound deck, cable box…some people have these doohickies called “VHS” player…things…with tapes (don’t ask me), etc. Why can’t Apple make a box that not only does what Apple TV does…but what all those other devices do, too (except the tape thing), to save us a little space and hassle?
For once I’m in the same boat as Paul “Marketshare Matters” Thurrott: DVR could really add to Apple TV.
If it sounds like I’m harping on an old topic — the Apple TV has been out for ages — well, I am. But since this latest Forbes piece (the one I tore apart, ruthlessly, with my bare hands, and fed it to the rats in the alley out back, who spit it out because it tasted awful even to them), the iPod for your TV is once again garnering some attention. Which is great: the product is still on the market, people are still thinking about it. So I want to revive the topic.
I’m a huge fan of the Apple TV (if you haven’t already noticed), and I don’t want the discussion to stop. So before I write more about what I think may be a huge component of Apple’s media future, I want to get a feel for what you guys think: Should it be the Apple TVo, the all-in-one that some of us imagine? Or should the Apple TV be a focused device, used solely to put media from your computer onto your TV screen, allowing you to watch movies, TV episodes, and Fall Out Boy’s music video for “Dance, Dance” (Hah! Dance!) without worrying about other features bloating the interface?
What kind of potential do you see in this mini Mac mini?
The only real advantage to having an Apple TV DVR would be if it could transfer files back to a computer so they could be synced and watched later on an iPod or iPhone.
And I'm sure the studios would just LOVE that idea.
Then again, it could solve the problem in regard to getting content for the iTunes store. If the studios won't put their content on the store for a reasonable price, then Apple could just let their users get it for free.
Especially since doing so would just make Apple TVs and iPods that much more valuable.
Potential? Huge! - Will we ever see it? Probably not. IMHO the DVR direction is a direct competitor to iTunes - why would I pay for an episode that I could record for free? Then possibly sync back to iTunes then to my iPod, iPhone and whatever other iDevice I have laying around. Yep - for once Paul is right, sort of. I used MS Media Center before Apple TV and the DVR/TV integration sucked. Now I will say that I could see more use now that iPhone users may not be content to watch a movie on just the iPhone, they may want to watch them again on the TV, but how? Apple TV is the perfect fit - but not enough to kill everything else in the mainstream. No, until it moves from the hobby stage to something else, I think we are stuck with a somewhat crippled platform. I would love to see Apple TV be a strong competitor to Tivo (which is a great DVR - as long as you keep Direct TV out of it)
It's already better than a DVR. Just don't buy cable. Buy and/or download the shows you want and watch them (commercial free) on your TV. I still need to figure out a good replacement for live sports, but most of that is on major networks anyway. Plus, if you hear about a great new show that's already halfway through the first season and you don't want to start DVRing it knowing you will miss the first half of the season (that everyone thought was so great), you can always test a couple of shows out on iTunes and then buy the season if the masses appear to have gotten it right this time.
TiVo is already a great DVR. Not sure why anyone would rather see Apple do a DVR unless they are going to offer the same features for free instead of a monthly fee like TiVo. Rather why doesn't apple partner with TiVo. They could help with the mac software and allow iPods to connect to TiVo. Also they could let u watch iTunes on it. If you can't beat them, join them.
Also not sure why more studios don't embrace iTunes seeing as how DVRs allow one to skip commercials which pay for the free TV.
If Steve Jobs wanted Apple TV to succeed in the market, it would be compatible with those old fashioned analog TVs that 90% of us still own and do what real people want - let us time shift television from any source: cable, satellite, antenna. Instead it's a clever toy for those with high-end TV sets. Nothing more.
I definitely think the AppleTV could use DVR. As the article states, the AppleTV doesn't simplify anything merely adds another box to the mix. It would be great if Apple tossed in a DVD drive so that it could eliminate one box (and Apple already has the DVD player software so it's not any sort of investment). I mean, how much is a DVD-ROM drive at this point? $25 maybe and that's the retail price. And I don't consider ripping everything via Handbrake a viable option because of the time it takes and the hard drive space it would consume (I'd probably need 4TB of storage for my DVDs). Cheaper to just buy another shelf for the discs.
Add in DVR support via CableCards (yes, it locks out satellite subscribers but there really aren't many good ways around that); that eliminates another box. I'd even be okay with a monthly fee. Maybe that fee would cover "converting" recordings into iTunes Store downloads.
And I always find the idea of dropping cable and just buying from the iTunes Store laughable. My broadband comes from the cable company so dropping the TV portion just increases my internet bill to the point where for a few extra dollars I could just have cable TV again. Plus, iTunes lacks huge sums of content (soon to be lacking NBC/Universal it seems) and even if it had every conceivable show, how many people are going to pay $2 an episode to watch Jeopardy or Oprah? Maybe if you're in a good area you could supplement with a pair of rabbit ears sticking out of your TV, but aren't we sort of beyond that? Otherwise you'll miss out on local news and live events.
Currently, the Xbox 360, PS3, and Tivo can pretty much do everything the AppleTV can do plus other features. They can't play iTunes Store content but they can all stream media to them. The PS3 obviously plays games plus Blu-Ray/DVD, browse the web (so like AppleTV it can access YouTube content), supposedly soon allow video purchases and possibly become a DVR in the future. The 360 does DVD/HD-DVD (with add-on), downloads, games. Tivo has DVR, downloads, (poor) games, internet radio, limited podcasts.
Meanwhile, all the AppleTV can do is stream content from iTunes and browse YouTube videos. Not a particularly compelling feature set in comparison especially at the $300 price tag.
Until the Apple TV adds either a DVR or a DVD drive, people are not going to rush out to buy it. Sure, it's kind of cool, but I can get the same effect with my iPod and a $30 cable. Including an upconverting DVD player would make it extremely competitive, as a lot of people would see it as more useful ("Oh, I can watch my iTunes stuff AND my DVDs?!?"). The DVR function would probably attract even more people, but since so many cable operators are offering DVR these days, that is probably more dicey. (Plus, it would anger the content providers). But, I'm sure we won't see either of them - someone at Apple is probably saying right now that if they add a DVD drive it will cannibalize sales of the Mac Mini...
Call me crazy, but I actually think the DVR route is a red herring. It's not the killer app.
Why timeshift via recording when you could just stream the show directly when you want to watch it? You can already watch shows for free on the web on the big networks. Yes, they have advertizing, but that's what makes them FREE. What if Steve-o hooked it up with the networks that they could make decent quality shows available for free with ads on demand on AppleTV? Suddenly you don't need cable, you don't need TiVo, you just need AppleTV. That's simplifying.
So you can't sync the shows back to your Mac (as the networks would never allow it)--so what? For most shows, I just want to watch them the week they air. If you want to keep them, you can buy them off iTMS ad-free, or just wait and get a better product on DVD.
I don't have cable, and I don't want to fool around with an antenna. There's no earthly reason this couldn't happen.