This was totally brilliant: A writer for Forbes penned an article calling the Apple TV an “iFlop.” Get it? He added an “i” to the front of the noun because Apple has a lot of products that start with the letter “i”! I don’t know how no one thought of this before. I mean, honestly, it’s, like…iAwesome!
OK, yeah. I’m being a little iHarsh and iCranky. But that’s only because it seems like this Forbes guy (Woolley be his name) lost a game of high-stakes poker prior to writing his take on the Apple TV and its apparent failure to take the market by storm.
How did the storied Steve Jobs and Apple botch it so badly?
Jeez. Bitter.
I, for one, love my Apple TV. I’ve called it my gadget love affair. I don’t even watch regular TV anymore: All the works of art and profane cartoons that receive the blessing of my eyesight have either been purchased from iTunes or acquired through other…entirely legal…means. I browse YouTube all the time (friends love that part), listen to music on my home theater speaker system and, for the first time ever, I’m actually watching video podcasts (instead of just subscribing to them and enjoying the little blue dots next to all the downloads).
The reason people aren’t buying — if that’s the case — Apple’s living room wonder, I think, is that they don’t really know what they’d do with it. I talked to a friend yesterday who said he’d never buy one…until I told him all the ways I use mine. If it weren’t for the $300 — which is Main Problem #2 — he’d have one by now. But to say the Apple TV was “botched”…well that’s just crazy talk.
Woolley makes one point that really throws me:
Many newcomers, far less threatening than Apple, have had better luck luring the studios online. A startup named Vudu in Santa Clara, Calif. has deals with all six Hollywood heavyweights and a score of international distributors, in part because it doesn’t try to dictate wholesale prices. (A download of Syriana from Warner Bros. goes for $20.) The studios also let Vudu users rent movies for 24 hours, not an option on Apple TV.
$20?! So giving into distributor’s insane demands is what makes Vudu a winner? Has anyone even heard of Vudu? Anyone? Besides, (widely-publicized) rumors say that Apple will soon offer movie rental downloads — which, hopefully, will work on the Apple TV, making it the best home-movie-solution on the market.
But the whole tone of Woolley’s article — and his failure to appreciate the fact that, as MacDailyNews aptly notes, “there’s nothing wrong with Apple TV that software updates and open-minded content providers couldn’t fix” — makes it seem like he has a real axe to grind.
Apple, which declined to let Forbes interview Jobs and other execs for this story…
Ah. That would do it.
Truely if Apple offered rentals that might toss out my last reserves and get me to either start saving, or try to convice my parents they would like it. Either one would be the same amount of work....
Welcome YADan! I'm perfectly satisfied with mine. I picked up the ultimate in July and I've got over 50GB of movies, TV series, and DVD series that I've used HandBrake for.
If and when video rentals come out for it, That would be so cool.
But most people haven't heard of it yet. Everyone that sees mine thinks how cool it is (esp when they see youtube on it) and ask what it is. So I have to explain.
I'm usually an early adopter of new technology (hell I was one the first people to ever be quoted when the first generation iPods were announced), and I can say that the Apple TV is an awesome product. Everyone who comes to my house and actually sees it in action wants one. I never watch regular TV anymore. Movies, music, video podcasts, TV shows etc... all in one convenient location and all accessible by a simple and elegant interface.
I only have two gripes about it.
1. Lack of connectors. It only has component video and HDMI out so if you don't own a newer TV, you can't use it. The Vudu box mentioned, by contrast, has an S-Video and composite video out so you can connect it to older TVs.
But anyone who thinks it's a good deal to buy videos at $20 a pop versus the $7.99 ~ $9.99 you pay on iTunes is a freaggin' idiot!
2. I've always hated ALL of Apple's remote control designs from the iPod remotes to the little white piece of crap that comes with the Apple TV and iMac computers. Which brings me to another gripe (of sorts). I sometimes like to work on my computer while the TV is playing in the background, but because my Apple TV and my Mac both use the same remote, it will sometimes trigger Front Row on my MacBook Pro when I try to use it with Apple TV. It was really stupid for Apple to use the same remote for both computers and they're consumer electronic devices.
"$20?! So giving into distributor's insane demands is what makes Vudu a winner?"
You said it all right there. As long as Apple tries to stand against the Studio's greed in any way, shape, or form, they'll continue to be the target of attacks like this from the "business" press. Consider the source, and which side their bread is buttered on.
karizma...
In the Security panel under System Prefs on your Macbook Pro you can pair a specific remote to your laptop... thus taking care of problem #2. I have a Macbook Pro, and a Mac mini, both paired to a specific remote, so no accidental Front Row triggers.
Cheers.
Syriana costs $6.49 at CD Universe.
I don't think there is any conceivable situation in which I'd pay $20 for it.
Older movies on iTunes cost $14.99, so I don't think they're all that competitive either.
It's funny that I'm rooting for Steve to get more control over movie pricing, just because I think he's saner than the movie moguls. Halve the price of a movie on iTunes and you'd probably see me buying a few.
D
He even got the youtube part wrong.
I also posted a response to his article on my blog.
http://3e-lab.com/blog/09/15/biz/not-really-an-iflop-but-close/
What about storage?
I think this product has a TON of potential and I am dying to get it but my problem is storage. I have a lot DVD's that I plan to convert through Handbrake, Sorry Steve I love ya' but I'm not buying all those movies and TV shows all over again in iTunes just to have them for AppleTV. I also write a college football blog and being able to Tivo games and then convert them for AppleTV to watch later or to break down “game film” for later analysis starts to set up some serious storage issues.
I am not a fan of the Mac Store for this kind of “problem”, they want to ram the products down your throat that only they want to promote. I have gone to Tekserve in NYC, a really great Apple store but they want to move you along because they are so busy and when a novice like me has some basic questions they roll their eyes and look at like I am a novice and you can tell that they don't really want to be bothered with newbies.
So here is my question, what do you guys recommend? What is the best storage system? Should it be a stand alone drive or RAID capable?. Once I get the right storage system that works for me how do I set it up to work with AppleTV through iTunes. I'm sure the easy answer is plug and play but I want to be sure. Do I need to move the whole iTunes folder to the storage hard drive? What folder do I put the converted DVD movies and TV shows to. Lost of questions I know but I want to get this right.
Thanks in advance
@David H Dennis, $14.99 is the price for new movies, old movies are $9.99.
I don't have an Apple TV because it won't connect to my TV. It's that simple for me.
The confusion between iTunes and Apple TV is pathetic. All to criticize a product Jobs calls a hobby.
I don't have an AppleTV or any TV for that matter. The AppleTV seems like a nice appliance, but, from the outside, it doesn't seem compelling yet. It seems as though Apple is pre-positioning it for when it gets all its ducks in a row-- like it did for Quicktime, MP4-H.264, ACC etc. Steve's hobby could have uses that only he and the Apple engineers have dreamed of, yet. The AppleTV has odd hardware: an old and slow CPU cobined with a fast Graphics Processor.
One of Steve's ducks may be High Definition TV coming officially next year; all your analog TV's are worthless unless the digital signal is converted in a computer to an analog signal. Will the AppleTV do that? I would guess yes.
Also, Google is going to make a play for HD video downloads pretty soon; that is why it bought up huge amounts of dark fiber and is pre-positioning data centers locally in tractor-trailer rigs. The idea is that video downloads would paralyze the backbone unless they are mirrored locally. And who has the data centers to do that? Your ISP? Don't make me laugh. Your local ISP would pay Google for storing the data and, perhaps, iTunes would administer the downloads and the payments. That sounds like a win-win for Apple and Google
I also notice that the CEO of Google is on Apple's board of directors. Hummmm, Is that a coincidence? Or is it part of Steve Job's patiently putting ducks in a row that reveal another iPod/iTunes phenomenon. I wouldn't want to bet against Steve Jobs.
The "poor" sales of the AppleTV are caused by one thing and only one thing, it requires an HDTV to use it.
I literally don't know anyone with an HDTV. I know 4 people with iPhones.
I remember when Apple first came out with iMovie, and pundits would complain that only very wealthy people who who owned digital video cameras would be able to use it.
As it turned out, digital video became the norm and millions of people bought Macs to get their hands on iMovie and iDVD.
Undoubtedly, Apple TV is just aiming for the day when everyone will own television sets capable of utilizing it. Yeah, this may take two or three years, but it will happen and the Apple TV will be there.
-=-Ron-=-
"The "poor" sales of the AppleTV are caused by one thing and only one thing, it requires an HDTV to use it."
Not true. You don't need a HDTV to use it, I use mine on a standard-def Sony TV. Your TV just has to be new enough to have a composite connector on the back. You can watch Apple TV in standard 480i definition.
Paragon SC ...
"What about storage?
I think this product has a TON of potential and I am dying to get it but my problem is storage. I have a lot DVD's that I plan to convert through Handbrake, Sorry Steve I love ya' but I'm not buying all those movies and TV shows all over again in iTunes just to have them for AppleTV. I also write a college football blog and being able to Tivo games and then convert them for AppleTV to watch later or to break down “game film” for later analysis starts to set up some serious storage issues.
I am not a fan of the Mac Store for this kind of “problem”, they want to ram the products down your throat that only they want to promote. I have gone to Tekserve in NYC, a really great Apple store but they want to move you along because they are so busy and when a novice like me has some basic questions they roll their eyes and look at like I am a novice and you can tell that they don't really want to be bothered with newbies.
So here is my question, what do you guys recommend? What is the best storage system? Should it be a stand alone drive or RAID capable?. Once I get the right storage system that works for me how do I set it up to work with AppleTV through iTunes. I'm sure the easy answer is plug and play but I want to be sure. Do I need to move the whole iTunes folder to the storage hard drive? What folder do I put the converted DVD movies and TV shows to. Lost of questions I know but I want to get this right.
Thanks in advance"
You can set up iTunes to read your media from any location on your Mac, external drives included.
I keep all of my media on an external drive so I can carry it with me when I go on long business trips.
Here's what you do.
Install iTunes and launch it. It will automatically put a folder in your "Music" directory in your home folder called: "iTunes"
Within that folder is your playlist preferences etc... and a folder called "iTunes Music".
Close iTunes and then move the folder called "iTunes music" to a large external drive (one you determine to be large enough to hold all of the content you plan on importing).
Relaunch iTunes and go to the "Preferences" menu. Click on the Advanced icon on the top. The screen should change to reveal three tabs: General . Importing . Burning
Make sure you are in the General tab and you should see the preferences for changing your iTunes music folder location at the very top. Click the "Change" button and navigate to the external hard that you just moved your "iTunes Music Folder".
Click "Choose" and you're done. From this point on, iTunes will always look for that folder when it is launched. Just make sure you always have that external drive connected before you launch iTunes.
As far as Apple TV is concerned, as long as your Mac has WiFi connectivity, anything that is in your iTunes can be streamed to your Apple TV. It doesn't necessarily have to be saved on the Apple TV, so the capacity of the Apple TV's drive is really not as much of an issue as most people think.
I am a video Director and I have about 600GB of content in my iTunes. It won't fit on my Apple TV or any other device that I know of. So all of my content is streamed to my Apple TV with no problems whatsoever. I had another iTunes Library "synced" to my Apple TV and all of it's content uploaded to the Apple TV drive, but there's virtually no difference in performance between the two. The streamed content plays as though it was saved on my Apple TV's drive just like the synced content.
As far as drives are concerned, I have used drives from so many different makers and I've found that LaCie drives are the worse. Once they've been heated for so long, they die. And I have had literally dozens of them die so I would say stay away from them. I personally (and most video professionals) prefer G-Tech drives. Excellent build quality, long life, very fast, rugged and great looking. I use their G-Raid Drives: http://www.g-technology.com/Products/G-RAID2.cfm.
kohyuta...
"In the Security panel under System Prefs on your Macbook Pro you can pair a specific remote to your laptop... thus taking care of problem #2. I have a Macbook Pro, and a Mac mini, both paired to a specific remote, so no accidental Front Row triggers."
Thanks for the advice. Didn't know that. And I thought I was a Mac expert. That's why I love these forums, there's always something to be learned and someone to learn from.
Still doesn't solve the problem of the remotes being dog-ugly though (smile).
There's 2 main problems for me which give me my reasons for not buying a unit:
1. There's almost no content for it. I have a UK iTunes account and we only recently got a small selection of US TV shows that I'm not interested in. If you live outside of the US and UK then there is absolutely zero content unless you consider video podcasts or Pixar shorts to be content.
2. I don't own a widescreen television and I don't intend to buy one within the next 12-months. It's more than likely that we'll stick with our current TV until it breaks down.
The second point is typical Apple - they're a little ahead of things such that this can actually serve as a barrier to entry despite the fact that we all know the market is going this way. The first problem, however, is just total idiocy. Honestly, until they get some real content onto the iTunes Store they might as well just restrict the Apple TV to the US market since it's entirely pointless outside of it.
Karizma,
Thanks for the great info.
It leads to a couple of other questions though.
WiFi Connectivity: I have an older iMac G5 PPC that is hard wired (Ethernet cable) with a new Airport extreme, I also have a new MacBook is this what you mean about being connected via WiFi?
Ripped DVD's: once I have converted them from Handbrake do I just move the mp4 file of each movie ripped into the iTunes Music Folder? That seems likely, as iTunes will read what's in the folder but I'm just checking to be sure.
I have read a lot of bad reviews on the LaCie drives, yet the Mac Store continues to try and push them so I have decided to stay away from them in favor of a better drive. I have heard good things about G-Tech drives as well as Western Digital and Glyph drives.
Last question: would it be better wait until the rumored Apple TV update takes place or just go full speed ahead?
Finally, I am also going to come into possession of a MacMini from a friend who just isn't into Mac. It is an Intel chip processor but one of the earlier versions. My plan/hope would be to make that machine my “media hub” separate from the other machines in the house. Any advice on this?
Thanks you again!
Paragon
Karizma,
Thanks for the great info.
It leads to a couple of other questions though.
WiFi Connectivity: I have an older iMac G5 PPC that is hard wired (Ethernet cable) with a new Airport extreme, I also have a new MacBook is this what you mean about being connected via WiFi?
Ripped DVD's: once I have converted them from Handbrake do I just move the mp4 file of each movie ripped into the iTunes Music Folder? That seems likely, as iTunes will read what's in the folder but I'm just checking to be sure.
I have read a lot of bad reviews on the LaCie drives, yet the Mac Store continues to try and push them so I have decided to stay away from them in favor of a better drive. I have heard good things about G-Tech drives as well as Western Digital and Glyph drives.
Last question: would it be better wait until the rumored Apple TV update takes place or just go full speed ahead?
Finally, I am also going to come into possession of a MacMini from a friend who just isn't into Mac. It is an Intel chip processor but one of the earlier versions. My plan/hope would be to make that machine my “media hub” separate from the other machines in the house. Any advice on this?
Thanks you again!
Paragon
The only thing stopping me from buying an Apple TV is my 3o-year-old Sony Trinitron. :)