Apple’s hobby has certainly turned into a delicate little surprise. The new Apple TV is incredibly tiny, fitting into the palm of your hand with its glossy block sides and matte black top. It’s a departure from what Apple normally does with their aluminum based Mac Mini or their plastic white Time Capsules, but as a small addition to your TV, it’s joyfully inconspicuous. Featuring HDMI out, USB, Optical out, and the ever sleek aluminum Apple remote, this year’s Apple TV is greatly compatible with all of your new HDTVs. But how does it fare on the software front? Streaming, not syncing seems to be the answer, but I’m a little disappointed at the total offering.
Certainly the Apple TV’s biggest departure from Apple’s product line is the focus on streaming. You don’t have to sync content to your Apple TV. There is no waiting. No mater what device you have turned on in your house, if it’s compatible with the Apple TV, you can stream media from anywhere thanks to Apple’s replacement for AirTunes, AirPlay. Video, music, and photos are instantly available for anyone to enjoy on their big screen TVs. But the beautiful part about this is that it just works. This sounds pretty cliche, but trust me: anyone in the house (neighbors, friends, family) can just share content with your Apple TV - it’s fuss free. This is the greatest Apple TV offering.
Everything else does seem like icing on the cake: $.99 TV show rentals are okay (not great, but okay) if you’re inclined to cut the cable and just watch a season of house, but I feel that’s greatly overshadowed by the availability for Netflix with it’s $10 a month all you can eat package. Paying $4 for four episodes a month seems silly when I can just subscribe to a provider that has everything I want, any time I want. Movies will probably be more successful on the Apple TV as they luxuriously stream into your living room, but again, Netflix will have you covered. Apple’s model seems really strange for iTunes in this sense: who wants to “rent” individual shows that are cheap but add up quickly, when I can just pay a flat rate that’s even more competitive with cable? Netflix seems like the way to go here, but that’s just me.
You never actually own shows. The Apple TV is a cloud only device that will stream rented shows and movies, and that’s okay. But what’s not okay is that initially, only the United States, Canada, the UK, France, and Germany will enjoy the soupy availability of Hollywood content and local shows. Too, only FOX and ABC have jumped on the Apple bandwagon; I don’t expect Apple TV content sales to explode, but I could be very wrong. I don’t think the Apple TV offers enough of what people want with TV shows fas enough. Though thankfully, all the content you get is commercial free if you’re a real iJunkie.
I already have an “Apple TV.” The iPad (with a case) has become my ultimate little TV. I can prop it on a table, I can watch Hulu on it, and Youtube and Flickr are already there (Flickr isn’t built in, but there are plenty of great apps). Watching The Office on this thing has been amazing. So the Apple TV does truly remain as a hobby, though a more souped up one that’s perfect for those who want to stream content to a central family room.
Steve Jobs was right in saying that people don’t want a computer as their set-top box. The last thing I want is to waste the potential power of a Mac Mini (and pay the expense) just to have it sit under a TV. I don’t want to manage a library of TV shows that I probably won’t watch again (and store on my hard drive). Sure enthusiasts will disagree and will still want download torrents and things, but cheap and easy to use online services have really made television very accessible over the Internet without the need for such complicated measures (and I would rather use a Windows 7 computer that has DVR functionality built in via Windows Media Center if this was the case). At the same time, what does the Apple TV offer that makes it better than a Roku player for example (that’s gotten even more competitive and affordable)? I’m trying to be honest with myself: the Apple TV is great if you’re really into iTunes, but otherwise I don’t see the Apple TV’s potential without apps or anything really compelling. Flickr on my TV? I don’t know.
It’s small. It’s cool. And if you do want a multi-touch remote, your iPod touch, iPad, or iPhone can become one. The idea is great, and it’s well executed, but there just isn’t enough to really captivate me into purchasing one. Honestly if I felt like I had the extra $100 dollars to spend, it would be nice to have, and I’d switch off my Hulu account to Netflix. But I’m happy with my iPad being my prime lap TV, and I don’t necessarily need this device. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is a great little thing, but it’s just not for me (yet).
I will say this. The Apple TV could be the perfect companion for a college student in a dorm (without cable), for mobile denizens, or for anyone who doesn’t want a complicated TV interface. Some people will really like the aspect of having something that’s immediately available to your home stereo and television system. It’s really simple (which is its drawback). I don’t think Steve Jobs has solved the set top box yet, but the Apple TV is just your easy to use, easy to set up media player that anyone could enjoy.
