Apple TV

[GAN]

I believe I've heard some talk on the Podcast in the past about Apple TV and was hoping I could get some feedback/ideas since I received one for Christmas. First, I should say I have a TiVo which we love so I'd be curious if anyone else is using both. Through the TiVo I can receive Netflix, YouTube, Pandora, etc which I believe the Apple TV can provide(less Pandora, but could pull that through my iPad), but I hear Apple TV may be a little more user friendly and the resolution might be slightly better. What do most of you use the AppleTV for? I'm curious about mirroring with my iPad -does anyone use that? I suppose I'm trying to justify adding another piece of electronics to my life, so any helpful suggestions/tips would be appreciated.

 

[DEA]

We use our AppleTV for Netflix, Hulu Plus, YouTube, rental movies from iTunes, and, occasionally, mirroring the stuff from my laptop to the TV. The newer versions of the AppleTV do the 1080p video mode, which is very good. It may be better than what your Tivo is putting out.

It also supports AirPlay mirroring from an iPad, although I seem to collect more content on my laptop than I do on the iPad, but the principle still holds: Stuff on the device can be output through the AppleTV to your TV.

We had Netflix integration with our BluRay player, but the user interface on the AppleTV is a lot better, and a lot easier to use.

 

[jcb]

Integration with iTunes is the big reason to have Apple TV. YouTube also works ok but I prefer to use my blu ray player for that and NetFlix.

If you are not interested in playing iTunes visual media through your TV at 1080p then Apple TV might be overkill for you. My only issue with Apple TV is the remote works poorly but I probably set up something wrong to cause that.

 

[Mr. Plutes]

I love my Apple Tv!!! Got it for Christmas last year.
Love it for AirPLay the best. If your a sports person, they have MLB,NHL,NBA

 

[nkereina]

A friend of mine has an Apple TV. He purchased an external hard drive and burned all of the DVDs he owns onto it, and then runs it through the Apple TV. He keeps the Apple TV plugged into his TV along with the external hard drive, so whenever he wants to watch one of his DVDs, he just has to click on the Apple TV and he can scroll through to view it. This is time consuming, but it's pretty convienet and a good use of it.

 

[DisneyDaddy-O]

Integration with iTunes is the big reason to have Apple TV. YouTube also works ok but I prefer to use my blu ray player for that and NetFlix.

If you are not interested in playing iTunes visual media through your TV at 1080p then Apple TV might be overkill for you. My only issue with Apple TV is the remote works poorly but I probably set up something wrong to cause that.

If you are playing iTunes media I found an app called remote works awesome. Basically turns your iPad or iPhone into your remote.

 

[quikah]

Do you have a TiVo premiere or a series 3?

If you have a TiVo premiere I would sell it and buy a TiVo stream, this will allow you to watch your recorded shows on your TiVo on your iPad. The streaming capabilities are pretty much the same on both unless you plan on playing stuff from itunes or mirroring.

If you have a series 3 DEFINITELY keep it, the AppleTV is much better.

 

[jcb]

If you are playing iTunes media I found an app called remote works awesome. Basically turns your iPad or iPhone into your remote.

Thanks. I had forgotten I had that App.

One of the other features I really like is the screen saver of my photographs, in "Ken Burns" mode.

Jack

 

[wiigirl]

I love my AppleTV especially the ease you can intergrate apple products into it.

That being said, I love my Roku for the same reasons.

 

[lilmrsellis]

If you are playing iTunes media I found an app called remote works awesome. Basically turns your iPad or iPhone into your remote.

I can't get remote to work! It tells me the "device is unregistered."

 

[sayhello]

I love VLC Streamer. It allows me to play videos from my PC through my iPad to the Apple TV to my TV. It plays video types (such as .flv and .avi) that won't play on iTunes. It's so nice to sit on my couch & watch the videos on my TV rather than sitting in front of the PC.

Sayhello

 

[jcb]

I can't get remote to work! It tells me the "device is unregistered."

There are a couple of solutions to what appears to be this problem mentioned here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2807160?start=0&tstart=0

 

[Bonniec]

A friend of mine has an Apple TV. He purchased an external hard drive and burned all of the DVDs he owns onto it, and then runs it through the Apple TV. He keeps the Apple TV plugged into his TV along with the external hard drive, so whenever he wants to watch one of his DVDs, he just has to click on the Apple TV and he can scroll through to view it. This is time consuming, but it's pretty convienet and a good use of it.

What did he use to convert them? We tried doing that but half of the files freeze up

 

[Robin"D"]

What type of device is it?(seagate satellite?)
If so, he used DVD shrink, then Hand brake to reformate the DVD's.
Both are free down loads....I have my complete DVD catalog on a wireless Seagate satellite hard drive, that up to three people can log on to and watch a different movie.
Great thing for traveling
http://www.seagate.com/external-hard-drives/portable-hard-drives/wireless/seagate-satellite/

Here is the link

Robin & Angel "D".

 

[GAN]

Thanks for the responses. I have the AppleTV set up and we're enjoying it. The Netflix and YouTube apps operate much smoother on the Apple than the TiVo and I'd say the picture quality is slightly better as well. I've played around with the mirroring a little and would like to find more uses for that. We watched a few of our trip videos taken from our iPhones on the TV through AppleTV -I've got say that the video quality taken from that phone is AMAZING.... We were totally shocked, they looked good on the iPad but on the TV was great.

Do you have a TiVo premiere or a series 3?

If you have a TiVo premiere I would sell it and buy a TiVo stream, this will allow you to watch your recorded shows on your TiVo on your iPad. The streaming capabilities are pretty much the same on both unless you plan on playing stuff from itunes or mirroring.

If you have a series 3 DEFINITELY keep it, the AppleTV is much better.

I do have a premiere and thought about how great that would be to dump some shows on the iPad for when we travel, but I'm going to hold off for now rather than add another device to what I already rely on. Maybe I'll wait and see if Apple ends up buying TiVo at some point.

 

[Bonniec]

My favorite thing about the Apple TV is the slideshow. I keep that on the tv and put all my photos in a folder for it connected through my itunes. It will only circulate up to 8 megs of pictures so I do have to keep a separate file with smaller sized files. But it's a great way to view all the pics I don't have on my walls.

 

[GAN]

My favorite thing about the Apple TV is the slideshow. I keep that on the tv and put all my photos in a folder for it connected through my itunes. It will only circulate up to 8 megs of pictures so I do have to keep a separate file with smaller sized files. But it's a great way to view all the pics I don't have on my walls.

True. It does a great job with slideshow -I like the different options it offers and the fact that it will play my music in the background.

 

[drakethib]

Love our Apple TV !

 

[Coyotesweat]

And another bonus for the Disney fan, Netflix just bought streaming rights to a lot of Disney content, you can now find Dumbo (remember the Pink Elephants on Parade?) and Alice in Wonderland 1951, as well as Tinkerbell and others. Love my Apple TV. I work late and don't pay for cable anyone now. Cheaper to do Hulu and Netflix.