Tell me about Apple TV

[ceroarty]

I was thinking of getting my husband the Apple TV for Christmas but would like to get some input first. I would like to know more of what you can do with it. I guess I am looking for the pros and cons. Thanks in advance

 

[Corwin12]

I love my Apple TV. I have had it for about 10 months now. I will try to be as helpful as possible. First, if you are familiar with how iTunes works, you are halfway there. Basically, you connect the device (which is rather small) to your television just as you would any other component.

The remote is very small and has only two buttons. One is the menu button and the other acts as a flywheel, allowing you to navigate your options on screen. The first thing you need to do it to link your Apple TV to a computer. When you select that option, a five digit code appears. Next, open iTunes on your computer and select Preferences/Apple TV. If you check “look for Apple TV” the device will appear as an option on the left side of your home page. There will be an option to set it up listed right next to the device. When you click on that, you enter the code and …. That’s it! You are done!

The Apple TV will wirelessly download you content from your iTunes library to the Apple TV. Selecting stuff to watch or listen to from the Apple TV is the same as browsing in iTunes on your computer. The files remain on your computer, the Apple TV just creates a copy. Also, you can access the iTunes store from the Apple TV itself. If you buy something, it will download it onto the Apple TV and then upload it to your computer the next time you open iTunes.

Currently, tv shows cost $1.99 for standard definition and $2.99 for high definition. You can also buy whole seasons which are priced at a discount. If you buy a season pass for a show that is currently on, the show automatically download when they become available – about 24 hours after being aired on television. If you do not want to download content from your computer to the Apple TV (for space considerations) you can also stream content as long as your computer is turned on and iTunes is open.

Apple TV can become costly, however, DW and I use it as a replacement to regular cable or satellite. We were spending about $1,100 a year in cable bills. So far this year, we only spent about $500.00 in content from Apple, buying just the shows we want to watch and, the best part is, you own the show. And, it is much better organized than a regular DVR. Because we are using it as an alternative to cable service, I anticipate saving about $500.00 in television costs after this first year, minus the cost of the Apple TV itself.

Also, Apple updates iTunes every Tuesday, releasing new 99 cent movie rentals and putting some older tv shows and movies on sales. You can also rent movies for between $2.99 and $3.99. The movies then remain available to watch for 30 days, but, only 24 hours once you start watching it.

The only thing that aggravates me about Apple TV is the syncing. It does it automatically and I hate not having the control of clicking and dragging what I want to put it on myself …. Maybe I am a control freak. However, it is not so bad once you get used to it. I hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[bwvBound]

Can you get Sunday (ABC) and Monday (ESPN) night football through Apple TV?