So, are you going to buy an Apple TV?
Steve Jobs, for a lot of us, is kind of like Chuck Norris, except all the things that Chuck can supposedly do… well, Steve can actually do them. This is a man who once beat Magnus ver Magnusson in an arm-wrestling match with his left hand while designing a new iPod Nano with his right. The man’s got game.
That being said, even he admitted yesterday during his Macworld keynote speech that the original Apple TV was kind of a flop. It was pricey and clumsy and not very popular at all. Yesterday’s announcement of Apple TV (take two) acknowledged the flaws of the first machine and promised to make things right for consumers.
Here’s the rundown of the new Apple TV (more detail on this is of course available at our sister sites, The Unofficial Apple Weblog and Engadget):
- Price: $229
- Computer: Unnecessary. You can link directly to the iTunes store through your Apple TV and download without the computer as a middleman. (Though, if you do have a computer, you can sync the content on your Apple TV to your computer and vice versa).
- Content
- 600 TV shows ($1.99 a piece)
- all of the podcasts available on iTunes
- anything already in your iTunes library
- over 50 million videos from YouTube
- your pictures — not only what’s on your computer, but there’s also now flikr.com support.
- and, finally, the big news: movie rentals! You can get DVD quality movie rentals ($2.99 for catalog titles, $3.99 for new releases) or HD quality (with 5.1 surround sound) for a dollar more. The movies are available for viewing up to 30 days after you rent them and you’ll have them for 24 hours once you actually start watching them.
People have been trying now for at least a decade to converge media into the living room. I can remember going to a Gateway store back in 1998 and seeing the display for its $4000 Destination system. I turned to my friend Chris and said, “Wow, man, it looks like the future is finally here.” Chris, quite rightly, slapped me as hard as he could. No one bought the machine and no one bought any of the other PC/entertainment hybrids that the various Dr. Moreaus of the world have tried to sell us.
The question on the table then is this: Will anyone buy the second revision of Apple TV? I love the idea of online movie rentals, but the $229 upfront for the box reminds me a bit too much of the old video store “clubs” where you had to buy a membership in order to rent videos. I don’t care all that much about watching YouTube on my TV (I can sing Chocolate Rain by myself if I need to) and I can already listen to my music and podcasts and look at my pictures on my TV thanks to TiVo.
So, for me, this is a pass. I’ll wait till Apple TV (Take Three) which will probably be the size of a nickel and let you watch any event in history. But I want to open the floor to you, our trusted readership. Are you going to buy an Apple TV? If so, why? If not, why not? Come on! Web 2.0 can’t exist without your valued comments…
Netflix’s First Set-Top Box
Netflix has released the first set top box which will allow you to live-stream movies to your television on demand. The first unit is produced by Roku for only $99, and all you need is a netflix subscription to use it. I think I’m more excited about this device than anyone else I know. It’s clearly the future of how we’re going to watch movies. And while the Roku box has a lot of things right: The price, HDMI output, standard video quality, Wifi connectivity, and easy set-up/installation, it is still appears to be an early product.
The problems: Only 10,000 of the 100,000 DVDs are available for instant stream. That’s not to say there aren’t some great selections. Here is a sampling that Roku lists on their website:
- 30 Rock (2007; TV)
- The Good German (2006)
- La Vie en Rose (2007)
- Weeds (2006; TV)
- Absolute Power (1997)
- Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
- Heroes (2007; TV)
- Letters from Iwo Jima (2007)
- Blade Runner (1982)
- The Office (2006; TV)
- 2 Days in Paris (2007)
- Mean Girls (2004)
- The Sum of All Fears (2002)
- Misery (1990)
- The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
For the most part it seems like classic catalog titles and recent independent/mini-major releases. There is probably enough to keep me going for years. Especially their television show selection. And the offered selection is always growing.
The biggest problem I have with the unit is that it doesn’t allow you to choose a movie directly from the set-top box. You need to first go to your netflix account on a computer and add the instant watch titles to your netflix queue. And apparently you can have over 500 titles in your instant watch queue to choose from while sitting on your couch. But having to first add the selections to your account on the website is one extra set which seems unnecessary. I wonder if they have to do this to get around On demand exclusivity deals.
But imagine the possibilities. Imagine having 50,000 movies and tv shows to choose from. Imagine when a big company like Apple or Sony makes a set-top box for the service, how much better the functionality could be. Basically, imagine being able to rent a netflix movie when you want, and watch it instantly from the comfort of your couch, for not one cent more than your standard netflix description. It’s going to happen, but this unit is clearly for the early adopter (a group I usually belong to). And for only $100, it’s not a huge investment.
Find out more on Roku.com.