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10/30/09
10/30/09
Despite what you theoretically think you are capable/allowed to do, Apple does not care. The purpose of AppleTV, is to give direct access to the ITUNES STORE, from your TV, the screen that you intend to view purchased content.
AppleTV is not a home Media Server or Do-it-All Set Top Box.
Hardly acceptable for a site like Gizmodo to intentionally miss the point of a device, just because its not what the author wants to use it for. Yeah, you want to plug in a 2 TB external HDD so you can rip Netflix and download Blu Ray Rips, and store/play them to your hearts content, as if you paid for all the media.
Well, you didn't pay for it.
And in regard to the limited storage, if you're lucky enough to have a modern Apple TV with 160 gb HDD, you have little reason to need an external as well. 160 gigs is enough to get any media hound through the day. And this is Apple TV, not a portable device. Plan on sitting on the couch much?
Apple is smart enough to know that storage on the AppleTV, while important, does not have to keep up with external hdd or even computer hdd sizes. Most of your movies will exist on your computer and external harddrive, and can be easily synced over when needed. Keep new or highly rated content on the Apple TV. Transfer whatever else you need, when you need it. No Big Deal. #appletv30
10/30/09
Seriously, how many people purchased this because Boxee was hacked onto it?
Apple's crosshairs were a bit off this time - unless the point of the device was not to sell.
Oh, and I do like the larger hard drive = piracy analogy. Classy. #appletv30
10/29/09
Internet Radio is fairly huge for my home theater, that's about it. Interface updates are fun but meh. LP's and extended play, super meh. Purchases are too expensive to make it interesting. Rents are where it's at.
I'll crawl back into my hole now and wait for BBC, Hulu, Netflix, and all the other things we'll never see. #appletv30
10/29/09
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10/29/09
Something that appears to have improved in 3.0 is that when going to movies and music, "My Movies" and "My Music" appear at the top of the list rather than the last item on the list. This little change dramatically reduces the "money grubbing bastards" feeling that I used to get when entering those sections, even though technically it's still there.
10/29/09
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This is false, the USB port is wonderful, it allows us to patch the AppleTV with Boxee so that we can watch any format and any file without the need of iTunes! You can even use the NAS ;-) #appletv30
10/29/09
If Apple had a service that provided ad-based free content, ala Hulu, then this would be more useful.
Haven't tried Boxee since 3.0 update - I am guessing it is a no-go for now. #appletv30
10/29/09
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10/29/09
It's a specially-formatted-and-partitioned... USB drive that Apple uses at the factory for recovery purposes. The USB drive holds recovery info, to boot from it you hold a couple keys on the remote as the ATV boots to trigger recovery from USB.
If you MODIFY your Apple TV, and don't mind sticking with Take 2 until 3.0 gets hacked, you CAN use the USB drive as external /Media storage. And besides, modifying your Apple TV means more fun stuff - like EyeTV and USB TV tuners.
[wiki.awkwardtv.org] for the Take 2 update information, [wiki.awkwardtv.org] to learn how the USB recovery process works. #appletv30
10/29/09
[I'd post the link to the guide for Leopard, but it has a link right in the thread to a pre-made image torrent for it. And I don't believe in 'piracy' so to speak, so go just look it up on Hackint0sh yourself.]
10/29/09
The AppleTV uses an nvidia chip that comes with Purevideo support, so all Apple has to do is harness that chip to speed up the AppleTV.
One more thing I want to see (apart from WMV and XViD support) is the ability to start off the AppleTV *without* it being connected to a TV, and play music through my stereo using the iPod Touch as a remote. Currently, the AppleTV *must* be connected to a TV, or it won't startup at all! Even if all you want to do is playback music on your stereo, in which case you don't need the UI (since there's the iPod Touch/iPhone Remote app!). #appletv30