Expert’s Rating
Pros
Cons
Our Verdict
The original Apple TV , announced in 2006 and let go in other 2007 , was Apple ’s first take on providing media cyclosis to the living room . Four year and three software updates later on , the Apple TV remained just a “ rocking horse , ” to use the word repeatedly uttered by Apple executives to identify the mathematical product . With the release of the young second - multiplication Apple TV , Apple has dramatically changed the twist ’s technology while also redefining the product ’s target audience . It ’s an enormous change with a huge amount of upside , but until the machine becomes more flexible it ’s still a study in progression .
The big picture
Before digging into the item of what the Apple TV ’s software does and does n’t do , it ’s worth reviewing the hardware itself . Almost the only thing the new Apple TV has in unwashed with its predecessor is its name : The previous silver - and - white model was essentially a strip down down Mac power by a single - core Intel processor and running a modify version of OS X 10.4 . With its let in concentrated drive , it had a cock-a-hoop footprint than a Mac mini , deplete a mess of power , and threw off a whole lot of heating system .
Contrast that with this new fateful box , a quarter of the size of it of the original Apple TV , running a version of iOS just like the iPhone , iPad , and iPod touch , and powered by the same Apple A4 processor used in the iPad . The fresh Apple TV swear on substantial - country storehouse ( 8 GB worth , according to iFixIt ) rather than a moving hard effort , sips ability , and unravel cool to the touch . To top it all off , the former Apple TV cost $ 229 ; this new , immensely more advanced model will arrange you back $ 99 .
The Apple TV is 3.9 inches straight , 0.9 inches high-pitched , and weighs 0.6 Cypriot pound — or , to put it another elbow room , it ’s really belittled . On the back you ’ll find a wad for the let in power cable , an HDMI port able of carrying HD video and 5.1 - channel digital sound to your telecasting , an optic digital audio recording port for connect directly to a surround - strait audio system , a 10/100Base - triiodothyronine ethernet port ( in case you prefer wire networking to the Apple TV ’s build - in 802.11a / b / g / n Wi - Fi ) , and a micro - USB port that Apple says is appropriate for service and support ( at least until some industrious people came up with a direction to use it for other intention ) . You ’ll need to supply your own HDMI cable for use with the Apple TV , because Apple does n’t render one . And if your high-definition television only has reenforcement for element stimulus , and not HDMI , you ’re out of luck .
Rear ports of the new Apple TV (top) versus the original.
Rear port of the new Apple TV ( top ) versus the original .
Along with the major computer hardware upgrade , this new Apple TV comes with a shift in Apple ’s school of thought about what the Apple TV is for . If we had to sum up the original Apple TV ism , it would be that the gimmick subsist as a agency to take the iTunes content you stored on your computer and play it back in your living room , and also facilitate the purchase and rental of extra items from the iTunes memory board .
The new model , in contrast , wo n’t have you purchase stuff at all . The only financial transactions that happen on the box itself are letting — of movies and , for the first sentence , television shows . Since buy stuff from iTunes requires you to download the Indian file and store it somewhere , you ’ve catch to do that from a Mac or PC running iTunes . ( The Apple television will play those purchases back , of line , but you must make the purchase on your computer . ) Without a hard drive , there ’s no way to sync that contentedness from your figurer to the Apple TV , so playback requires a Mac or personal computer with iTunes 10.0.1 or subsequently to be escape to watch anything not come from the net . This is a big modification for older Apple video owners , who may have dump lots of content onto the Apple TV ’s driving force and preferred to shut out down their calculator before sitting on the couch for the evening ’s amusement . It also marks the first time that Apple has truly comprehend using its own computer hardware to facilitate the playback of pay picture content from a service other than Apple , because the new Apple TV offers full funding for Netflix video streaming .
The contents of the Apple TV box.
Remote control
By nonpayment , you verify the Apple TV via the included infrared remote . It ’s essentially the same aluminum remote Apple sell for $ 19 for Macs , but with a tiny conception variation : the ring of clit is ever so slimly raise .
If you prefer to stow your Apple television somewhere out of your phone line of sight ( or are n’t a sports fan of Apple ’s remote control ) you ’ll need to control it by other substance . The good news program is , version 2.0 of Apple ’s Remote app for iOS released this week will work as a Wi - Fi - based remote control — and it ’s now a universal app for iPhone , iPod touch , and iPad .
The Remote app mathematical function more or less the same as the the hardware remote , with the main difference between that you cabbage and tap in the app or else of clicking buttons on the remote . It still solve well for scrolling around the Apple TV user interface and selecting detail , and the addition of iPad musical accompaniment for the app make an even more expansive and working interface .
The current TV rentals on iTunes are a bit sparse.
Getting set up
The contentedness of the Apple TV box .
Apple seems to have gotten in a groove of late when it comes to packaging . The company has slimmed down and egest as much charge plate and waste as possible , especially on Macs and iPhones . The Apple TV follows that tendency , get in a tiny cardboard box . deep down there ’s just the Apple TV , an elegantly wrapped power cable , the remote , and a low paper Getting Started guide .
After bond an HDMI cable and plug the Apple TV in to our officialMacworldflat - screen door HDTV , we were up and incline . The problem with a machine like the Apple TV , though , is that to really get it working you call for to enter in some information on a machine that does n’t make out with a keyboard . Yes , the iOS Remote app will let you key out in text — but only once it ’s share the same internet as the Apple TV ! We had to embark in a Wi - Fi password and then an iTunes ID and password ( in social club to relate to iTunes and the Remote app via Home Sharing ) , all with the remote , before everything started work smoothly . It ’s a hurting , and there ’s likely no option . At least it ’s something you only have to do once .
The first time we tried to rent a moving-picture show , we did head for the hills into a bit of security : the Apple TV prompt us for the security telephone number on the back of the default credit card on the iTunes report we were using . Once we enter it , all next rentals happened with just a couple of clicks and no other designation was necessary .
iTunes rentals
The current television set rental on iTunes are a bit sparse .
With the Apple TV restrict to picture and TV show rentals , its view of the iTunes Store is now decidedly unlike : If something ’s not for rent , it ’s not there as far as the Apple TV is concerned . Although Apple counts 8000 movie rentals in the iTunes Store — about 3500 of which are in HD — the television set incision is where the rental way out is specially apparent : there are some shows from Fox , ABC , and the BBC , but it ’s not a vast selection and many pop shows from the regular iTunes list are conspicuously absent . Likewise , any movies useable for purchase but not for rental are no - show on the twist .
This is one of those shell where the deals Apple makes with subject matter providers — and not the hardware or the computer software — have the large impact on the exploiter experience of this product . If Apple flunk to make rental deals with major networks ( and statements from NBC and others indicate an rising engagement ) or agrees to check rental of certain pic for 30 days after DVD release ( for deterrent example , you may buyIron Man 2right now , but not rent it ) , that will make the Apple TV ’s selection pathetic .
Although the Apple TV does n’t have the storage to archive buy depicted object permanently , we have to inquire if there might not be some mode to allow Apple TV users to buy video that are available only for leverage and somehow queue up a download on a linked Mac or PC . It does seem a bit silly that you could rent a boob tube show for $ 1 but not buy one for $ 3 . or else , if you want to purchase depicted object on iTunes , you need to do it from your Mac or PC .
Streaming from your computer
As before , you’re able to still stream content store in an iTunes library on your internet to the Apple TV . The fresh role model change how the process works , however . In the past times , you ’d go to configurations - > estimator - > Add Shared iTunes Library and enter a 5 - digit codification in iTunes to link up your library and your Apple boob tube . Once you link up to an iTunes library , its contents would display in the My Movies , My TV show , and My Music zep - menus of the Movies , TV Shows , and Music menu .
Now you accomplish the same affair using iTunes ’ Home apportion feature . In iTunes , prize Advanced - > act On Home Sharing and you ’re prompted to get into your iTunes Store ID and password . Once Home Sharing is turned on , you could choose the content of a sync electronic computer ’s iTunes library by select that computer by name from the Apple TV ’s new Computers carte du jour .
In many way , this setup cognitive operation is easy than a code appearing on your TV and you having to go to the calculator you want to link and enter the code . But in social club to see each other , your Apple TV and any iTunes libraries with Home Sharing enable must be using the same iTunes Store story . So if you have more than one account in your house , you wo n’t be able to pour all your content without some extra hassle .
And how you pelt is very of import , because , as we ’ve bring up , there ’s no longer any concept of syncing content to the Apple TV . With only a small amount of on - board storage — which is reserved mainly for buffering streaming content — the new Apple TV does n’t let you remove single file to it from your iTunes library . Everything is either streaming over the Internet ( from iTunes , Netflix , YouTube , Flickr , MobileMe , and the like ) or from a Mac or PC .
An cozy survey ofMacworldeditors revealed that most of us gave up on syncing our Apple TVs with our iTunes libraries , due to the slowness of the syncing and the functionality of medium streaming . But we include , if you ’re the kind of somebody who on a regular basis filled the hard drive on the original Apple TV and wished that the ride was larger , you may be disappointed with the new Apple TV ’s chemical attraction for streaming and lack of depot .
Netflix streaming
The Netflix interface the Apple TV use does n’t look like the ones bump in most other gadget that feature imbed Netflix support . Apple TV ’s Netflix feature utilise the same interface conventionality as graze through goggle box shows and movies on the iTunes Store . Apple say it want a ordered design with the rest of the Apple TV interface , and in that country the company succeed . notice thumbnails are position out and take care as they do when browse Apple ’s own iTunes Store catalog , and if you know how to employ the Apple TV , you bed how to use Netflix on the Apple boob tube . you may see what ’s in your instantaneous waiting line ; take in a queued token ; search for young movies and TV show by genre , new liberation , or name , and ascertain them or add them to your waiting line ; remove item from your queue ; and rate TV show and movies .
In our tests roleplay back both SD and HD cyclosis depicted object from Netflix , the quality was broadly speaking as good as the seed material , and on a equivalence with the same content viewed streaming from Roku ’s new XDS streaming TV player . As with all the content we tried out , Wi - Fi and ethernet were equally satisfactory option for stream Netflix content .
Improved performance
Anyone with the previous generation of Apple TV will severalize you that its performance was severely lacking in many direction . It only could act 720p HD television file cabinet if they were 24 physical body per 2nd ( and did n’t even manage that task particularly well in many case ) . Pressing buttons on its remote control was often an physical exercise in futility , as such activeness would obviously go neglected because of a concluded deficiency of feedback from the UI — until they all trigger off at once and you ended up playing and pausing a television half a dozen time , or get across your way several menus past the statement you were looking for .
Those suffering are a thing of the past tense . The new Apple TV plays 720p videos with comfort . No stuttering , no frame drops . And the Apple TV ’s interface is much more responsive to commands . We never mat up frustrated when driving this Apple TV .
The new Apple TV also runs much cooler than before , due mostly to the fact that it has no spinning hard crusade to acquire lots of heat . In fact , there are no moving parts — not even a fan . Apple says that in normal use , the Apple television consumes a little more than two watts of power , and in Sleep mode ( which is a unfeigned rest , unlike the faux - sleep of the old model ) that number drops to less than one watt .
After playing around with it in theMacworldoffices for several hours , including an hour of stream 720p TV , our test social unit stayed at a pretty consistent temperature , and never even obtain warm to the jot . ( liken that to the old Apple TV , which was a handy stand - in for a George Foreman grillroom if the need get up . )
AirPlay on the way
Just as with the previous Apple TV , you may use this Modern example to toy back audio recording from a Mac or personal computer run iTunes via Apple ’s AirPlay organisation , previously sleep with as AirTunes . The name change is due to the fact thatiOS devices running iOS 4.2(due in November ) will gain the ability to send videos and photos wirelessly to your TV set via the Apple TV . With iOS 4.2 , iPhone , iPad , and iPod touch users will be capable to pink on an AirTunes icon while play medium on their machine , select an Apple television on their local net , and see the media routed like a shot to the telecasting attached to that Apple TV . This feature of speech will not only be supported in the built - in iOS media apps , but in third - party apps as well . ( AirPlay video playback will likely be throttle to formats that the Apple tv set understands — namely , MPEG-4 and H.264 . )
Unfortunately , because Io 4.2 is still in development , we were n’t able to prove AirPlay ’s video recording - sharing features . They vocalise like they could be reasonably cool , but for now it ’s just a hope — it’ll be up to Apple to fork up a good - tone AirPlay experience in November .
But wait, is there more?
We already know that the new Apple TV is using the same processor as the iPad , is run iOS , and has at least some inner depot . And that opens the door for the possibility of the Apple TV one day being capable to bunk third - party apps that could expand its capabilities . If the Apple television could stream live baseball from MLB.com or play back Hulu Plus videos , for example , that could make it an even more interesting product to appeal to more user . ( Those services will probably work via AirPlay , but it would seem much more effective to offer them directly on the machine . )
The Apple TV ’s Netflix user interface makes it light that Apple require the Apple TV exploiter user interface to be consistent across different services . But it ’s not hard to imagine Netflix as the perfect good example for third - political party developer wanting to add features to the Apple TV . If Netflix support is any reading , Apple is no longer afraid to propose Apple boob tube possessor alternatives to the company ’s own iTunes Store — and for the Apple TV to make a handsome splash , it ’ll have to compete with the Rokus of the man that give users mickle of choices .
Then there ’s the interrogation of whether the Apple TV ’s iOS bag could mean that it becomes a newfangled gaming political program . There are certainly lots of iOS games out there , and if they could be adapt to the big screen ( with iOS gadget like iPod touches and iPhones as Wii - corresponding controller , complete with gyroscopes and accelerometers ) there might be a lot of potential there . Still , it ’s hard to estimate how probable this scenario is . We certainly do n’t apprize anyone buying an Apple TV in the promise that it will become a game cabinet — but it ’s an interesting possibility to consider .
Macworld’s buying advice
The new Apple TV is a spectacular ironware upgrade from the previous exemplar . The machine is easy to use , and excels at three tasks : playing back content from local iTunes electronic computer , renting iTunes content over the net , and dally back Netflix current . But it ’s passably hinder by a special pick of television set shows available for rent , and locked out of the larger catalogue of items uncommitted for purchase . And until Apple expand the Apple telly ’s capacity , either by adding livelihood for other cyberspace streaming help or by opening the machine to third - party growing , the merchandise is locked in to only a few contentedness sources .
[ Jason Snell is Macworld ’s editorial director ; Jonathan Seff is a senior editor . ]
[ Updated 9/30 to chasten mistake about function of Remote app . ]
