[Atheist]

Just picked up the ATV2 and it's nothing I expected. First off, the picture quality is worse than the first gen ATV. It seems the ATV2 only does 720p output. The ATV allowed you to pick the resolution all the way up to 1080p. I've got a 1080p LCD TV so I suspect what is happening is that my TV is doing the upscaling instead of the ATV and I guess this means my TV is doing a crappy job at it. Secondly, the setup is a little different in that it relies on iTunes Home Sharing. So I don't directly link my ATV to my iTunes library and there is no syncing. That's all well and good but the ATV2 user interface doesn't list my movies and tv shows in the same location as before. Here is what it looks like:



With the original ATV, the very top row would show my most recently added Unwatched movies and TV shows from my iTunes library. Now it only seems to show video that has been rented/bought via iTunes. Stuff I add myself can only be found by navigating to the Computers menu, then selecting my Shared Library, then selecting either Movies or TV shows and then scrolling through to find what I want. Total pain in the ass.

So $99 out of pocket and all I get is crappier video quality and an awful user experience.

Thanks Steve!

[Cold Warrior]

You didn't read the product page before buying? When released, Apple made a big deal out of the all-streaming atv2 revision. It's one way they brought down the cost.

You also left out greatly reduced size, temperature, and noise.

When you nav to Computers and click your machine, movies will show across the top like in your screen cap. You don't have to specifically hit the movies sub-share. I don't know if tv shows will do this.

[Atheist]

Originally Posted by Cold Warrior 

You didn't read the product page before buying? When released, Apple made a big deal out of the all-streaming atv2 revision. It's one way they brought down the cost.

My bad that I didn't catch the reduction in output resolution. I still think it's lame.

You also left out greatly reduced size, temperature, and noise.

Correct. I was bitching so I didn't mention the plus side of things.

When you nav to Computers and click your machine, movies will show across the top like in your screen cap. You don't have to specifically hit the movies sub-share. I don't know if tv shows will do this.

True, however it shows recently added whether watched or unwatched. I prefer only seeing the unwatched items like it did in the first gen ATV. No need to see the items I've already watched. Just more of the same with Apple "improving" something for no reason.

[turtle777]

I'm happy with my ATV2. I see more advantages than disadvantages over the ATV1. Heck, heat alone was reason enough to switch. I heated my whole apartment with the ATV1 in winter.

-t

[Atheist]

Turtle, you see no difference in video quality? What kind of TV do you have?

[turtle777]

My TV is only 720p. I got no comparison with 1080p.

-t

[chabig]

The original Apple TV only was capable of 720p. It never supported 1080p video.

Apple TV (1st generation) - Technical Specifications

Also, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appletv...specifications

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by chabig 

The original Apple TV only was capable of 720p. It never supported 1080p video.

I think Atheist got it right, the lack of 1080p in the ATV1 made the ATV1 up-convert.

The ATV allowed you to pick the resolution all the way up to 1080p. I've got a 1080p LCD TV so I suspect what is happening is that my TV is doing the upscaling instead of the ATV and I guess this means my TV is doing a crappy job at it.

-t

[Atheist]

Originally Posted by chabig 

The original Apple TV only was capable of 720p. It never supported 1080p video.

The 720p is in reference to input resolution. The original Apple TV can output 1080p. It upscales. I just tested this on my 1080p TV. When I plug in the Apple TV 2 it shows the input as 720p. When I plug in the original Apple TV it shows the input as 1080p. I just find it silly that Apple has gone a step backwards. It can't be that hard to output 1920x1080. You may think I'm splitting hairs but the menus are noticeably worse in appearance. The text is blockier. And as I stated before, the video doesn't look at sharp but that appears to be the fault of my TV as it is now doing the upscaling.

[chabig]

I see what you're talking about now. There are rumors that a next-generation AppleTV based on the A5 chip will enable 1080p output. I guess we'll see. Maybe the current one can get that through a software update when iOS 5 comes out.

[subego]

Originally Posted by Atheist 

The 720p is in reference to input resolution. The original Apple TV can output 1080p. It upscales. I just tested this on my 1080p TV. When I plug in the Apple TV 2 it shows the input as 720p. When I plug in the original Apple TV it shows the input as 1080p. I just find it silly that Apple has gone a step backwards. It can't be that hard to output 1920x1080. You may think I'm splitting hairs but the menus are noticeably worse in appearance. The text is blockier. And as I stated before, the video doesn't look at sharp but that appears to be the fault of my TV as it is now doing the upscaling.

Apple's streaming service (which is what they want you to use the ATV2 for), is only 720p. I think if the device was 1080p, they'd get accused of trying to pull a fast one.

I split hairs over this stuff for a living, so I don't think it's crazy that you notice and are irritated by it, but OTOH me and my dad rented True Grit, and it was most certainly watchable at 8' on a 60" TV.

[JohnD]

Apple TV isn't available in my country, The Netherlands. Mainly for that reason I bought one abroad and was a bit surprised to see that the device can be set to the Dutch language.

All other, for 119 Euro's (!) it is a disappointment yes and when owning a modern Samsung LED TV with internet connection the deception becomes even worse. Samsung also comes with a sort of App store.
Still the airplay thing is fun but I expect Samsung will jump in in the near future if they already didn't.

Bit of a pity that the Apple TV suffers from poor marketing and also poor attention from Apple themselves. It can be a great contribution to the whole home media hub thing.

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by JohnD 

All other, for 119 Euro's (!) it is a disappointment yes and when owning a modern Samsung LED TV with internet connection the deception becomes even worse. Samsung also comes with a sort of App store.

Why ?
What did you expect it to do ghat it doesn't?

-t

[Atheist]

After several weeks with the Apple TV 2 I must say there is room for improvement. I like how it's Snappier™ than the original Apple TV. I'm disappointed that fast-forward and rewind are still choppy. Sometimes rewind just hangs and goes nowhere. I just don't get it. If they've buffered the video up to that point, how hard can it be to rewind?

The menus are just awful. The display at the top is seemingly random. If I highlight my iTunes Library (it's connected to two iTunes Libraries) it will randomly show music or movies or TV shows. And it typically shows items I just watched or listened to. Those are the last thing I want to see. Show me the items I've just added. And show a combination of movies, TV shows, and music. Not just one. It really is lame that I have to hunt and peck my way through the library to find what I want to play. The Apple TV 1 menu system was far more useful.

As a software engineer I'm baffled. I would never create something so unintuitive.

[Andy8]

Install xbmc - then you can play any media you like on the atv2.

[JohnD]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

Why ?
What did you expect it to do ghat it doesn't?

-t

One minor example, a Samsung TV can handle a USB harddrive. Just drop the media on the harddrive and mount it and most will play. The AppleTV needs iTunes. Won't start a new iTunes discussions but as nice as it is it also has one drawback in that everything needs to go through iTunes. The Airplay thing is fun though.