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MacBook, AppleTV and Belkin Cable Free Hub
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Senior User
Join Date: Apr 2005
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I'm looking to go from this entertainment center design - MacBook, connected to Western Digital external device and also connected to an LG 48inch via a mini-dvi to hdmi cable to getting an AppleTV. I want to set it up so that the MacBook is connected wireless to the external drive and the ATV will see the movies/music/etc stored on the external. If I get something like Belkin's CableFree USB Hub can I do this? What I do on my MacBook now is have an alias to the movie/music/pictures folders on the external drive and then I just pointed iTunes and Front Row to the alias. I'm hoping ATV and a wireless USB connection would let me cut all the cables and I could do the same trick with the alias folders as I do now for ATV to see and load the digital media stuff. Is this doable?
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
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It *might* work, but there is an important consideration: speed.
The wireless USB hub might in theory be fast enough, but in reality choke on sending lots of data required for video.
The best (but more expensive) setup would be to get an Airport Extreme, and connect the HD to it.
A refurbed Airport Extreme costs $129 at Apple, only about $30 more than the Belkin hub. I would most certainly chose that setup.
-t
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Senior User
Join Date: Apr 2005
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@turtle777
Thanks for that point, pausing during playback would suck. I initially considered the APE but balked at the $179 price (compared to the $90 for the Belkin)...it was enough to convince the wife into getting yet another electronic device (AppTV) for only $99...time for some wine and roses to upgrade everything... 
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status:
Offline
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-t
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Administrator  Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: San Antonio TX USA
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I can stream video from my iMac running Windows XP to my Samsung TV via AirPort Extreme - to - AirPort Express without pauses or glitches. Caveat: the video is AVI files and the Express is about 30 feet or less from the Extreme. (I'm using XP from my iMac because the Samsung streaming system uses a weird UPnP adaptation that isn't standards compliant and doesn't have a Mac server app...) The network hardware can handle it if the server and TV can.
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Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status:
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Originally Posted by ghporter 
The network hardware can handle it if the server and TV can.
Yes, in a "normal" setup.
Wireless USB is a rather new technology and implementation.
I don't know how well and fast this is implemented, but my guess is that 802.11x protocols are a bit more mature.
-t
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Administrator Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: San Antonio TX USA
Status:
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Note I hedged my bet with "the network hardware..." But I didn't actually say anything about the wireless USB hub because- well because I don't know much about them. What I do know is that there are some wireless USB hubs that are rock solid, but that not all of them are. That's the whole issue though, as far as I can tell.
So I completely endorse using an AirPort Extreme as turtle suggested. I'm currently running my Extreme with a USB 1.1 hub on it so I can connect two printers to it; I don't see a problem with connecting just about anything that the Extreme supports and having it work great. Apple even says that you can run both printers and hard drives (at the same time) through a USB hub connected to the Extreme.
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Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
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