Apple TV Take 2: a mini-review
Mar 18, 2008 TV, Technology
I have been using the AppleTV now for a few weeks, and I have to say that it has really changed the way I watch movies/podcasts. For those of you that don’t know, the Apple TV is a device that hooks up to your TV and streams any music, movies, tv shows, and podcasts that you have in iTunes. You can also copy the various media types to the Apple TV so it will work without the computer on, but streaming seems to work fine, even with HD content.
I have a couple of hundred DVD’s that I have copied to my computer and imported into iTunes, and now I can watch them all without having to use the physical DVD disc. Instead, I select it from a list of all of my movies on the beautiful Apple TV interface, and it automatically starts playing, either streamed or directly from the Apple TV hard drive.
Also, iTunes now has movie rentals. I have rented a few, and they look great, especially the HD movies. It is a buck more, but you get 720p video downloaded straight from iTunes to the Apple TV, no computer needed.
Finally, video podcasts are watchable on the Apple TV. I have subscribed to the HD versions of several of them since I can watch them on the tv now. Diggnation has never looked so great.
So check it out: Apple TV
Tags: apple tv, appletv, itunes, mac, macbook, pc, streaming, video
Use a Zune with iTunes?
Jan 22, 2008 Technology
I do not own a Zune, and I have been accused of bashing the Zune in the past. Well, I have to say, it actually is a great device, and if I had a pc and did not absolutely love my my iPod, I would strongly consider getting one. So this post serves as my first official “pro-Zune” post. Mark the date.
Anyway, there is a program that looks like it will let you use your Zune with other sync programs (like Windows Media Player, iTunes, etc). I have no way of trying it out, but if it does what it says it will, you would essentially be able to sync up your Zune with iTunes and have any DRM-free music copy over to it. Now that is cool.
