Apple TV moves in, pt 2

Posted by 4season on March 15, 2008 at 14:06:48

I may have to eat my words about movie delivery via internet: Apple TV 2.0 + 7 megabit Qwest DSL is working very nicely! And with a long-overdue reshuffling of phone/ISP services, I think my overall expenditures will be about the same:

Upgrade: Qwest 256K DSL->7 megabit
Drop: Qwest phone service
Continue: T-Mobile prepaid service (I am getting by very nicely on $100/year)
Drop: Local ISP who had provided web hosting and POP email ($25/mo)
Add: Mac dot com service from Apple @ $100/year

Likes: Instant gratification, no worries about returning physical media (sucks when it's snowing), selection seems to be growing quickly, preview movie trailers and 30 sec clips of TV trailers before you buy, member reviews, glitch-free playback (if you buffer most or all of the show as I do), video+audio quality are good enough that I can simply enjoy the movie. No physical media means no added clutter. When network traffic is light, downloads are fast (at 6 AM on a weekday, Appleseed Ex Machina in HD looked like it'd be done in just over an hour). All the TV and movie-watching experience, without the clutter. And all on a pay-as-you-go basis!

Dislikes: USA- and English language-centric, no alternative soundtracks/subtitles or bonus features included. 15 minute programs should generally cost less than 50+ minute programs, but don't. Cost savings of buying on iTunes versus buying DVDs can be minimal. Once you start playing a rental movie, you need to finish watching within 24 hours: Wish this could be extended to 72 hours. Partially compensated for by 30 days period in which to start viewing. When network traffic is heavy, high def downloads can take 7+ hours.

Stuff that I don't quite understand yet:

-If you buy programs via iTunes, you've got a file that you can backup as needed, copy to iPod or stream to Apple TV, but I see no obvious way to actually store it on Apple TV (I have automatic synchronization turned off)

-If you buy the program from your Apple TV, can you transfer it to your computer? Haven't tried it yet but suspect the answer is "no".

How all of this will likely affect my Blu-Ray buying habits ;-)

Quite simply, I will likely buy fewer of them, and focus more on favorites that I expect to watch repeatedly. So "Harry Potter" and "The Matrix" on B-D should be safe for now, while movies that I think I may only want to watch once or twice will likely go via Apple TV.

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Topic - Apple TV moves in, pt 2 - 4season 14:06:48 03/15/08 (0)

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