Apple TV: More Hype Than Content Adds Up to a Set-Top Flop

I enjoy watching Blodget, and am personally glad that people lost money listening to every piece of advice he gave way back when. It should have taught those people that they are idiots and not listen to every word someone says. In the end people can blame Blodget all they like since they wont take any of the blame themselves for being idiots and not taking the time or effort to look into their own investments. I really do enjoy reading those comments, it makes it sound like Henry Blodget came over to their house, put a gun to their head and said "INVEST IN THESE STOCKS!" Boo-hoo to those people who lost money, it's about time they look in their own mirrors to see who is to really blame.

Cable companies write dogmeat software. There is channel line up info on Cablevision that has not changed IN 30 YEARS. Th monopoly aspect of their business makes them suck, just as the Knicks suck under Dolan. They'll take the cash flow as long as they are protected from competition. My Apple TV has all my music on it and it is plugged into my stereo for excellent, not perfect sound. It is all there. I rent movies, no problem hit the button and they start in 30 seconds. Apple may put a browser in but it is not something that is important to me.

iPhone is the key that will change the game. iPhone + (AppleTV connectivity with recording functionality, online scheduling, OnDemand video, and TV streaming) + iTunes = Tivo, Slingbox killer. You've almost got the entire home entertainment value chain complete.

If you boil the AppleTV down to some of the root functions, it is an awesome box. It keeps [in my house] 9000+ songs backed up , provides an endpoint set of speakers so i can drive music from my PC to my main room, and also shows all 10,000+ of my family pictures while my music is playing in a very cool screen saver. These are pictures that get buried on my hard drive -- now I get to see them. So -- $300 to back up all of my songs, extend the reach of my music library throughout the house and bring life to the digital pictures from my computer..... heck, I'm getting ready to buy another one. Don't miss the point here guys. It's a lot of bang for a little buck. Peace.

I disagree completely. I have an AppleTV and I rent movies, listen to my music and watch YouTube with it. Could it do more? Yes. There is no one else offering anything else that is close. They need to offer web access using the ATV and record live TV with a built-in Tuner. Basically they need to combine Web TV, AppleTV and Tivo. I believe the capabilities are already built in to the AppleTV. It is a matter of getting everyone else on board. Perhaps Apple should have waited a year before introducing this product. It is not a dud!

Apple TV is great ! I love to watch/rent th movies and not having to worry about returning them. BTW, if you want to surf the Web or play yur own content without having to synchronize it through iTunes, check: http://appletvandmore.blogspot.com/

Hmmm. What he's missing is the fact that the Apple TV is a computer- in the sense that Apple can update the box in your living room on the fly. The game could change tomorrow when you flick it on. Other boxes are not doing that (yet), and I don't think they will (soon). An Apple TV can run a web browser- there are hacks. I'm not saying to hack your apple tv, I'm saying Apple could add the feature in a second and chooses not to. Hmmm. I wonder why. . .

i love my apple tv i get movies the day they are released on tuesdays and batch convert them to the apple tv format and automator adds them to itunes for me. i only click 2 buttons one to start encoding and 1 to turn the movie on. i just ordered my second apple tv for a second bedroom.

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I have modified mine w/ a patchstick. Works great - it's what I envisioned the product to be when it came out last year - and it's what Apple should have released when it came out.

The problem isn't with AppleTV. The problem is with the content providers and their terms.

I cannot believe the negative press on the apple TV. This is an awesome device in its infancy. Contrary to another post, it is now a stand alone device. With a high speed internet connection, you can quickly buy and rent movies, watch Youtube, access flicker and iMac accounts. I recommend people try it themselves. The content is growing and will continue to grow. It already has a large amount of new releases. Remember, Netflix has had years to assemble its content, the Apple TV has had months. I would not trade mine in for anything. Can there be improvements, sure, and we will see them.

Isn't Blodgett one the guys who hyped up certain internet stocks during the big bubble and laughed at the investors who bought while he sold and made millions. I remember reading a few articles about his manipulation.

Allow me to disagree in some respects… The reason I want Apple TV and iTunes Movie Rentals to succeed is so that I don’t ever HAVE TO BUY a Blu-ray player and any form of “hard media” again. I was ready a year ago to be done with DVDs and Apple TV Take 2 is poised to make that finally possible. I’d much rather have access to a virtual on-line library of basically every movie ever made. I’ll still purchase my “Must Haves” either physically or digitally, but all other movies will be cheaper to simply rent for one, two or three times over the course of my life - as opposed to the 5 times I would have to watch any given $20 DVD just to break even. The ONLY reason I have purchased so many DVDs over the years was the desire to have them available to watch whenever I wanted to, without rental hassles. A permanent iTunes Movie library would remove that need completely. SD? HD? Super HD? or whatever comes next… that’s okay, because iTunes will encode the content in that new format (they’ll have to for competitive reasons) and present it for rent and purchase through my very same AppleTV just like SD and HD content magically became available to my first generation 2007 Apple TV. (okay, maybe the box will require the occasional upgrade… but still cheaper than buying a new player AND new media all the time) Other file formats may eventually be worked in when needed (sorry pirates) but there’s certainly no need for Apple TV to become a Mac Mini. I for one don’t really want a keyboard in my living room - just a remote thanks. Keep it simple. Apple TV has been a great success as far as I’m concerned. It delivered all my iTunes content to my HDTV (which has worked fantastic), and a year later it was even upgraded FOR FREE(!) to include movie rentals, TV purchases, YouTube, Podcasts, etc. I’ve gotten my money’s worth and much enjoyment from Apple TV and look forward to what Apple has in store for its future!