[mcfarlandclan]

I'm going to switch to ethernet for syncing my Apple TV. Wireless is PAINFULLY slow!
Can you confirm that EVERY time ATV syncs with iTunes it downloads all the content EACH and EVERY time. Even if that content already exists on the ATV?
When I sync my iPod, only NEW content is uploaded to the iPod (and deleted content is removed).
My ATV seems to start from scratch with every sync. This means that if I add photos to be synched, I have to wait until all my music/movies have transferred before my new photos can be viewed on ATV.
Is this your experience?

[Philip Michaels]

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If the demo is turning off customers -- particularly when the Apple TV is performing so well elsewhere -- Apple should do something to fix it in a hurry.

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A while back we ran a story on Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer outlining Apple's retail plans in which he talked about the need to go back and remodel some of the stores to better show off Apple TV (and the iPhone). I wonder if some of these reports we keep hearing about are an indication of why.

[Chris Breen]

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Can you confirm that EVERY time ATV syncs with iTunes it downloads all the content EACH and EVERY time. Even if that content already exists on the ATV?

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No, it doesn't. It just updates content that has changed. For example, if you're using a smart playlist that's limited to a certain number of unplayed tracks (or use the "X number of unplayed whatever" option in Apple TV prefs) the now-played tracks will disappear from the Apple TV even when iTunes isn't up and running -- the Apple TV keeps track of its playcount and deletes stuff when it's supposed to. When you reconnect or next sync, iTunes feeds it the updated material but doesn't completely resync everything.

[Peter Cohen]

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I wonder if some of these reports we keep hearing about are an indication of why.

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I can't see why. The problem I had isn't with the presentation -- the HDTV's they're showing the Apple TV content on looks just fine. It's the video content that looks like crap.

[MacTechAspen]

I have no idea what is going on with the demo in the Apple stores, but the picture quality looks fine on my set, and on the several others I have seen it on. It isn't the sharp perfection of HD, but it is pretty good, and far from anything to complain about.
My only real complaint to date is that I want to see video playlists supported with streaming video. They may be available for downloaded videos, but I am not sure, since I have not bothered to download movies (just a few TV series). Imagine only being able to view your music the entire library at a time and by song name. Hopefully this will be worked out before I actually have enough movies to care (although some of my clients have hundreds of DVDs to burn).
Which brings me to the Hard Drive capacity. Over ethernet, streaming video is pretty much not an issue. This means that you only really have to download pictures to the AppleTV and stream the rest (if you have a wired network). From this point of view, there is plenty of drive capacity.
Music is what I have the AppleTV for, and it is why I am setting it up for clients. For music, it is phenomenal. The great screen saver is fun to watch and streaming or downloaded, the music plays flawlessly.
There is still a lot of untapped potential (e.g. the ability to purchase media directly from the unit). What we have now is a great way to deal with your digital music collection from your living room, and while you are at it, watch a few television series, podcasts, and the occasional movie. It is not for everyone, and it doesn't do everything, but typical of Apple it does what it does very well.

[MacTechAspen]

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I wonder if some of these reports we keep hearing about are an indication of why.

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I can't see why. The problem I had isn't with the presentation -- the HDTV's they're showing the Apple TV content on looks just fine. It's the video content that looks like crap.

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I would be interested to know what the connection is. I have only seen examples with HDMI or DVI connections. Both of which automatically set the AppleTV to the highest rez possible. Using composite connections the AppleTV doesn't get feedback on the TV's resolution, so it defaults to the lowest possible rez.
It is possible, although it seems unlikely, that the Apple Stores have older HD televisions and the AppleTVs are connected via a composite cable. Further, the store personnel would have to not know to set the resolution. This would require a near "perfect storm" like set of circumstances, but it would certainly explain the reports.

[Uncommon]

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I have no idea what is going on with the demo in the Apple stores, but the picture quality looks fine on my set, and on the several others I have seen it on.

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Even with 2D animation like The Little Mermaid? It might be counter-intuitive, but that kind of content can show the weaknesses of low-resolution video more than anything. Most live-action shows I've gotten from the iTunes Store look fine, but when I compare my Avatar: The Last Airbender DVDs to the iTunes version, the difference is noticeable, especially in the black outlines. The outlines always get pixellated when they move. The effect is actually present on the DVDs as well, but to a much lesser degree.

[moose_n_squirrel]

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Just purchase a DVI-to-HDMI cable, jack the HDMI cable into the back of the Apple TV, plug the other end into your monitors DVI port, connect some powered speakers via either the Apple TVs analog or digital audio jacks, and youre set. When you fire up the Apple TV, you monitor will be recognized as a 720p display.

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Can you please clarify, does this mean it shows up and is automatically scaled to the entire Cinema Display screen, no matter the size? Or as a 720-line rectangle in the middle of black space?

[MacTechAspen]

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Even with 2D animation like The Little Mermaid?

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I don't have any cell animation I can test it with. The closest I could come was watching a streaming clip of South Park from the iTunes Store.
Unquestionably there is some pixilation in the black lines, but you have to look for it and the overall quality is leaps and bounds above how it is broadcast. I also don't know if what I was watching is representative or not.
If you are trying to find fault with the picture, then yep, it has faults. Are the faults great enough to interfere with the watching experience? Not from what I have seen so far.
It may well be that animation is the systems weakness, but only a die hard videophile would call it "awful, even more pixellated than I expected." Just as songs from the iTunes Store are an anathema for some music lovers, AppleTV may well not be up to your standards.
For most people it is well above "good enough" and there is every likelihood that it will get better as HD media becomes available for it. Mostly it is about convenience, just as the iPod is to music.
BTW, there is an implication of children when evoking The Little Mermaid. I would imagine (not knowing first hand) that children wear out DVDs and can not be trusted to handle the disk or apparatus themselves. With AppleTV your movies will never wear out, and any child that can be trusted with a remote, even if illiterate, can be in charge.

[Thrudheim]

Thanks for the follow-up on the issue of 5.1 surround sound. Appreciate your work!

[mrobertson]

It is my understanding that different computers running iTunes can "feed" the same ATV.
Is the opposite true? Is it possible for one copy of iTunes to feed multiple ATV's? For example a cheap mans video wall.
Just curious.

[Dan Moren]

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It is possible, although it seems unlikely, that the Apple Stores have older HD televisions and the AppleTVs are connected via a composite cable. Further, the store personnel would have to not know to set the resolution. This would require a near "perfect storm" like set of circumstances, but it would certainly explain the reports.

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The display model I saw in the Cambridge Apple Store was definitely using HDMI, which is what piqued my interestI expected it to look much better. So either the HDTV they were using (a Sony of some variety) was really bad, or something weird is going on. I may try to swing by again and get some answers.

[neptune2000]

>>Rip a favorite DVD with HandBrake, for example, and youll wind up with an audio track that contains just the left and right channels.
I have seen a comment from one of the Handbrake developers that claims that the current Handbrake beta now supports 5.1 channel audio, and that a general release should be coming soon.

[jcbsinger]

Yes, it really does, I have also tried connecting Apple TV to my mini which looks fine /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif