Issue date: 3/27/07 Section: Opinion

If you follow tech news at all, you're probably already sick of Apple TV coverage. Apple products inevitably produce a binge of articles, reviews, comparisons and analyses. While overshadowed by the iPhone initially, Apple TV slowly stepped into the spotlight over the course of the last two weeks (with most noting its repeated launch date slippage), finally becoming the story of the day last week. Unlike most Apple products, however, it really was only the story of the day.

Even if you set aside the months of speculation leading up to it and only look post-announcement, the iPhone produced a media tsunami that continued for weeks after its initial introduction. Apple TV, comparatively, has fizzled out after only a two-day frenzy. It's off the agenda, barring some new development or announcement from Apple. But even those two days were too much for some people. Granted, most them seem to be against the Apple media machine generally, but the antipathy toward this product goes beyond the typical ennui from the few who reside outside of the Jobs "reality distortion field." Moreover, the enthusiasm from the average Apple diehard feels like it was somehow sucked out of the room, relegating the usual screams of "OMG amazing" to "it's nice."

Why? Because, as the angst-ridden commenters point out, it doesn't do much. It lets you watch most of what's in your iTunes library on your TV. Without! Wires! Wow! But that's all it really does. You can pull trailers directly from the internet, but you can't access the iTunes store to download content directly. Probably, because as one of my editors on Gizmodo pointed out, they didn't want to include a keyboard so it wouldn't feel like a computer hooked up to your TV, despite the fact that it is, in actuality, an underpowered computer. Without a real keyboard, it's torturous and slow to get anywhere that would require you to type, as I discovered using its on-screen one. I came this close to jamming the tiny, crappy remote into my eye after using it to merely punch in the password for a wireless network. Word of advice: Have a small password if you use a secure network, or you too will want to commit gruesome suicide in front of colleagues and friends.

Did I mention it's $300? And you have to supply your own audio/video cables? And it only works on widescreen TVs with either component or HDMI inputs? Beyond that, and most importantly, it doesn't do anything new or radically alter the market. Apple earns "oohs" and "ahs" for products it claims are revolutionary or exponentially more functional than current ones. Apple TV is neither of those. It's simpler and more aesthetically pleasing than most media streamers out there, but it's not worlds better or different, other than that it moves your iTunes library.

Setting up an Xbox 360 as a Media Center Extender (in this vein, you could think of Apple TV as an "iTunes extender") to perform largely the same function was just as easy in my experience. Content is only streamed from a Media Center PC to the 360, however, while Apple TV "syncs" from one computer, meaning it actually moves content to its 40 GB hard drive, and can stream from up to five other computers. Syncing is thankfully well thought-out and fairly customizable, so you can basically set it any number of ways and have content pushed over automatically as you add new material to your iTunes library.

But, as I said, that's all it does. The Apple slogan "If it's on iTunes, it's on your widescreen TV" is almost parodically literal in describing the product, if somewhat misleading - some music videos I have that play perfectly fine in iTunes wouldn't port over to Apple TV. However, built into the device is the potential for expansion, potential that probably will be exploited in the near future. The USB port on the back is only for "diagnostics and services" for now, but it could be the site of a hard drive extension (since 40 GB isn't much space) or a world of other USB peripherals. It can, and does, connect directly to the internet, though currently you can't control how it does. I have the feeling it won't be used just for trailers and updates for long - the Xbox 360 can download movies directly from the Live Marketplace, so I can't help but think video on demand is coming. Without VOD, it's really a crappy convergence device if you think about it.

Actually, in general, it's a crappy convergence device. It only moves content from iTunes. It doesn't play HD video (of which there is none in the iTunes Store), despite nearly requiring an HDTV. It's far from the convergence dream I laid out in overwrought columns over the last two years (sorry). And there are better value propositions if you really want to move content from your computer to your TV, like the 360, which for only $100 more also plays games, and will soon be an IPTV set-top box. Apple TV is a convenience device, I guess, but only if you have a massive iTunes library and absolutely have to have it on your TV. Otherwise, there are better ways to spend $300 and better products in the pipeline.


Matt Buchanan writes about the Intarwebs every Tuesday and is an opinion overlord for Washington Square News. Piss and moan that he's in Bill Gates' pocket at mbuchanan@nyunews.com.

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