Nickname: Jason

Review: If you think iTV competes with Blu-ray and HD-DVD, then you don't have the vision Apple has.

Date reviewed: Nov 15, 2006 7:20 AM

Nickname: A. Salgia

Review: Apple has an uphill battle. They will have to compete with DVD, DVD-HD (and Blu-ray), cable and satellite DVR. I don't see how Apple will be able to compete with these very established media. I think that Apple's legacy will always be in computing and audio iPod. Entering the living room is extremely competitive. The stock price is surrounded by a lot of hype and speculating on this newest iTV scheme. Consumers want entertainment to be easy and inexpensive. When you complicate it with Wi-Fi, and expensive, complicated equipment, you tend to lose the consumer.

Date reviewed: Sep 20, 2006 12:27 PM

Nickname: wasgeek

Review: I'm not sure how this is different than the eyeHome product from Elgato, other than wireless, and I assume it will stream Apples protected formats for video and music.

Date reviewed: Sep 15, 2006 9:42 PM

Nickname: solomonrex

Review: I think a lot of people are just whiffing on this. It's a DVD replacement. HD won't be the focus, because most customers aren't using HD. But it will be scaled up via technology before Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are. Really, it's not just 802.11n or whatever. Soon enough, Wi-Max and other widescale wireless will be able to carry this stuff, and Apple won't need Comcast. This might be how Intel gets WiMax moving -- a couple of years down the road. Together with a WiMax phone system, it would be a really compelling play. As for the box itself, it's fantastic even without HD. Really, an Apple designed Tivo/DVD-On-Demand player? How can this miss? This is the only thing keeping me from buying Lost on iTunes, and I'm sure there's about a million other techies like me not wanting to watch stuff on the laptop, but not needing another box set in my entertainment center.

Date reviewed: Sep 15, 2006 3:07 PM

Nickname: knobsturner

Review: I think that's the point! Media center is quite usable for technology writers, geeks and nerds. I can show anyone, aged 6 and up how to use an iPod in 1 minute. TV is way too hard right now-- even the standard way of doing it with 5 40-button remotes. Apple will make it into a 6-button affair. Cable is over. Just pay $40 for Internet, and buy each and every program you want to watch you will save money. It will take a few years for all of this to settle out, though.

Date reviewed: Sep 15, 2006 1:51 PM

Nickname: luis

Review: As for Apple not inventing anything-- They invented "Firewire" [a.k.a. IEEE1394, iLink]

Date reviewed: Sep 14, 2006 11:58 PM

Nickname: born 2 darkness

Review: exactly... apple does what others cannot

Date reviewed: Sep 14, 2006 8:17 PM

Nickname: lantzn

Review: Years ago I remember reading something about wireless Firewire. It sounded very fast, I wonder whatever happened to that idea? It would prevent WiFi interference problems.

Date reviewed: Sep 14, 2006 7:47 PM

Nickname: sea_ferry

Review: I'm guessing this will be a killer product, but like Tivo, it will take a while for non-techies to get the idea. What hasn't Apple revealed so far about iTV's features? 802.11n seems a given, and so does HD capability. What else would I like to see? An APi so other developers can add functionality. And how about a deal with Dish to connect to the USB 2.0 port on Dish's HD receivers to allow (DRM-protected, of course) computer storage and local network service? Will Apple provide its own PVR solution? I may have to attend MacWorld Expo in January!

Date reviewed: Sep 14, 2006 6:26 PM

Nickname: TV-PC_User

Review: I've had MediaCenterEdition running on my "TV-PC" in my living room since last December. It is the primary vehicle for bringing video content to my LCD TV/monitor; my Creative sound card has 5.1 cables that connect directly to my 7.1 home theater (tho in 5.1) for audio. I've bridged the gap and have war wounds to show for it. The biggest problems are: storage and DigitalRightsManagement (DRM). iTV will have the same problems, fair use being the biggest. iTV will offer its own content for viewing. Suppose you want to take that content on the road or view it on another TV or PC? Forget it. MCE limits what you can record to your system, and limits what of such content you can burn to DVD. So will iTV. 3d-party software (and LINUX) helps but workarounds do not always work and are time-consuming. Unless iTV will let you record the TV you want and store it for later viewing ANYWHERE else the concept of digital TV, iTV included -- will remain a concept still one-generation behind VHS.

Date reviewed: Sep 14, 2006 5:45 PM