New ‘Apple TV’ Launched – No Storage, Streaming Rentals Only
Written by John Thompson on September 1, 2010 · Filed under Tech
There is that one more thing we were looking for! Apple have just announced their brand new Apple TV at their September event. So what is it packing? Quite a lot, actually!
It’s Smaller!
The new Apple TV is a quarter of the size that the original model was, which means it’s absolutely tiny. Around the back of the Apple TV, things are super simple, with just a power adaptor, HDMI connection, Ethernet, and Wi-Fi, too.
Aesthetically, the box looks great, with a black case and not much to speak of round the rear. For people looking for simplicity, you can’t really beat this!
You Rent Everything
Is this a good thing, or a bad thing? I haven’t figured it out yet, but every single piece of content on the Apple TV is obtained via rentals from the iTunes store. Now, you can stream content over from your computer too, which is a plus, but it doesn’t appear like this tiny box has much local storage to speak of.
For first run HD movie rentals, it costs $4.99, and for TV show rentals, you pay just 99 cents in the USA. Fingers crossed, we have similar deals in the UK too, as it looks like a pretty good deal.
Netflix and YouTube
For customers on the other side of the USA, Netflix compatibility is a huge bonus, and will no doubt prove popular. Hopefully, we’ll have a similar service such as LoveFilm arriving in the UK, although I think there may be more chance of Netflix arriving here before that does!
User Interface
The user interface of the new Apple TV is really simple, with a list of your content appearing in a horizontal list. This is where you’ll find your movies, TV shows, online rental services and computers that are on your network as well.
This is certainly news for people who have struggled getting content from their computer to their TV before, and this tiny box would barely be noticed underneath your set.
Price and Availability
The previous generation of the Apple TV was $299, which was pretty steep for the device, and although the new one is priced at $99 in the States, they want £99 here for it too! Sorry, they just lost a customer.
The Verdict
Well it appear that Apple TV remains and doesn’t get renamed to iTV, perhaps the other ITV brand put them off? The Apple TV looks poised to take on living rooms all over the USA, with built in Netflix and YouTube, but can it work as a UK product? I’d have no hesitation in buying it if I could have BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4OD and the rest of our wonderful TV services on there, but as things stand, it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.
What about film rentals? We have the iTunes movie store, but without Netflix in the UK and no LoveFilm on the box, we may be a little stuck for options. What do you think? Can the Apple TV work in the UK market? Let us know in the comments below.
The new Apple TV is available in 4 weeks, and you’ll be able to pre-order it from today on the UK Apple store.
Comments - share your opinion or ask a question...
No Apple TV can not work in the UK market for the simple reason that it will cost €119, which equates to $152 at the moment. So not only is it over 50% more expensive over here, you don’t get legitimate access to the huge library of US TV shows from the iTunes store, for obvious reasons. We just have the crap we put up with over here on the BBC and ITV. You also don’t get access to NetFlix, which is a key selling point behind the thing. Steve Jobs even said in the presentation that it is the best implementation of NetFlix anywhere.
Just seen that it is £99 from the UK store. Still expensive in comparison.
What happens to current Apple Tv owners/users? Will films no longer be for sale? What about prior purchases?
I agree – the device does a lot less for UK users and costs considerably more here than in the US. I think someone at Apple has dropped the ball here. I would not expect it to do well in the UK market until Apple take into account what their UK customers want (the point about iPlayer etc is a good one). As a UK customer I’d not be willing to spend £99 on this device as it stands.
I for one am UK based and i’m truly excited about it.
OK so maybe we’re being ripped off a little on the price … but £99 is still a fair price for what the device does.
Streaming direct from your iTunes library to your TV … genius!
Nah, it is totally unfair.
they needed to remove at least £10, to pretend it is not that expensive.
add TV shows, (for me was the really selling point, I’m tired to download torrent)
and replace netflix with Lovefilm.
THEN, I would buy straight away.