Apple TV

I'm quite the fan of Apple, but sometimes I just don't understand what they are doing! Take the Apple TV for instance. This machine costs between $300 and $400, yet it doesn't do anything that is amazing! Let's look at what it can do.

1. Movies - You can download movies from iTunes and watch them on your TV instead of your computer. First, why would I ever download a movie from iTunes instead of buying the DVD? With a DVD, I have a hard copy of the movie; I can loan it to friends and family; and it looks good on a shelf. With a downloaded movie, I run the risk of losing the movie should my computer die; I can't loan it to friends; and without something like Apple TV, I can't watch it on my TV! What part of this makes any sense? Sure, the DVD's cost a few dollars more than the downloads, but how many movies would you have to download to make up the difference in cost? A lot. And after you bought 'a lot' of movies, you still couldn't loan them to friends!

2. TV shows - You can also download TV shows from iTunes and watch them on Apple TV. The same problem comes up as with downloading movies. Why not buy the collections on DVD? There's no reason not to! You're not saving money or time by downloading the shows.

3. YouTube - With Apple TV, you can watch horrible quality videos on your high definition television!

4. Music - If you download a lot of music from iTunes, you can listen to your playlists in your family room. I don't like downloading music from iTunes because buying the physical album is far superior in every way. The only reason I download music is if I want to have a single song, which I've done a few times. Or, you can copy your real CD's to your computer and listen to them on your Apple TV, which wouldn't be too bad for parties since you could have a huge playlist. This, so far, is the only viable reason to owning an Apple TV, but it's not a great one. You can go to RadioShack or similar store and get a cord that connects your Mac to your surround sound in your living room. Problem solved. Of course, if you have an iMac instead of a MacBook, it's not so easy. But does spending $300-$400 solve the problem, when you can spend about $1000 and get a MacBook? It's quite a bit more than an Apple TV, but at this point, Apple TV is just a waste of money.

5. Photos - You can also look at your photos on your TV.


Overall, I see nothing at all that makes me want to spend at least $300 to enhance my digital life. Downloading movies and tv shows from iTunes doesn't make sense to begin with. Watching YouTube on my television would be a waste of time. Since when is YouTube the center of someone's life? The videos on YT are generally only a few minutes long. There is nothing about the Apple TV that justifies spending so much money. Each of its features are worthless, pointless, or so lame that I can't help but feel that this device is just some marketing test by Apple to see how many people will buy its superfluous products.

*Disclaimer: I like Apple. They are a company that has a lot of quality in their products. The Apple TV just seems like a way to get Apple fanboys to buy more stuff.