Slew of new features--including movie rentals and HD video--en route to Apple TV

Apple TV's updated functionality provides access to movie rentals and HD content

(Credit: Apple)

Update: Check out three related videos with more info on the forthcoming Apple TV upgrade: Steve Jobs comments during his keynote address; the video guided tour on Apple's Web site; and a summary from CNET's Donald Bell. This post has also been updated since its original publication with additional information.

The Apple TV just got a whole lot more useful.

Steve Jobs unveiled a major feature update to the Apple TV today during his Macworld keynote address in San Francisco that aims to transform the device from a TV-based iTunes media viewer to a more full-featured media-on-demand device. The hardware will remain the same, with the entry-level 40GB model dropping from $300 to $230, but a free software upgrade--available in two weeks--will add the following functionality:

• Direct onscreen ordering: Previously, video content for Apple TV needed to be ordered on a computer (Windows/Mac) and then streamed from that PC's hard drive to the Apple TV. The updated Apple TV will allow direct access to the iTunes Store, so you can buy or rent movies and TV shows directly--no PC intermediary required. (Music can also be purchased, as well.)
• Instant streaming: Unlike the "queue-and-view" method listed above, the updated video functionality is said to allow videos to begin streaming within about 30 seconds.
• Upgraded video and audio quality: We complained loudly about the substandard video quality of existing iTunes video downloads, which were optimized for the small screen of an iPod or iPhone. The new crop of videos are says to be two tiers: DVD and HD quality, with Dolby 5.1 surround sound (instead of the stereo-only soundtracks on earlier content) on the latter.
• Wider selection of videos from all major studios: Past selections were a scattershot grab bag, but Apple has lined up content from every major studio (Disney, Fox, Warner Bros., Paramount, Universal, Sony, Miramax, and Lionsgate, and their respective subsidiaries). Apple is promising more than 1,000 movies, available 30 days after the DVD release.
• Movie rentals: In the past, movies could only be bought on iTunes, at prices around that of DVDs. As of today, iTunes is kicking off movie rentals: $2.99 for catalog (older) movies and $3.99 for new movies, plus a dollar more for the HD versions of each. You have 30 days to start watching a movie, and 24 hours to finish it once you start. In addition to being available on Apple TV, rentals will work on Macs, PCs, and all current iPods and iPhones (though it's unclear if movies rented directly on the Apple TV will be transferrable to any of those other devices).
• More photo options: The updated Apple TV will allow access to online Flickr and .Mac photo galleries. That's in addition to pulling photos from networked computers, as it does now.
• music and TV show purchases: Music and TV shows can be purchased directly on Apple TV, and both will be synced back to the iTunes software running on your computer. (Presumably, they can then be transferred to iPods/iPhones as well.)

Notably, the forthcoming Apple TV upgrade hits three of the five "how to fix Apple TV" suggestions I made back in September. (Just as notable: it appears I was 100 percent wrong when I said that Apple TV couldn't handle surround sound.) Likewise--if effectively implemented--these improvements will also negate many (albeit not all) of the points listed in "the bad" on the existing CNET review of the product.

Still, because there's been no hardware upgrade, some of the other gripes remain. The dearth of composite and S-Video outputs mean the Apple TV will only connect to a newer wide-screen TV. You're still stuck with the tiny Apple remote, which may actually be too oversimplified for some people (you'll need the TV remote--or a universal model--to control the TV's volume, for instance). And the product remains completely iTunes-centric: Barring a hack or some major file transcoding, you won't have access to any other videos on your hard drive.

In the same vein, the fantasies of a supercharged "Apple TV 2.0" never materialized. Those looking for a built-in DVD or Blu-ray drive--or a full-on DVR replacement--will remain disappointed. Face it, guys, it's not going to happen: Apple's trying to upsell you on its own media service, where it's getting a commission on everything you watch or listen to. The company just doesn't have a compelling reason to make it easier for you to access non-Apple content (that's why I think Internet radio won't be added anytime soon, either). Likewise, a DVR would require a partnership with a cable company (via the still-dodgy CableCard technology) or satellite provider--and Apple already seems to have a somewhat strained relationship with AT&T Wireless, its keystone domestic partner in the iPhone venture.

That said, the combination of these imminent Apple TV and iTunes upgrades are a big step forward for moving Apple's media strategy beyond the iPod and into the living room. While we'll reserve final judgment until we get some hands-on time with the upgrade, it seems like "Apple TV Take Two" is very close to what we were all looking for the first time around. At the very least, it offers a serious challenge to the other competitors in this space, including everyone from Microsoft (Xbox Live Marketplace), Netflix, Blockbuster, Amazon Unbox, and upstart Vudu--and that's just for starters.

What do you think? Is Apple TV back from the dead, or are you looking for even more?

[niteflyer415]

Apple TV not there yet...

I'm still looking for an Apple Tivo. Renting movies from cable, netflix or online is <br />almost a no brainer - especially when you already have a HD system. Got <br />anything else Steve?

[Renegade Knight]

True That...

A DVR is mandatory. On Demand Option Nice if reasonably priced. Both are optimal if you are going to be a player.<br /><br />Without a DVR though, consider it a shooting yourself in the foot.

[sequoiadean]

I like it - if only I could use it now...

I think it looks pretty slick. If I wasn't limited by the number of inputs in my A/V receiver (two component, no hdmi), I'd be tempted to buy this now. But I really need to upgrade my receiver first, as I already have a DirecTV HR20 HDDVR and and XBOX360 using up all my HD inputs.<br /><br />I'd love this to view my photos on my HDTV, and the interface on the HR20 and 360 are REALLY bad - virtually unusuable. Being able to rent HD movies makes it that much better!

[Big Tuna Too]

Close, but no thanks

It's a good start but $5 for a 30 day old HD rental? I'll stick with Netflix until the prices drop.

[Scott Gardener]

Wha-whoo! I'm happy!

Gripe and kavetch all you want about how "not there" it is, but for me, this is fantastic news! I've already got one, and I've been using it. This fixes my main gripe about iTunes videos in general--the lack of high def and surround sound audio. It also suddenly gives meaning and purpose for the HDMI connector in the back. (At least, it will in about two weeks.) And, for those of us with crappy cable companies like Charter, who don't offer on-demand movies in my area, it gives us a way of renting movies without having to drive over to the rental store, so my wife and I can get back to the 21st century.

[lgoodwi1]

Adopt or Wait and See

All of the announcements today surrounding new features for Apple TV are welcomed and should go a long way toward's widening the market for Apple TV. However, with recent set top box announcements that were made at CES, VUDU and other devices capable of movie downloads, should we wait and see how things unfold or take the plunge? It doesn't hurt that the price has now been lowered to $230.

[Sugith]

So glad Apple's upgrading an existing product

Love it! (Though movie rentals may not work in Canada--we can't buy movies <br />yet, either!)<br /><br />However, I'm so glad Apple chose to upgrade my AppleTV to new functionality <br />instead of coming up with a new box that did this.

[brianrwallace]

Will HD movies be available for purchase?

This may be a stupid question, but will the HD movies be available for purchase as well as rental? I will probably bypass Blu Ray and HD DVD completely if they are.

[gobucats]

Apple TV Gets Better

I'm excited, especially since I've had an Apple TV for awhile - and already loved it (on of the few I guess). I read on the Apple site that there would be a software upgrade for existing owners - certainly a welcome development.

[mkraftjr]

Nice Improvements but 2 Gripes

I was VERY excited about the apple tv 2 until I read some more on apple's <br />website. 2 major shortcomings- "regular" DVD quality rentals are in stereo only, <br />Dolby 5.1 is for HD movies only. Second, and more importantly to me, the HD <br />movies are 720p. Both blu-ray and hd-dvd are 1080p. Having a 1080p <br />television I would like to see the same resolution as BR/HD discs. I don't <br />understand either of these shortcomings.

[BCF1968]

I understand why

Because a 720P download is going to be 6 GB so a 1080P download would be 12 GB. That's nearly 3 hours to download a 1080P movie at 10 Mbps connection. How mnay people have that? 5%. Not to mention ONE movie takes up 12 GB. So that's 13 whole movies on your 160 GB AppleTV? Assuming you have nothing else on there.

[mkraftjr]

Gripes, updated

Yeah, after further thinking I can live with the 720p. I can understand the bandwith issues certainly. I still don't understand the lack of 5.1 audio for non-hd movies. That seems like a no-brainer. If the ATV is capable of putting out a 5.1 signal for HD then there is no reason it couldn't for older titles.

[gconnery]

So how about pay radio like Pandora?

... or last.fm or Rhapsody? I'd pay 3$ a month for Pandora access on the Apple TV. And because there's money involved, Apple could take a cut if it wanted. Personally I'm not sure why internet radio isn't similar to podcast support... since apple doesn't host the streams anyway, just the index, why would they not support even free internet radio?

[alanpgh]

John Falcone:One line of your article is incorrect

John: I don't post much on these blogs, but the following is not correct; from <br />your article:<br />"Barring a hack or some major file transcoding, you won't have access to any <br />other videos on your hard drive."<br />I've had an Apple TV for a long time. I do have access to videos on my hard <br />drive. I simply specify folders in my iTunes Library.<br />Today's announcments really improve what has been a great product for me; <br />music, videos, photos, and especially the improved access to audio and video <br />(including HD) podcasts.

[jpfalcone]

which video formats

@ alanpgh: Indeed, Apple TV should be able to access most any video that's already available in iTunes. But many users have a lot of video files in other formats (AVI, WMV, DivX, Xvid, MPEG) that they'd also like to stream to the Apple TV--and in the past, that required transcoding to an iTunes-friendly video format first. We'll be sure to retest the functionality as soon as we get the new software upgrade (along with the latest version of iTunes).

[Azzuro10]

Well...now its compelling (almost)

Like Falcone sais, they are almost 100% there in making this really attractive to everyone. I only have 1 gripe and that is concerning DVD quality with stereo output. Why didn't they include dolby digital on DVD quality? To be honest, I can understand why they did only 720p (and not 1080p) for HD - it will take too long to download and to be honest, there is no way the media companies would agree to this because they want you to pay through the nose for the Blu Ray discs. Still, plug 720p into an upscaling amp to 1080p and it will still look super.<br /><br />So I know that it will take 30sec to start watching DVD quality....so how long will it take to start watching HD with Dolby? That is something I need to figure out before I step up to the plate. <br /><br />All that aside, I think a company has finally been able to come up with a reasonable compromise for consumers and with media companies. Renting DVD quality for a new release for $3.99 aint bad and will be very convenient for me as I couldn't be bothered going to the video store and remind myself to bring the damn thing back....and hope that they have the movie on stock - a real pain. So yes, I am likely to buy this product pending 3rd party reviews. Well done Apple.

[lee_robins]

No Thanks, I will wait for netflix

The movie rental price is too high. Older movies should be a lot less. There should be an all you can eat, monthly fee. They should rent the TV shows, why buy? They need to think about who would be using this service.

[jpage4500]

Almost got me...

I think the new UI of the AppleTV looks great! But, I'm not interested in renting movies with this device at all. I can already rent many new DVD releases through RedBox for $1 or anywhere else and not have to wait 30 days after they're released!<br /><br />Don't most people already have Pay-Per-View anyway on their cable or sat boxes? My DirecTV DVR can already record a HD-PPV movie and let me watch it when I want.<br /><br />No, my sole interest in AppleTV is being able to access all of my movies &#38; TV shows through 1 interface. So, what I'm still waiting to hear is if there's any better support for video formats with the upgrade. Sorry Apple, but if you can't let me view my .avi and .vob files I'll have to take a pass and hold my breath that the Archos TV+ is better.

[bigmc6000]

Actually no, most people don't

The overwhelming majority of Americans don't have cable/dish boxes capable of PPV services. I'm actually quite surprised that the DirecTV DVR will let you record the PPV - are you assuming it works or have you actually done it? (I have one but have never tried it). I know for a fact that cable boxes will not allow you to record the movie you just bought. And honestly, I'm tired about hearing about RedBox - that is not the competition for this product and never will be. Besides, if it was the end-all-be-all of movie rental models Blockbuster and Netflix would have gone out of business a LONG time ago. As for the PPV issue - no one else is going to have the catalog that Apple has. With DirecTV you get about 20-25 movies and with cable you get more but my HD DVR didn't have HD PPV movies so it was pointless. And just FYI - the 30 days thing - it applies to cable and DirecTV as well so that's not even remotely surprising at all.

[jmackowi]

What's so special

Jobs introduced this like it was the greatest things since sliced bread. Xbox 360 does most of this already (you can even sign up for Vongo through there and have an all you can eat), bu MS has done a **** poor job of promoting all the possibilities outside of gaming.

[kyfan!]

Still Inferior

As already noted, Apple TV is still inferior to the Xbox 360. By combining an Xbox with Vista Media Center you even have a fully functional DVR with a fantastic user interface. You can also stream live tv so you're not constrained to put your TV where the cable outlet is. The only negative is the Xbox is fairly loud, but a decent sound system will easily overcome that.

[Scott Gardener]

Trying to update my product review from a 6 to a 9

I'm trying to post an update to my review of Apple TV, but for some reason, I can't seem to get it posted on the product reviews. But, until either my connection or the site itself behaves, I don't want to loose some good typing. So, here's my comments:<br /><br />-----<br />Summary: substantially improved usefulness overnight!<br /><br />Too bad I can't change my number rating, because if the updates go as planned, my rating of Apple TV could jump from a 6 to a 9. On-demand rental online through a major vendor with up-to-date titles is long overdue. I know, Netflix and MovieLink already offer similar services. But, neither offer high definition, and both have limited "last six feet" ability to get online video onto the big screen. X-Box live also offers movie rentals through the X-Box 360, and Sony promises to offer soon similar services through the PS3, but the former is on a device with it's own special kind of permanent hardware failure, and the latter is still waiting. Suddenly, the HDMI connector makes a lot more sense.<br /><br />Apple TV follows in the footsteps of devices like the Playstation 3, in that a year later, those of us who already own one can wake up one morning with a better device without having to spend an extra dime. It's a welcome reversal of the overall industry trend (of which both Apple and Sony have essentially openly admitted) of products designed to be replaced. I'm used to software updates to fix problems, like firmware updates to make DVD writers able to handle higher speed discs. But, having a device download an update that adds extra features--that's worth extra kudos.<br /><br />As a final note, the $80 price drop makes this an even better bargain for those of you who don't already have one. Most of my negative comments will be obsolete by the end of the month, and when the update comes out, this doohickey will in my book probably go from a "good" to an "excellent."<br /><br />I say "probably" because I haven't actually gotten the update yet, and I have to reserve judgement until issues like stability or roll-out delays do or don't come up. My advice to anyone interested in Apple TV would be to wait until the update is delivered and see how we early adopters are doing. By early February, if all goes well, you can give Blockbuster your last farewell and shave a few bucks a month off your cable bill as well.

[sadmactoday]

Actually, HD is NOT available through ITMS

Sadly, Apple has not added the HD content to their iTunes music store. I own <br />3 mac mini's that I use as music / video servers. They drive 1080P screens. I <br />was really excited when I heard HD rentals were coming out. Now, I am <br />disappointed again.

[DallasDom]

Just installed Apple TV and HD is fabulous!!

Eureka!! Last night we had a remarkable evening experience in HD Video Geek-dom! <br />My wife and I were able to watch the HD version of the recent release, "the Brave One", starring Jodie Foster, thru our smoking Cool AppleTV in our Home Theatre. The DolbyDigital 5.1 sound was fabulous while the video was excellent - even at 1080i resolution (the limit of my SharpVision projector on a 110" screen. It was sheer HT bliss. <br />Having an 8,000 watt setup (via Sunfire TheatreGrand IV thru CinePro Amps thru B&#38;W 803s as well as a Sunfire Signature powered Sub) afforded us an ample mega sound experience to match the great movie experience.<br />In sum, BUY THIS UNIT as soon as you can. Simplicity begets an awesome experience in short order! Isn't that always what one can expect from Apple of late? and for only $400 (w the 160GB HDD) to boot.<br /><br />Background:<br />After spending a couple (tens) of free hours over the last 2 weekends I was successful in deploying my brand new AppleTV into our newly completed Home Theater (HT). The short story is that this product is Amazing! A marvel of miniaturization, the Apple TV has proven to be the #1 most nearly painless install within my HT Stack. <br /><br />All that I had to I wrestle with was deploying my WAP thru Router thru Switch to out Cable modem ...and the ensuing nightmare to get the IP addressing correct and subnets collision free - Whew! Many attempts and some good coaching from my Son (the master of all things Internet as an EE, like me, who was weaned on hacking, I mean experimenting, and Home PC assembly and integration over his entire life) resulted in a clean high speed punched down connection over a really long Cat5e cable to the Home Theater. Once stable, I was quickly able to connect with the iTunes website and Voila!, we had access to tons of movies!<br /><br />FUTURES: We have been searching out a full blown Media Center with Home Automation for over a year. Several good solutions exist, requiring separate boxes for the automation aspect, but given the innovations towards dedicated unified solutions, I have avoided a PC or Mac based solution, so far, opting to do this in stages. My next step is to acquire the new Time Capsule and utilize the added capacity of a 1TeraByte HDD plus 802.11n wireless (248Mbps data rate) so that we can approach the surreal end-goal of ripping MY DVDs, both regular, HD and BluRay onto my drive for my personal collection. Oh yeah I'll then want to be able to switch over to check the outside cameras, pool equipment status, front doorbell camera/button, alter internal HVAC eqpt to modify room temperature and lots more fun stuff...all from the control (while viewing all this) on my BlackBerry or iPhone. I just need more weekends!<br /><br />PROBLEMS: The only real negative, so far, is that this 1st movie took over 20 minutes to begin playing. When I selected the appropriate movie and clicked download, it showed us a typical blue progress bar but hung at 0% for over 5 minutes. I then just switched over my Sunfire TGrand and watched some CSI Miami on DishNet, while stopping back ever 5 minutes or so. At slightly over "5% loaded" we were given the option to play the Movie and we were off to the races! I will try again ASAP and see if this was simply due to some auto-updating that took place preliminary to the 1st viewing event. More to come... Dom