Small White Car
Apr 25, 01:24 PM
...and you think most people who buy a MBP won't swap out the drive for a 7200RPM drive or an SSD and max out their memory?
London With DJ Ali Love,
Star Style - DJ Ali Love
Star Style - DJ Ali Love
DJ Ali Love zusammen und
Mischa Barton and DJ Ali Love
a new man, DJ Ali Love.
ALI LOVE
by DJ Ali Love.
Love That Girl Tatiana Ali
new single from Ali Love#39;s
DJ Aligator - Kiss My B-Ass
break-up with DJ Ali Love,
DJ Ali Love, Barton bumped
Save me djali tet dhejoin
DJ Ali B returns to BBC 6
Mischa Barton amp; DJ Ali Love
boyfriend DJ Ali Love as
Dj Aligator - Calling You
BRLawyer
Sep 9, 11:48 AM
Well, since I have to suffer from your rabid fanboyishness as well (and it seems that I'm not the only one), then surely I can say something? I mean, it's not like your posts are invisible or something. Besides, if you post public messages on a public web-forum, do you REALLY have any grounds to complain if someone replies to your post?
Yes, I do, when such replies tell of personal offenses and nothing else...just read the rules of the forum. I was writing to Mr. Shaw, bashing PCs and praising Macs...nothing else.
The only remarks that may be close to "offenses" occur exactly when I have to reply to your stressed words that show a really angry and stupid degree of overreaction...relax, this is just a computer forum, and a MAC one for that matter.
Ah yeah, from the Apple Suisse website:
Le Mac le plus rapide jamais conçu.
Depuis l'annonce de la transition vers les nouveaux processeurs Intel, vous rêvez certainement d'un ordinateur de bureau professionnel offrant des performances hors pair.
Yes, I do, when such replies tell of personal offenses and nothing else...just read the rules of the forum. I was writing to Mr. Shaw, bashing PCs and praising Macs...nothing else.
The only remarks that may be close to "offenses" occur exactly when I have to reply to your stressed words that show a really angry and stupid degree of overreaction...relax, this is just a computer forum, and a MAC one for that matter.
Ah yeah, from the Apple Suisse website:
Le Mac le plus rapide jamais conçu.
Depuis l'annonce de la transition vers les nouveaux processeurs Intel, vous rêvez certainement d'un ordinateur de bureau professionnel offrant des performances hors pair.
jeff1977
Mar 29, 02:24 PM
Just FYI...
File size wouldn't affect performance at all, as long as you're copying between locations on the same drive. The "file" that you see in the GUI is actually a link to a location on disk where your data is; all the OS has to move is the link, which is very tiny.
Thanks for clarifying that for me! I don't like doing things that I'm not sure about. As I said, my being unsure stemmed from windows that would sometimes come up in older versions of Photoshop, when closing, that mentioned clipboard sizes being too large. Or something along those lines. Again, thanks.
File size wouldn't affect performance at all, as long as you're copying between locations on the same drive. The "file" that you see in the GUI is actually a link to a location on disk where your data is; all the OS has to move is the link, which is very tiny.
Thanks for clarifying that for me! I don't like doing things that I'm not sure about. As I said, my being unsure stemmed from windows that would sometimes come up in older versions of Photoshop, when closing, that mentioned clipboard sizes being too large. Or something along those lines. Again, thanks.
dakwar
Apr 19, 01:32 PM
lol yep. there's some evidence of it below :p
I should be more obvious with my sarcasms. People take written ***** too seriously.
I should be more obvious with my sarcasms. People take written ***** too seriously.
vitaboy
Aug 24, 05:43 PM
This is really little more than a bookkeeping trick. The books will now report that Apple bought something for $100 million, something they thought they already owned. It's still the same dollar figure, no matter where the accountants put it in the books. The way I understand it, in theory at least, Apple could generate some revenue from this "asset" if Creative obtains more licenses. I'll believe it when I see it. I'm betting we never do see it.
It may be a bookkeeping trick, but it's considered part of Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures (GAAP). The IRS and the SEC certainly doesn't have problem with it and ammorization is actually encouraged. Apple used the same method to record the $250 million cash investment in flash memory plants last year, as well as the $400 million it is setting aside for the new Cupertino campus. Neither of those big cash outlays really affected their profit recording.
The Microsoft Zune possibilities are interesting. We haven't seen the Zune interface yet, but you can be sure Creative is going to be taking a good, hard look at the device when it finally surfaces (sometime during this decade, almost without a doubt). We'll just have to wait and see. We'll also have to wait and see if Creative dumps their DMP business. If any of these events occur, I'm prepared to change my opinion about this settlement.
Well, despite my strong opinions, I have to again agree with you that only time will tell who was the real winner here.
My predictions are
1) Microsoft gets hit with a patent infringement lawsuit and settles rather quickly and
2) Creative exits the player business because it will be squeezed by the iPod and Zune from above, and Sandisk and iRiver from below. The field will just be too crowded with Zune. Because no matter how much money Zune will lose in the first few years, Microsoft will no doubt keep it afloat rather than cede defeat in this space. That might help Zune to take away some share away from the iPod eventually, but not before Zune eats the bulk of Creative's and Sandisk's share first. Creative has to be thinking about whether continuing to pour R&D and marketing into players is worth it with Microsoft competing directly against them. My guess it they'll bail as soon as they are able.
But again, only time will tell. :)
It may be a bookkeeping trick, but it's considered part of Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures (GAAP). The IRS and the SEC certainly doesn't have problem with it and ammorization is actually encouraged. Apple used the same method to record the $250 million cash investment in flash memory plants last year, as well as the $400 million it is setting aside for the new Cupertino campus. Neither of those big cash outlays really affected their profit recording.
The Microsoft Zune possibilities are interesting. We haven't seen the Zune interface yet, but you can be sure Creative is going to be taking a good, hard look at the device when it finally surfaces (sometime during this decade, almost without a doubt). We'll just have to wait and see. We'll also have to wait and see if Creative dumps their DMP business. If any of these events occur, I'm prepared to change my opinion about this settlement.
Well, despite my strong opinions, I have to again agree with you that only time will tell who was the real winner here.
My predictions are
1) Microsoft gets hit with a patent infringement lawsuit and settles rather quickly and
2) Creative exits the player business because it will be squeezed by the iPod and Zune from above, and Sandisk and iRiver from below. The field will just be too crowded with Zune. Because no matter how much money Zune will lose in the first few years, Microsoft will no doubt keep it afloat rather than cede defeat in this space. That might help Zune to take away some share away from the iPod eventually, but not before Zune eats the bulk of Creative's and Sandisk's share first. Creative has to be thinking about whether continuing to pour R&D and marketing into players is worth it with Microsoft competing directly against them. My guess it they'll bail as soon as they are able.
But again, only time will tell. :)
mduser63
Sep 4, 07:01 PM
I want an iTunes Movie Store, but to me it would be a lot better if you had the choice between a $9.99 download and a $2 or $3 rental that expired after a couple days. I honestly don't buy very many movies at all, because I rarely watch a movie twice. I do like to rent them though, and anything that made that more convenient would be great.
Popeye206
Apr 22, 08:58 AM
How about this:
When you are born, you are given, in effect a serial number. which is yours as a human being for life.
When you buy any digital media, this is linked to our number for life.
This means for as long as you live, and whatever device you buy, you can access this media always.
So I buy and iPad and I pay for the "RIGHTS" to watch/own a movie.
I have paid my money and now that movie is mine to watch any time in the future on whatever device I buy in the future.
Wow... I want what you're drinking! :p
BTW... sort of what you described, minus the tattoo on your forehead, is called an iTunes account with a cloud service. :rolleyes:
When you are born, you are given, in effect a serial number. which is yours as a human being for life.
When you buy any digital media, this is linked to our number for life.
This means for as long as you live, and whatever device you buy, you can access this media always.
So I buy and iPad and I pay for the "RIGHTS" to watch/own a movie.
I have paid my money and now that movie is mine to watch any time in the future on whatever device I buy in the future.
Wow... I want what you're drinking! :p
BTW... sort of what you described, minus the tattoo on your forehead, is called an iTunes account with a cloud service. :rolleyes:
cube
Mar 30, 01:21 PM
Apple popularized the term "App" instead of "Application" (ugh!).
How come they don't have a trademark on the word "App"? (That would solve the problem.)
How come they don't have a trademark on the word "App"? (That would solve the problem.)
Nomadski
Apr 17, 05:31 PM
Sonos is far from dead, been alive and kicking in my house since and will do so far beyond whenever AppleTV5 gets discontinued I'm sure... The market will always have a space for alternatives to Apple, especially when something as hated (by a large number of people) as iTunes is integral to the system. There is nothing more closed and proprietary than Apples system, and save for a couple of lovely products Ive bought into (macbook and iphone) its something I refuse to invest any further in. Sonos delivers without giving any bellyaches or limitations that require workarounds, and their service has just got more expansive with time without cutting any hardware out of the loop, even that released in 2005 - With Apple you'd be lucky for something release 2 years ago to be fully supported with latest features.
And Magnus, I dont have to muck about with any router settings like channels because it gets plugged in and works, I dont NEED to know much about networking because it just works. It doesnt share ANY bandwidth with my wireless network so I have no idea why your banging on about your router. Never experienced interference / breakup in sound / loss of sync whatever else is happening on my network, because its totally independant, and the system is designed to avoid precisely the crappy problems products like AppleTV can easily suffer from. A quick google tells me its NOT the same on AppleTV, lots of forum posts talking about echoes and out of sync music distribution so you can stick that one where the sun dont shine.
Also my "blind test" with lossless vs lossy very clearly showed a difference in sound quality, hence why I dont touch iTunes catalogue of music with a bargepole. You seem to know that the speaker setup make a massive difference to sound (something I have to explain to people everyday regarding quality of headphones vs choice of mp3 player, in that the latter makes FA difference in comparison to the former) so Im surprised you take such little stock in lossless - a better sound system will only exemplify the difference in quality between FLAC (or ALAC) and the highest bitrate MP3.
BTW you can play FLAC on iPhone...sounds lovely, although I agree capacity is an issue at the moment.
"Apple TV 1 came with 120GB and 320GB drives and can use any 2.5 drive. It can also use any external USB2 drive (including a 3TB drive) once hacked"
Great. We are talking about AppleTV2, the latest and greatest. They took it out. You have no hard drive. To do all the stuff you go on about you need XBMC running, presumably on a PC or Mac? Or are you also using workarounds on the Apple hardware to make it as useful as the popcorn is out of the box? Couldnt be bothered myself with all the hassle, ive been using my PH for 4 years with all the functionality you have had for the last few months after mucking about with it. I would bet the majority of the great unwashed masses who bought AppleTV 2 don't use XBMC on it, so stop even comparing your modified unit with the masses experience with it.
How is that? You kept touting it doesn't need a networked PC and now you're touting that it can work with one It doesnt NEED to use a pc, but it CAN if I WANT it to. It doesnt NEED a NAS but it CAN if I want it to. It doesnt have to use internet streaming services like Napster or spotify or Last.FM but it can if I want it to. It doesnt NEED iTunes but it CAN use it if I wanted to use iTunes. I dont HAVE to use FLAC, I can use ALAC if I want. Its called choice, out of the box, zero configuration.
My experience of itunes purely with my one IOS device (iPhone) tells me you can go ahead with this BS system, but I for one much prefer having something which offers alternatives as well as crappy iTunes.
And for one who calls BS on audiophile equipment, you certainly have invested a lot into that BS. Your BS system is quite impressive, shame you skimped on the delivery system.
Re the video, if you cant tell the difference between 1080P vs 720P even on a 42" (Panasonic plasma here too) then you need your eyes testing. My wife has bad eyesight and even she sees the difference between 1080P vs 720P, whereas she just thinks 720P looks "brighter" than standard def...
But whatever, keep on rolling, im still far happier ive got the best multi room music delivery system money can buy. And a separate video player which streams and stores anything without BS conversion / tweaks.
And Magnus, I dont have to muck about with any router settings like channels because it gets plugged in and works, I dont NEED to know much about networking because it just works. It doesnt share ANY bandwidth with my wireless network so I have no idea why your banging on about your router. Never experienced interference / breakup in sound / loss of sync whatever else is happening on my network, because its totally independant, and the system is designed to avoid precisely the crappy problems products like AppleTV can easily suffer from. A quick google tells me its NOT the same on AppleTV, lots of forum posts talking about echoes and out of sync music distribution so you can stick that one where the sun dont shine.
Also my "blind test" with lossless vs lossy very clearly showed a difference in sound quality, hence why I dont touch iTunes catalogue of music with a bargepole. You seem to know that the speaker setup make a massive difference to sound (something I have to explain to people everyday regarding quality of headphones vs choice of mp3 player, in that the latter makes FA difference in comparison to the former) so Im surprised you take such little stock in lossless - a better sound system will only exemplify the difference in quality between FLAC (or ALAC) and the highest bitrate MP3.
BTW you can play FLAC on iPhone...sounds lovely, although I agree capacity is an issue at the moment.
"Apple TV 1 came with 120GB and 320GB drives and can use any 2.5 drive. It can also use any external USB2 drive (including a 3TB drive) once hacked"
Great. We are talking about AppleTV2, the latest and greatest. They took it out. You have no hard drive. To do all the stuff you go on about you need XBMC running, presumably on a PC or Mac? Or are you also using workarounds on the Apple hardware to make it as useful as the popcorn is out of the box? Couldnt be bothered myself with all the hassle, ive been using my PH for 4 years with all the functionality you have had for the last few months after mucking about with it. I would bet the majority of the great unwashed masses who bought AppleTV 2 don't use XBMC on it, so stop even comparing your modified unit with the masses experience with it.
How is that? You kept touting it doesn't need a networked PC and now you're touting that it can work with one It doesnt NEED to use a pc, but it CAN if I WANT it to. It doesnt NEED a NAS but it CAN if I want it to. It doesnt have to use internet streaming services like Napster or spotify or Last.FM but it can if I want it to. It doesnt NEED iTunes but it CAN use it if I wanted to use iTunes. I dont HAVE to use FLAC, I can use ALAC if I want. Its called choice, out of the box, zero configuration.
My experience of itunes purely with my one IOS device (iPhone) tells me you can go ahead with this BS system, but I for one much prefer having something which offers alternatives as well as crappy iTunes.
And for one who calls BS on audiophile equipment, you certainly have invested a lot into that BS. Your BS system is quite impressive, shame you skimped on the delivery system.
Re the video, if you cant tell the difference between 1080P vs 720P even on a 42" (Panasonic plasma here too) then you need your eyes testing. My wife has bad eyesight and even she sees the difference between 1080P vs 720P, whereas she just thinks 720P looks "brighter" than standard def...
But whatever, keep on rolling, im still far happier ive got the best multi room music delivery system money can buy. And a separate video player which streams and stores anything without BS conversion / tweaks.
Dorv
Apr 11, 08:01 AM
Care to actually show me what app that will actually do what I was talking about? :rolleyes:
I want to play music from iTunes on my Mac as the source, and multiple airplay devices as the target. Currently I can only play to Airport Expresses and Apple TVs (and upcoming Airplay certified speakers). I want Apple to include all iOS devices to that list of target devices.
Airfoil does this, no?
I want to play music from iTunes on my Mac as the source, and multiple airplay devices as the target. Currently I can only play to Airport Expresses and Apple TVs (and upcoming Airplay certified speakers). I want Apple to include all iOS devices to that list of target devices.
Airfoil does this, no?
evilgEEk
Sep 19, 03:42 PM
I'm not touching it until they offer 5.1 sound. I'm sure its just a matter of time, though.
Sometimes it helps to do a quick search. ;)
They do have surround sound support. (http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=304277#faq26)
Sometimes it helps to do a quick search. ;)
They do have surround sound support. (http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=304277#faq26)
akadmon
Sep 14, 12:11 PM
Can someone explain to me why Apple would release new MBPs at an event named after a retired Russian female shot-put thrower?:confused:
MagnusVonMagnum
Apr 12, 03:52 PM
I'm confused... What will this give us in XBMC that we don't already have? Since I'm assuming you're running XBMC on Apple TV2, Airplay already works just fine...
Airplay and Airtunes are two different things AFAIK. I was under the impression that AUDIO was routed ONLY through AirTUNES and that AirPLAY was purely the VIDEO portion of the stream. Thus, you could stream a video to XBMC from an iPad, but you would get no audio and/or music could not be streamed with it. At least this was the jist I got from a thread on the matter when Airplay functionality was first added. Cracking the Airtunes key would enable XBMC to be seen from within iTunes as a full fledged audio device and thus you could output audio to it and other speakers at the same time, etc. and control it all from "REMOTE" on an iOS device.
Come to think of it, I see the thread title is "AirPLAY Private Key Exposed". So either that is a misprint or this thread is terribly out of date. AirPLAY has been known for quite a long time and it has NOTHING to do with an Airport Express, which is only AirTUNES so I'm assuming they mean the Airtunes key has been exposed (Airplay was not encrypted to my knowledge, only Airtunes). AppleTV Gen1 only has AirTunes, not AirPlay, for example as does Airport Express.
Hi
Not simultaneous control like AirTunes. You can stream to multiple computers, but it will need to be controlled separately -- as far as I know.
I can't think of a good reason to stream strictly audio to multiple computers, even if each is connected to speakers. Seems very clumsy to me, and you'd be better off getting an Airport Express ($69 refurbished (http://store.apple.com/us/product/FB321LL/A?mco=MTY3ODQ5OTY)) for each speaker system or getting AirPlay-supported speakers.
Why would you want to buy another device and/or set of speakers for a given room if it already has a good set of speakers connected to a computer, especially if that computer is already turned on? You'd need switching of some kind (e.g. receiver) to even use the same speakers with another device and it would just be a waste of money (unless you never plan to have that computer turned on and/or that is not the main speakers in that room). For example, my whole house audio/video server is on 24/7 and has Klipsch THX speakers connected to it. Why on earth would I want an Airport Express in that room, especially when it's normally the computer that is spooling out the iTunes information to begin with?
It makes me grin a little when I see posts like in this thread posted by people who obviously have no shortage of money (with their multiple mac systems) and yet dont want to hand over a little money for something thats been out for 5 years and makes the audio elements of airplay completely redundant.
Sonos. Easier, way better quality, more options, fully upgradeable, completely unrestrictive. And it just works.
For videophiles get a popcorn hour, 1080p streaming goodness which plays formats Apple TV can only dream of.
To host the content (if you dont want to buy an internal hard drive for Popcorn Hour) a simple NAS.
- Sonos is not "way better quality" (AppleTV2 output is DIGITAL and so the "quality" depends entirely on the stereo you connect it to. So sorry but you have no point there.
- It may not be better quality, but it IS "way more expensive". AppleTV2 costs $99 (same price as an Airport Express which is "audio only" like Sonos). Sonos OTOH costs $349 for a basic receiver which then still requires to either be connected directly to a router (wired) OR you have to pay ANOTHER $99 for a "bridge" to send a separate wireless signal off your router just for Sonos devices (waste of bandwidth and clutters the band with more wireless signals instead of just using your existing wireless router, which most people already have (how many used a wired only router and if you did you cannot use the Sonos wireless for anything else). So already you are at LEAST $450 in the hole for a single room with Sonos and you have ONLY AUDIO capability.
-But then I would be forgetting you need a SOURCE of music. You tout the use of an NAS, but most NAS devices aren't exactly cheap or anything. For all intensive purposes they are a just a headless computer and most run Linux. AppleTV2 is out of the box a PITA if you don't want to leave a computer on, but you can put XBMC on it which will use any NAS or networked source. You then have the same functionality as Sonos BUT you also have full video capability. You could instead get a cheap Netbook for $250 (cheaper than most NAS devices) and connect a hard drive to that and run iTunes and the full Apple interface if you'd like and still have XBMC available as well. Personally, I just use an old PPC G4 PowerMac as a server and 24/7 Internet terminal. Intel machines can also be set to Wake On Lan, so you can have your machine sleep while AppleTV is not in use. In short, NAS isn't as great as you make it sound (most are also dog slow compared to a real computer) and there are alternative options even with Apple software like a cheap Netbook as a server.
-Now I come to the heart of the matter...VIDEO. You suggest a Popcorn Hour in ADDITION to the already out of this world priced Sonos system. They start at $179 and go up to $299. That brings your total minimum price for a wireless system for a single room to $629 AND you have to switch between two separate devices to listen to audio and/or watch videos. With AppleTV you have all your movies, tv shows, photos, music, music videos, YouTube and Internet Radio (plus the options of XBMC with a quick hack including non-Apple formats) and your TOTAL COST for **one** room wireless using an existing wireless router is $99. $629 versus $99...Hmmmmmm. And then there's the matter of Popcorn Hour's crappy interface versus Apple's polished one. XBMC makes Popcorn Hour look bad as well. Bugs or popcorn? :confused:
So for the price of your ONE room audio and video, I could have SIX rooms using AppleTV2 with both video and audio and still have $29 to spare. With XBMC installed, it can play any format (just like Popcorn Hour). With the Apple interface running, it can sync audio to all rooms or play independently (just like Sonos). And it all can be controlled by an iOS device as well or programmed to accept the signals from any IR remote out there with extra buttons available.
Using ONE device (AppleTV), I have menu access to ALL my media collection without even having to switch the input on the receiver. I can play slide shows to my music collection and watch my entire video library (including VHS/Laserdisc/DVD/Blu-Ray conversions) and rent HD movies at the push of a button (Netflix is available on ATV2 as well).
I see ZERO advantage to Sonos and it costs a LOT more (what restrictions are you referring to with ATV? iTunes handles WAV, AAC, MP3 and Apple Lossless and seamlessly plays DTS music CDs that have been dumped). 3rd party formats like Flac are easily converted or they can be played in XBMC. Popcorn Hour's only advantage (once you figure XBMC into the fold) is that it can output in 1080p (ATV2 downconverts the final output to 720p at the moment, although my Gen1 ATV can play 1080p with XBMC using the Linux OS install and a cheap Crystal card in the one room where it matters here with a 93" screen).
In other words, I need lack nothing here at a fraction of the price and way better integration than your solution.
Airplay and Airtunes are two different things AFAIK. I was under the impression that AUDIO was routed ONLY through AirTUNES and that AirPLAY was purely the VIDEO portion of the stream. Thus, you could stream a video to XBMC from an iPad, but you would get no audio and/or music could not be streamed with it. At least this was the jist I got from a thread on the matter when Airplay functionality was first added. Cracking the Airtunes key would enable XBMC to be seen from within iTunes as a full fledged audio device and thus you could output audio to it and other speakers at the same time, etc. and control it all from "REMOTE" on an iOS device.
Come to think of it, I see the thread title is "AirPLAY Private Key Exposed". So either that is a misprint or this thread is terribly out of date. AirPLAY has been known for quite a long time and it has NOTHING to do with an Airport Express, which is only AirTUNES so I'm assuming they mean the Airtunes key has been exposed (Airplay was not encrypted to my knowledge, only Airtunes). AppleTV Gen1 only has AirTunes, not AirPlay, for example as does Airport Express.
Hi
Not simultaneous control like AirTunes. You can stream to multiple computers, but it will need to be controlled separately -- as far as I know.
I can't think of a good reason to stream strictly audio to multiple computers, even if each is connected to speakers. Seems very clumsy to me, and you'd be better off getting an Airport Express ($69 refurbished (http://store.apple.com/us/product/FB321LL/A?mco=MTY3ODQ5OTY)) for each speaker system or getting AirPlay-supported speakers.
Why would you want to buy another device and/or set of speakers for a given room if it already has a good set of speakers connected to a computer, especially if that computer is already turned on? You'd need switching of some kind (e.g. receiver) to even use the same speakers with another device and it would just be a waste of money (unless you never plan to have that computer turned on and/or that is not the main speakers in that room). For example, my whole house audio/video server is on 24/7 and has Klipsch THX speakers connected to it. Why on earth would I want an Airport Express in that room, especially when it's normally the computer that is spooling out the iTunes information to begin with?
It makes me grin a little when I see posts like in this thread posted by people who obviously have no shortage of money (with their multiple mac systems) and yet dont want to hand over a little money for something thats been out for 5 years and makes the audio elements of airplay completely redundant.
Sonos. Easier, way better quality, more options, fully upgradeable, completely unrestrictive. And it just works.
For videophiles get a popcorn hour, 1080p streaming goodness which plays formats Apple TV can only dream of.
To host the content (if you dont want to buy an internal hard drive for Popcorn Hour) a simple NAS.
- Sonos is not "way better quality" (AppleTV2 output is DIGITAL and so the "quality" depends entirely on the stereo you connect it to. So sorry but you have no point there.
- It may not be better quality, but it IS "way more expensive". AppleTV2 costs $99 (same price as an Airport Express which is "audio only" like Sonos). Sonos OTOH costs $349 for a basic receiver which then still requires to either be connected directly to a router (wired) OR you have to pay ANOTHER $99 for a "bridge" to send a separate wireless signal off your router just for Sonos devices (waste of bandwidth and clutters the band with more wireless signals instead of just using your existing wireless router, which most people already have (how many used a wired only router and if you did you cannot use the Sonos wireless for anything else). So already you are at LEAST $450 in the hole for a single room with Sonos and you have ONLY AUDIO capability.
-But then I would be forgetting you need a SOURCE of music. You tout the use of an NAS, but most NAS devices aren't exactly cheap or anything. For all intensive purposes they are a just a headless computer and most run Linux. AppleTV2 is out of the box a PITA if you don't want to leave a computer on, but you can put XBMC on it which will use any NAS or networked source. You then have the same functionality as Sonos BUT you also have full video capability. You could instead get a cheap Netbook for $250 (cheaper than most NAS devices) and connect a hard drive to that and run iTunes and the full Apple interface if you'd like and still have XBMC available as well. Personally, I just use an old PPC G4 PowerMac as a server and 24/7 Internet terminal. Intel machines can also be set to Wake On Lan, so you can have your machine sleep while AppleTV is not in use. In short, NAS isn't as great as you make it sound (most are also dog slow compared to a real computer) and there are alternative options even with Apple software like a cheap Netbook as a server.
-Now I come to the heart of the matter...VIDEO. You suggest a Popcorn Hour in ADDITION to the already out of this world priced Sonos system. They start at $179 and go up to $299. That brings your total minimum price for a wireless system for a single room to $629 AND you have to switch between two separate devices to listen to audio and/or watch videos. With AppleTV you have all your movies, tv shows, photos, music, music videos, YouTube and Internet Radio (plus the options of XBMC with a quick hack including non-Apple formats) and your TOTAL COST for **one** room wireless using an existing wireless router is $99. $629 versus $99...Hmmmmmm. And then there's the matter of Popcorn Hour's crappy interface versus Apple's polished one. XBMC makes Popcorn Hour look bad as well. Bugs or popcorn? :confused:
So for the price of your ONE room audio and video, I could have SIX rooms using AppleTV2 with both video and audio and still have $29 to spare. With XBMC installed, it can play any format (just like Popcorn Hour). With the Apple interface running, it can sync audio to all rooms or play independently (just like Sonos). And it all can be controlled by an iOS device as well or programmed to accept the signals from any IR remote out there with extra buttons available.
Using ONE device (AppleTV), I have menu access to ALL my media collection without even having to switch the input on the receiver. I can play slide shows to my music collection and watch my entire video library (including VHS/Laserdisc/DVD/Blu-Ray conversions) and rent HD movies at the push of a button (Netflix is available on ATV2 as well).
I see ZERO advantage to Sonos and it costs a LOT more (what restrictions are you referring to with ATV? iTunes handles WAV, AAC, MP3 and Apple Lossless and seamlessly plays DTS music CDs that have been dumped). 3rd party formats like Flac are easily converted or they can be played in XBMC. Popcorn Hour's only advantage (once you figure XBMC into the fold) is that it can output in 1080p (ATV2 downconverts the final output to 720p at the moment, although my Gen1 ATV can play 1080p with XBMC using the Linux OS install and a cheap Crystal card in the one room where it matters here with a 93" screen).
In other words, I need lack nothing here at a fraction of the price and way better integration than your solution.
econgeek
Apr 14, 12:30 PM
Meh. AMD is ready with USB 3.0 .
The PC industry is plagued with lowest common denominator, low cost crap.
Apple and Intel are trying to move forward. We should support that.
The PC industry is plagued with lowest common denominator, low cost crap.
Apple and Intel are trying to move forward. We should support that.
JesterJJZ
Apr 30, 02:59 PM
I understand where you are coming from. With your feet planted in set in concrete, unable to fathom future developments based on the experimental or high-end tech of the day, the Blu-Ray seems endlessly of value. Much like the tape reels of the 60s.
The BluRay is going away for one very specific reason: mechanical. By 2016 the flash memory chips for 50gb will probably be so everyday and cheap that bulky, mechanical BluRay will seem awkward. By 2019 I'd bet you can store several times more than a BluRay on medium-priced thumb-drive.
Proof? Look back 6 years when a 1gb thumb-drive was a huge chunk of cash. Look back 10 years when a 512MB thumb-drive was almost prohibitive to buy. The future is non-mechanical.
At the same token, by 2016 optical media capacity will also increase and be cheaper than your 50GB flash chip.
The BluRay is going away for one very specific reason: mechanical. By 2016 the flash memory chips for 50gb will probably be so everyday and cheap that bulky, mechanical BluRay will seem awkward. By 2019 I'd bet you can store several times more than a BluRay on medium-priced thumb-drive.
Proof? Look back 6 years when a 1gb thumb-drive was a huge chunk of cash. Look back 10 years when a 512MB thumb-drive was almost prohibitive to buy. The future is non-mechanical.
At the same token, by 2016 optical media capacity will also increase and be cheaper than your 50GB flash chip.
NebulaClash
Mar 30, 11:52 AM
Oooh! Grammar Nazis fighting for high stakes!
iLLucionist
Apr 28, 05:59 PM
Microsoft is still doing very well. They're making the best products they ever have done and as a customer I am very pleased with all of my Microsoft purchases.
- Zune desktop software
- Zune hardware and mobile software
- Windows Phone 7
- Windows 7
- Office 2010
- Office 2011 for Mac
- Xbox 360
- Xbox Live
All great products and deserve to be class leaders if they are not already. I can't think of another company (including Apple) that has put out such a fantastic range of very good products.
Zune? Uhm...no, not really. The Zune is discontinued, at least in the long run. Current models will remain available for a while, but new ones will not come out.
- Zune desktop software
- Zune hardware and mobile software
- Windows Phone 7
- Windows 7
- Office 2010
- Office 2011 for Mac
- Xbox 360
- Xbox Live
All great products and deserve to be class leaders if they are not already. I can't think of another company (including Apple) that has put out such a fantastic range of very good products.
Zune? Uhm...no, not really. The Zune is discontinued, at least in the long run. Current models will remain available for a while, but new ones will not come out.
Kaafir
Oct 27, 09:28 AM
To quote the provocative and renowned philosopher Eric Cartman,
�No, I hate hippies! All they do is talk about the environment and then they drive cars that get bad gas milage!�
:p
�No, I hate hippies! All they do is talk about the environment and then they drive cars that get bad gas milage!�
:p
toddybody
Mar 22, 01:59 PM
A rumor about a Mac? This is getting weird:rolleyes:
Seriously though, I hope they really kick butt with this refresh...and give the iMac a good GPU for once*
*pipe dream
Seriously though, I hope they really kick butt with this refresh...and give the iMac a good GPU for once*
*pipe dream
bdj21ya
Oct 12, 01:09 PM
That post isn't even worth the time to flame...
Some people seem to be making a half-hearted effort at it, but you're right.
Some people seem to be making a half-hearted effort at it, but you're right.
DRewPi
Sep 10, 08:37 AM
Since the new iMacs came out the minis seem pretty expensive to me since u get a better processor with the iMac than the mini .... ??? :confused:
Avalontor
Apr 28, 07:30 PM
Really? I mean really? Zune? You forgot to write down Vista too kid. LOL!
Vista still has a larger market share then OSX.
Vista still has a larger market share then OSX.
sinsin07
Mar 23, 04:51 PM
Oh god no I hope apple doesn't cave to this kind of Orwellian garbage. I feel for all of the victims of DUIs and know that I have personally called the police on a car that was very obviously had an impaired person behind the wheel but as a non drunk driver if I want to avoid being hassled I should be able to.
In this case you getting hassled is < then the value of getting a drunk ass of the road.
I do doubt how useful this app would be to a totally inebriated person, but let's get them buzz drinkers off the road too. If you have to use NYC transit after 911 you know what hassle is.
In this case you getting hassled is < then the value of getting a drunk ass of the road.
I do doubt how useful this app would be to a totally inebriated person, but let's get them buzz drinkers off the road too. If you have to use NYC transit after 911 you know what hassle is.
corywoolf
Sep 14, 05:55 PM
My money is on:
- MacBook Pro w/ Core 2 Duo (shipping in Oct.)
- Aperture 2.0
- iSight with Built in IR Receiver + Apple remote
- MacBook Pro w/ Core 2 Duo (shipping in Oct.)
- Aperture 2.0
- iSight with Built in IR Receiver + Apple remote
