Apple TV - anyone got it /how does it work?

[Skywatcher]

Even the Aplle site doesn't give many details about how it plugs in etc

Just thinking if I got an iMac would I be able to stick it into that to give us TV on that lovely 27 inch screen?

Any ideas / experiences?

[catrancher]

Not as I understand it Chris. Keep in mind that I don't have an Apple TV so this is based on my understanding.

Anyway, Apple TV lets you rent movies by connecting to your wireless home network. It also allows you to communicate with your Mac to sync your photos, music, etc. Then you can view all that on your TV via your Apple TV. It acts kinda like your Mac does if you bring up Front Row (using your remote).

To do what you're after, what you probably really want is:

Elegato Eye TV

This is a tuner that plugs into your Mac and allows you to watch TV right on the screen. Also makes your Mac act as a DVR so you can rewind, pause, etc. live TV. Or record directly on you Mac. Course, if you had an Apple TV, you could then transfer things you've recorded on your Mac to your Apple TV for later playback (I think).

Hope this helps. If you need more let me know.

Tom (... 27", high def, mind numbing quality... wow!)

[Skywatcher]

Hmmm would there be a way to plug a sky box into it I wonder?

[catrancher]

sky box

Illuminate an ignorant colonialist. Whassa sky box?

Over on this side of the pond, a sky box is a reserved luxury box at a football stadium. Usually reserved for people and corporations of untold riches and little practical sense.

Tom (... enquiring minds want to know!)

[Skywatcher]

digital satellite tv. Has a hard drive to record like TiVo and split feeds so you can record 2 things at once

[MarkE]

No Chris, you can't do that. It's quite limited in functionality, all you can really do is stream stuff over the internet. I'd only really consider it if you were going to look at hacking it to expand what you can watch.

I understand you can plug a 3rd party DVR into it to record what you're watching, but I don't know how well it works - and if you're doing this you're basically just using the already better sky box office service, becase you've already paid for it in iTunes.

I think its good for people with no other TV options. It relies far too heavily on iTunes, but then I guess that's the idea - another income generator for them!

[catrancher]

Ahhh... now I get it. Sometimes I'm a bit slow!

So... plug your sky box (satellite receiver) into the Mac? Supposedly, you can do that through the Elgato product. See this page for some info:

EyeTV Hybrid INT (2008 International model)

However, since I don't actually own the product, I can't attest to how well it works.

I also noticed on that support page that they want you to change channels using your satellite receiver. That would be a deal killer for me. If I'm going to buy a product like this tuner to plug into my Mac, I want to control everything from my Mac. Don't want to have to be bouncing back and forth.

There may be other products available that integrate better. I just not sure what they are or who has them.

Tom (... tuned in now)

[catrancher]

Stop press!

This whole thing got me thinking (dangerous, I know)!

Anyway, I went exploring some more and there may be a better option. Take a look at this and see what you think:

Slingbox

This gadget gets plugged into your sky box/tv and then allows you to stream the tv reception (even HD) over your home network. There's software on your Mac that you use to view it. Looks pretty cool!

Tom (... and the reviews seem pretty good also!)

[Skywatcher]

Thanks chap all on the money advice as always ideally I would get sky multiroom and plug it into the imac monitor - ther e*must* be a way of doing that - then I can get it past the commitee as being amonitor and another telly in the house

[catrancher]

Thanks chap all on the money advice as always ideally I would get sky multiroom and plug it into the imac monitor - ther e*must* be a way of doing that - then I can get it past the commitee as being amonitor and another telly in the house

Guess it would depend on how many rooms you want TV in. Using that Slingbox I referenced earlier, your Mac would be just another TV although it would be being fed via your network rather than directly from the satellite/cable.

There really isn't any way currently that I'm aware of to plug the output of the satellite receiver directly into the iMac. The iMac is a computer and doesn't expect a TV type input. Maybe someday, they'll include an HDMI type input or something on computers but today, you need extra hardware.

Tom (:mawave:.. I think I like that Slingbox!)