Apple TV Reviewed through the eyes of AcuZon (Pg.01)
Redefining Apple TV utilisation at home.
AcuZon’s Offerings/Services for ATV
- Wireless Keyboard for Remote Text Entry
- Remote App on iOS devices setup and training
- Media Server for local content streaming
- Convert existing computers into local media server/s
- Design local network to allow for local content streaming
- Training on how to convert media content to become within ATV acceptable standards
- Create US Apple ID Account and inject it with voucher funds for rents and purchases
- Design local network with AcuZon’s Data Highway to allow loading and viewing iTunes Rents and On-Demand channels content
- Subscription to On-Demand Channels such as Netflix and Hulu
- Setup local network with multiple ATVs with setup for STOP/RESUME option
- Configuration of iOS Devices and MacBooks for AIRPLAY and MIRRORING along with training on how to use it
- Configuration and training on how to AIRPLAY content from channels available in iOS devices but not available on ATV
- Configuration and training on how to use Android devices to AIRPLAY content on ATV
- Parental Control setup for iTunes content on ATV and for the On-Demand channels content
INTRODUCTION
Media streamers is a new technology that will emerge in the near future in every single home. It’s about time only for new users to figure out that you can stream about anything to your main superb looking full HD TV in your living room, and you can do that without having to go through the pain of connecting your Laptop to your TV. For many having the setup crisp and clean in the main living room is a must to go along with the design and interior decoration of the room. That’s why, at AcuZon, we consider Media Center as a core offering to our clients where we create the environment for taking the full advantage of such devices when placed in their homes. We have learned through intensive research and word-of-mouth surveys that many have purchased such devices but use it in a very limited way resulting in little value addition compared to the prices paid. Today, we thought of reviewing the Apple TV through the eyes of AcuZon’s Solutions to enlighten our clients to the potentials of such device when added to their arrangement at home.
Apple TV – (Tech Radar 2013)
The current ATV (Apple TV) available in the market is a similar form, look and feel to its predecessor. Known as ATV Third Generation or 1080p. It is a media center based on streaming technology only with no physical hard drive to store the data as it used to be in earlier generations (1st generation). This has resulted in key benefits that we shall discuss later in this article.
HISTORY
It is beneficial to note at this stage that there are three key generations in market right now. There is the ATV 1st Generation which is White/Grayish look which has a footprint of 7.7 by 7.7 inches (197 by 197 mm) and a height of 1.1 inches (28 mm) while it weighs 2.4 pounds (1.09 kg) as per (Apple Support, 2010).
M4.COM (2013)
This generation has a physical HDD which comes in multiple sizes. Apple as of today does not carry this model anymore, but it is still available in local Bahraini stores. The key reasons Apple departed from this model was due to hard drive failures, noise, heat generated, space and weight.
In September 2010, Apple released its first non-hard drive version HD 720p version of ATV known as the 2nd Generation. It tackled all the issues known in the 1st Generation by removing the internal HDD and replacing it with a Flash Drive which is lighter, silent and does not generate heat. This has helped in reducing the size of the player to about one quarter of the size and weight of the previous generation.
Digital Trends (2013)
With this Apple moved into the streaming technology where the content is not stored inside the media center itself rather it is called from an online server frame by frame and played on TV. The flash drive is used to store the cache of data once streamed to be played smoothly on TV with interruption. The data is then cleared for the next content to take place. This happens smoothly in the background without the user feeling any of it. This required extensive horse power compensated with Apple A4 chip which was also required for playing HD Ready movies with 720p resolution. The second generation has a footprint of 3.9 inches by 3.9 inches (98 mm x 98 mm), a height of 0.9 inches (23 mm) and weighs 0.6 pounds (0.27 kg). (Apple Support, 2011).
The 3rd generation came out to light one year later with the same form factor and weight but with key upgrades such as Full HD support (1080p) and a much more powerful processor (Apple A5 single core) to compensate for the extra horse power required. That’s why one must be careful when purchasing ATV to ensure paying for the latest and greatest. This can be identified through the spec details on the boxes of the two generations. The 3rd generation clearly says “1080p”.
Silly Dog (2013)
According to Ant Blog (2012) “to make sure you don’t get the old model, the new Apple TV (3rd generation, 2012) has Part Number: MD199X/A, and Model A1427. While the Apple TV (2rd generation, 2010) has Part Number: MC572X/A, and Model A1378.” (Silly dog, 2013).
This is the generation we are going to put the focus on for our review through lens of AcuZon’s Solutions and our product offering.