AppleTV as Media Director?

[posde]

A small note: The ASUS EEE Box is VESA mountable.

rgds
Oliver

[nite_man]

A small note: The ASUS EEE Box is VESA mountable.

rgds
Oliver

ASUS EEE Box is cool but AppleTV is better IMHO

2nesci2 : To use AppleTV as MD you should boot it somehow via PXE which is not possible (at least for me ). Another option is using MD with HDD but since 0710 that option is disabled.

[posde]

nite_man,

I doubt a lot of products can hold the stand against Apple when it comes to cool factor.

But my point is: There are other manufacturers out there producing VESA mountable boxes, not using VIA chipsets. And giving the positive experience totallymaxed has with the eee boxes, I think they are quite nice (and very quiet as well).

rgds
Oliver

[nite_man]

nite_man,

I doubt a lot of products can hold the stand against Apple when it comes to cool factor.

But my point is: There are other manufacturers out there producing VESA mountable boxes, not using VIA chipsets. And giving the positive experience totallymaxed has with the eee boxes, I think they are quite nice (and very quiet as well).

rgds
Oliver

Well, the EEE box is excellent. It supports up scaling to 720p & 1080i too... but has no acceleration for mp4. Maybe the next generation of EEE will have it. Does somebody try B204 / B206? They are equiped by HDMI port and maybe they can handle HD content properly. But again, AppleTV is $229.00 and BXXX is about $500 That's why I'd like to see AppleTV as MD.

[Zaerc]

Big waste of time.  There is nothing cool about it either.

[colinjones]

Big waste of time.  There is nothing cool about it either.

I second this - the only "cool" factor about Apple TV is the software, which you are seeking to eliminate! AppleTV the software can be quiet nice, but as is usual for Apple its all about interface, not functionality. As an MD, you just have a small box that is white, no different or any cooler than any other small piece of hardware

[nite_man]

I second this - the only "cool" factor about Apple TV is the software, which you are seeking to eliminate! AppleTV the software can be quiet nice, but as is usual for Apple its all about interface, not functionality. As an MD, you just have a small box that is white, no different or any cooler than any other small piece of hardware

I'll agree with you if you give me an example of PXE boot box with the same price, form factor and supporting of full HD. The cool factor with AppleTV except of software IMHO its hardware and price of that hardware.

Big waste of time.  There is nothing cool about it either.

I'm not going to waste either my (I already spent a couple days without luck) or community time to support AppleTV as MD. I just tell that it'd be nice because of price, form factor and supporting full HD

[colinjones]

I can show you one slightly larger for less money! The MSI Wind PC. Its about a 1/4 as big again in each dimension. NewEgg in the US sell it for US$130. just add RAM

[nite_man]

I can show you one slightly larger for less money! The MSI Wind PC. Its about a 1/4 as big again in each dimension. NewEgg in the US sell it for US$130. just add RAM

I don't think that it's compatible with AppleTV. It misses HDMI, nVidia (for transparent UI2), digital audio, remote control. Not sure that its can be VESA mounted.

[colinjones]

I can show you one slightly larger for less money! The MSI Wind PC. Its about a 1/4 as big again in each dimension. NewEgg in the US sell it for US$130. just add RAM

I don't think that it's compatible with AppleTV. It misses HDMI, nVidia (for transparent UI2), digital audio, remote control. Not sure that its can be VESA mounted.

You asked for something with comparible form factor, price and HD. The MSI is slightly larger, cheaper and can output a 720p or 1080i image thus is HD. No neither video nor audio is digital (although you can do 7.1 analogue), and it can't be vesa mounted, but I was just answering to your specs. As a result its cheaper

[nite_man]

Maybe I was not so accurate when told requirements Let's obtain more accurate credentials: the same form factor, nice design, HDMI, nVidia, support HD (1080p, MPEG4), nearest price.
In any case if I'd customer I'd choose ASUS EEE box for MD but definitely not MSI Wind PC! Even it's extremely cheap.

[Zaerc]

Maybe I was not so accurate when told requirements Let's obtain more accurate credentials: the same form factor, nice design, HDMI, nVidia, support HD (1080p, MPEG4), nearest price.
In any case if I'd customer I'd choose ASUS EEE box for MD but definitely not MSI Wind PC! Even it's extremely cheap.

You seem to be forgetting "actually works with LinuxMCE" in your requirements...

Personally I don't think appletv is very cheap... for a paperweight (or door-stop).

[colinjones]

Maybe I was not so accurate when told requirements Let's obtain more accurate credentials: the same form factor, nice design, HDMI, nVidia, support HD (1080p, MPEG4), nearest price.
In any case if I'd customer I'd choose ASUS EEE box for MD but definitely not MSI Wind PC! Even it's extremely cheap.

I thought so! But why "definitely not MSI Wind PC"?!? That's absurd! That sets completely the wrong impression for other people reading this. I have been using one for the last few months - its fantastic!! Its fast, practically silent, tiny, ultralow power consumption and extremely cheap. It may not be digital, but it is capable of HD resolutions albeit not 1080p (but then again given that current TV standards do NOT use 1080p and BD/HDDVD support on LMCE is extremely limited, and most downloaded HD content is 720p this really isn't a big deal!) and surround sound. Its perfect as a cheap/quiet/small bedroom MD.

If I really need the full digital surround/video, big screen/resolution, etc I'll use my lounge room - 46" LCD, driven by HDMI at 1080p, SPDIF 7.1 DTS/DD through a Marantz Home Theatre AV amp, etc. When we're tired, we just hit Follow Me and go to bed .... finish watching it there

[nite_man]

But why "definitely not MSI Wind PC"?!?

I don't like its design and lack HDMI and this is my personal opinion Initially we started discussion about ApplyTV. IMHO it has a good balance between design, functionality and price. Sure, MSI Wind PC is extremely cheap. But to pay additionally $150 you may get fully digital stylish box. And 99% ordinary consumers will vote for AppleTV or similar device. In any case if somebody has knowledge, time and AppleTV he can play with it to use it as MD. I'm not asking LMCE development team to do that. Because there are hundreds much more important tasks which should be performed for 0810.

If we're talking about budget solution for MD which 100% compatible with LMCE I suggest ASUS P2-M2A690G. It's also very cheap but it provides digital video and audio.

As I already told ASUS EEE box with HDMI is perfect. It isn't cheap but it's compact, quiet, stylish and digital.

[Zaerc]

...
If we're talking about budget solution for MD which 100% compatible with LMCE I suggest ASUS P2-M2A690G. It's also very cheap but it provides digital video and audio.
...

Thanks a lot for adding it to the wiki, looks like a really nice machine.