For $ 299 , you’re able to get an Apple TV … and not much else . As we ’ve detail in our report on removing the Apple TV from its packaging , all you ’ll find inside the boxwood is the digital gadget , a power electric cord , a User ’s Guide , a few stumper , and a remote control . But you wo n’t find much else .
So what do you want to start using — and get the most out of — it ? Here ’s a quick checklist .
A TV set
The Apple TV is meant to work only with certain types of television set — specifically , widescreen , enhanced - definition ( ED ) or high - definition ( HD ) TVs adequate to of at least 480p resolution with HDMI , DVI , or component TV connectedness . So if you do n’t have such a solidifying , you may require a new TV ( see Picking an high-definition television for your Apple TV for advice and recommendations ) .
Although Apple does n’t really say so , youcanuse the Apple TV with a standard definition ( 480i ) , non - widescreen TV as long as it has factor telecasting inputs . These television aren’ve very common , but several readers have emailed and put up on our meeting place that they own them .
Audio and video cables
You ’ll notice that our listing of the contents of your Apple TV box did n’t include audio or video cables . Apple ’s make out in for unfavorable judgment from some user because of this , although the many edition on cables available out there does n’t really make it feasible to admit any with the Apple TV .
That means you ’ll demand either one or two cable count on your exceptional setup . If your video has a devoid HDMI port , an HDMI - to - HDMI cable length will deport both digital video and digital audio signals from the Apple TV to your goggle box . Otherwise , you may employ an HDMI - to - DVI cable if your TV has a DVI port , or part TV cables ( high - quality analogue cable television that split into three region colour green , profane , and red ) .
The later two option do n’t take audio , so you ’ll need separate audio link . If your multimedia system stereo system has an optical digital audio porthole , use a Toslink cable system . Otherwise , standard RCA - panache ruby-red and bloodless analogue sound recording cable will do the trick . Even those using HDMI may want to utilise a Toslink audio transmission line as well if you use your stereo for sound or else of your TV ( and do n’t have an loose way to route sound from the TV to the stereo ) .
XtremeMac ’s XtremeHD HDMI to DVI cablegram
Apple had partnered with XtremeMac to selleach of these types of cablesat very fair cost ( $ 20 for each cable except analog audio , which costs $ 15 ) . The cables are available from Apple brick - and - mortar and online memory . ( My fellow worker Dan Frakes looked at XtremeMac ’s XtremeHD transmission line offering in his Mac Gems weblog . )
Switchers
Speaking of cable , many TV that have the all - digital HDMI connection only have one or perchance two such ports . If you ’re already using them for other devices ( Series 3 TiVo or PlayStation 3 , for example ) , you ’re not out of luck . If you call up those old A / B switcher used to choose which input ( usually cable or Atari - like video secret plan system ) your TV displayed at a given time , you ’ll be happy to love the same thing exists for the mod eld . Products such asXtremeMac ’s upcoming $ 100 HDMI Switcherwill let you connect several HDMI twist to your TV and pluck which you want display .
The rest
You ’ll also need a reckoner and a way to associate Apple TV to your mesh to shift and stream content . That means a Mac melt OS X 10.3.9 or afterwards or a PC work Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 2 ( Vista is not officially supported currently ) . Whether you go with a Mac or a PC , your machine require to run iTunes 7.1 or subsequently .
Once that ’s all determine up , you may at once colligate an ethernet cable to the Apple TV ’s 10/100BASE - MT ethernet larboard , or use its built - in wireless ( Apple TV indorse 802.11b , g , and n ) . For music streaming , 802.11b might be OK , but g or n are required for video cyclosis . And of course , transferring data to Apple TV will count greatly on your connection speed .
at last , you ’ll need content . Once you twin the Apple TV with your computer , you should be capable to act as anything in your iTunes subroutine library . That includes music , movies , TV shows , and podcasts downloaded from the iTunes Store . It will also work with AAC , MP3 , Apple Lossless , AIFF , and WAV file you ’ve imported yourself , as well as MPEG-4 and H.264 video you ’ve encoded using QuickTime or other apps , and that fall without the corroborate parameter ( See the Apple TV technical school specs for stark details . )
