Given that this seems to be Apple TV Week atMacworld , its seems appropriate to continue the movement here in Mac Gems . “ How ’s that ? ” you might be asking . “ Are n’t Gems commonly inexpensive products or thing that offer in effect note value ? ” Why yes ; yes they are . And that ’s exactly what today ’s items are and do .
You see , the Apple TV is drive at people with higher - closing audio - ocular systems in their plate : HDTVs , feature - rich home plate - theater receiver , serious stereoscopic picture , and the similar . In fact , the Apple TV offer only HDMI and constituent - video outputs , along with digital and analogue audio outputs , requiring you to buy at least one or two cables than are considerably more expensive than the simple RCA ( “ phono ” ) A / Little Phoebe cables that can be rule for a couple one dollar bill at your near electronics store .
If you ’ve done any shopping for these necessary cables , you may have been shocked by the Mary Leontyne Price ticket . When I purchase my first HDMI cable’s length a couple years ago , I could n’t believe how much even the deduction retail merchant such as Fry ’s were demand — over $ 50 for the generic “ house ” blade and well over $ 100 for a six - foot cable from a name brand that shall remain unnamed . Over the past hebdomad , I checked most of the major electronics chains here in the San Francisco Bay area , and the price have n’t gone down that much . If you search long enough , you might be able to get a generic HDMI cable television for $ 30 or so , but most people are n’t that patient and terminate up overpaying for something because it ’s commodious ( read : the only matter at the current fund ) .
That ’s why I was quite surprised — sunnily so — when XtremeMac announced theirXtremeHD line of cablesearlier this year , with each cable television service skylark an MSRP of $ 20 or less . The line consists ofHDMI to HDMI(video and digital audio),HDMI to DVI video , component video , Toslink digital audio(with one Toslink - to-3.5 mm adapter include ) , andanalog ( left / right ) audiocables , each 2 meters ( 6.6 feet ) in distance . The first four cables are $ 20 ; the last , $ 15 . Each cable admit 24k gold - plated connectors , as well as rubber “ overmolding ” to protect the cable - to - plug joints from stress .
I ’ve been using each cable’s length off and on this past week while playing around with the Apple TV , and I ’ve been impressed given the relatively low-toned prices . Each cable offer effective performance , makes solid connection , and feels well - build ; the overseas telegram are thick but not so chummy that they ’re unwieldy .
I should recount you that I ’m somewhere in the middle of the ( near - religious ) “ cable matter ” argumentation . I reckon a dependable cabledoesoffer improvements over the punk ones included with most consumer electronics ; I also think there ’s a lot of Snake River vegetable oil in the transmission line patronage . But rather than get into such a debate here , I ’ll just tell you that I go out and buy a few cables that the typical Apple goggle box client might be tempted to purchase and compare them with the XtremeHD models . For example , I buy a $ 50 theatre - stigma HDMI overseas telegram from Radio Shack , as well as an $ 80 Monster Cable interlingual rendition . After see a change of TV — movies and television shows from the iTunes Store , high - timber movies I rip from my own DVDs , and HD videos — I reason out that the XtremeMac HDMI cable offered operation that was every bit as secure as the other two when connected between my Apple TV and my Sony 34 - column inch Wega Trinitron CRT high-definition television .
I perform similar cozy tests with the component , digital - audio , and analogue - sound recording cable , with like results . I came to the conclusion that for the typical Apple TV possessor , these cable are go to offer carrying into action as good as the much more expensive stuff the salespeople at Best Buy , Radio Shack , Tweeter , Fry ’s and the alike are extend to foist on you . And , conveniently enough , the XtremeHD cables are available at Apple ’s online and retail stores ; Jon Seff and Christopher Breen were even told by Apple during a briefing last week that Apple has tested the XtremeHD cables in - house .
That read , I should also guide out thathowgood of a value these cables are depends on the cable . For lesson , $ 20 is a great cost for a decent HDMI overseas telegram , at least when it comes to corrupt one at a retail stock ( see below ) ; it ’s also a near price for an HDMI - to - DVI cable system . On the other hand , I ’ve seen Toslink audio recording , analog - audio , and composite - video cable for less . The XtremeHD edition are build better than the less - expensive single I ’ve see , but if you ’re on a tight budget after spend $ 299 on an Apple TV , you could detect cheaper offerings .
Now , I bang a few people are already composing an electronic mail , or typing up a comment for our forum , about less expensive cables , from on-line stores such asMonoPrice.com , that make even XtremeMac ’s $ 20 cost rag seem gamy . And I ca n’t argue ; I have n’t test those cables , and I ’m sure there are good cable bargains to be find around the Web . If you ’re an online bargain hunter , the world is your huitre . But for those who prefer to purchase in a forcible store , would rather buy from a “ name brand ” ( especially one consecrate to the Mac market place ) , or who just purchase their Apple TV and want to hook it upnow , the XtremeMac cables — especially the video ones — are tough to flap .
