Product Review – Apple TV (3rd Generation)

As one can see from the name of this blog, we really like to sit on our sofa and watch movies, television, and play the occasional video game. As the summers wore on without much of any good entertainment on television, we decided it was time to test out a streaming device. But which one? Rook? Amazon Fire? Google’s Chromecast? Then we elected to go with the Apple TV, as we had been building up a nice collection of digital movie codes from DVDs and Blu Rays.

Once we loaded it in and synced the machine with our iTunes and Netflix accounts, the streaming was rapid, seamless, and in perfect 1080p quality, even appearing to upscale video sources not originally released in HD (including the first season of Doctor Who). We elected to have the audio output to the Sony receiver through the digital optical audio connection. The sound quality has been fantastic.

Like the entertainment addicts we are, we quickly added a subscription to Hulu Plus, which when combined with our iTunes collection and the Netflix streaming options gave us effectively unlimited options for summer nights on the deck. Now, HBO Now is available also, and maybe we will finally give Game of Thrones a try.

We quickly added two more apple tvs, and the number of networks with streaming options increased as well. Apple has since come out with the Fourth Generation model, which ads Siri connectivity and the App Store to the remote. However, since I have no interest in gaming on the Apple TV, and I don’t feel like spending an extra $100 or more, I’m quite content to settle with the 3d Generation model.

Is it the best choice for everyone? Obviously not. It doesn’t have native content from Amazon or from Ultraviolet, but you can mirror such content from an iPad, iPhone, or Mac without problem if that’s where your content lies. And, to borrow a cliche, it just works.

Full disclosure – we bought all three of our Apple TVs at full retail time (as of the date of purchase – the last one was after the reduced the price for the old to make way for the new).

She Says: I love the Apple TV. It is so easy to use and has so many entertainment options. Now that we have all of these streaming options, I see limited need for our cable. I admire my sister and brother-in-law who never subscribed to cable after moving and would love to be like them someday. For now it is a constant battle with Him when our cable subscription needs renewed. I offer to call to try and get a better deal, but warn that when he gives me that job, I will cancel Cable.