Review Apple TV MD199LL/A

I own both the Apple TV 2nd generation and 3rd generation. For most people, the 3rd generation is the way to go. It offers improved performance in several key areas over the 2nd generation Apple TV. But if you want to jailbreak the AppleTV, you can't with the 3rd Gen so you'd want to find the 2nd Generation.

From an appearance standpoint the two generations look identical. It's what is inside that makes the big difference.

Here are the notable improvements in the 3rd Gen Apple TV.

- it supports 1080p/720p, whereas the 2nd Gen only supports 720p
- it has a faster on-board chip, the A5 vs the A4 chip in the 2nd Gen.
- it supports 5GHz networking whereas the 2nd Gen only supports 2.4GHz

The faster A5 chip really makes a noticeable difference in navigating the interface. And of course since the Apple TV now supports 1080p and has 5GHz networking, the A5 chip helps enable that higher spec performance.

The back of the Apple TV has, from left to right:

- AC plug
- HDMI port
- MicroUSB port
- Optical Digital output which supports Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound
- 10/100 Base-T Ethernet

Included in the box is an AC power cord and an Apple Remote (IR.) Concerning the remote, since it is infrared, the AppleTV has to be able to "see" the remote or you have to bounce it off walls or ceiling to control the AppleTV. The best alternative is to use the app and control the AppleTV from your iPhone.

The available content on the Apple TV has been greatly expanded with this newer generation. Here are the highlights of great content available:

- Netflix -
- Hulu Plus - paid content
- HBO Go - access to HBO programs if you subscribe to HBO already
- PBS
- ESPN
- ABC - doesn't yet work with Time Warner Cable
- NBA - premium but some free content
- NHL - premium but some free content
- Crackle - movies and tv shows similar to Netflix
- Bloomberg
- skyNEWS
- Trailers
- Weather
- KORTV - Korean station that offers video on demand - free and premium content
- Disney Channel - doesn't yet work with Time Warner Cable
- Disney XD - doesn't yet work with Time Warner Cable
- Disney Junior - doesn't yet work with Time Warner Cable
- Smithsonian
- Yahoo Screen
- iCloud Photos
- iMovie Theater - iMovie projects that you share to the theater
- Podcasts -
- YouTube - video sharing
- Flickr - photo sharing
- Vevo - music videos
- Vimeo - video sharing
- MLB.TV - Major League Baseball - some free content but a premium subscription is $24.99/yr
- Qello - HD concert films and music documentaries - $4.99/mo
- Crunchyroll - anime on demand
- MLS - Major League Soccer
- Radio
- WSJ Live - programming from Wall Street Journal

That's quite a line-up and I'm certain Apple will be adding more content as time goes by. Keep in mind that some of the content is paid content but much is free and most content will require you to set up an account whether the content is free or paid.

In addition to all that streaming content the Apple TV also provides some additional benefits to people in the Apple ecosystem. It has AirPlay and consequently it is now possible to stream to your HDTV your MacBook Desktop, iPad or iPhone. It can essentially mirror whatever is on your device and stream that to your HDTV. This is fantastic for presentations, sharing slideshows, tutoring people and so much more.

But even more interesting is the fact that you can now extend your desktop of your Mac computer to your HDTV. It's as if you now have two monitors hooked up to your computer. Once you start enjoying that feature I'll be you'll be hooked.

I love my Apple TV. The faster processor just makes the thing faster and it's been rock solid in performance too. Setup is a breeze. I also have a ROKU but since getting the 3rd Gen Apple TV, I rarely use the ROKU... there is no need to really.

Review from Mr Erb.Thanks for watching.