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Apple TV |OT|

B

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
petethepanda said:
Is AirPlay always super finicky? (First Apple TV.) For example, I'm trying to watch Giant Bomb's extra life livestream, so I connect my phone or iPad via AirPlay, start the video, and it plays fullscreen on the tv for about ten frames before the ATV entirely drops the AirPlay connection.
Click to expand...

not usually no. The only AirPlay problem I regularly have is the lock screen killing the stream because of Live Photos. iPad streams like a champ.
 
D

Deleted member 752119

Unconfirmed Member
I'm really liking the new Apple TV. The remote is great (other than for typing). Touch pad is great for scrolling through apps, fastforward/rewind etc.

Asphalt is pretty fun, enough so that I'll pick up a Nimbus controller to really enjoy it. Shame their aren't any arcade racers like that on PS4 as I'd love to play one with my wheel.
 
holygeesus

holygeesus

Banned
borghe said:
because I'm only using a piddly Airport Express N router that struggles on all of the devices connected in my house 😜 One of these days I'll upgrade to a MIMO router that can handle everything.


responded.
Click to expand...

Doh. I must have misunderstood that setting as I thought you were setting the maximum bitrate rather than maximum bandwidth.
 
B

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
holygeesus said:
Doh. I must have misunderstood that setting as I thought you were setting the maximum bitrate rather than maximum bandwidth.
Click to expand...
No you understood it correctly. I set it to 40Mbps which should cover most blu-rays. I didn't put it to unlimited in case I get something over 40Mbps it doesn't kill my network.
 
holygeesus

holygeesus

Banned
borghe said:
No you understood it correctly. I set it to 40Mbps which should cover most blu-rays. I didn't put it to unlimited in case I get something over 40Mbps it doesn't kill my network.
Click to expand...

Ah gotcha. Is there any way to know if content is being transcoded on the client side?

On a completely unrelated point I find changing video output to RGB has severely improved quality so auto might not work efficiently for some people. I have a Kuro tv which supports enhanced RGB so that might be why.
 
M

mackaveli

Member
Using plex etc doesn't take bandwidth up right since its on the network? I know stupid question but just want to make sure.

Also is it possible to split the hdmi out to hdmi plus optical audio ? I just have a basic audio system that only has optical. Thanks.

Does this work?

http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00K37YJCK/

And the video quality is still the same even though it goes through this device?
 
C

Confusion Illusion

Banned
My Apple TV arrived on Friday so I had the whole weekend to fiddle with it.

Likes:
App store - finally! (Plex was first thing I installed lol)
HDMI-CEC - I'm glad Apple added this, turns my dumb tv into a pseudo smart tv :p

Dislikes:
On screen keyboard - I'm also not a fan. I would have let it slide if Apple had made the remote app compatible, but they have not (yet) which sucks.

Indifferent:
Siri - I've never been a big user of Siri or any voice control. Nice feature, but not something I'll be using much.


Overall, I like the device. I'm still on fence about getting a MFi controller. I'll have to see how much gaming I do on this thing.
 
M

mrklaw

MrArseFace
I hope Does Not Commute TV doesn't start a trend. I already have it on iPad and paid to unlock the checkpoints. But I can't download to Apple TV because they made a different version. If it's just the same game tweaked for Apple TV controls it should be a universal app.
 
M

Mr. Wonderful

Member
Multiple device AirPlay streaming from iOS is probably one of my most desired features from iOS 10. So odd that we can't do that yet from an iPad Air 2 or iPhone 6S at least, yet OS X has had the feature for years.

The biggest problem with the Remote App is that it takes so long and so much effort to open it. It's a 5 to 10 second process a lot of the time.

I would love to see Apple make the lock screen of the iPhone contextually a remote when it knows you're in your living room, watching something on the AppleTV.
 
I

infiniteloop

Member
mrklaw said:
I hope Does Not Commute TV doesn't start a trend. I already have it on iPad and paid to unlock the checkpoints. But I can't download to Apple TV because they made a different version. If it's just the same game tweaked for Apple TV controls it should be a universal app.
Click to expand...

Same with Xenowerk. crappy, but up to the devs i guess.
 
M

mackaveli

Member
I am going to buy this soon and just want to make sure it will work.

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B016A5UWDI/

Is Optical SPDIF on the back of this thing the same thing as Optical out? edit (I use a TOSlink optical cable) - will the item i buy from Amazon work?

My audio receiver only has optical out and I only have an optical cable. Will this work?

Thanks.
 
Q

Quasar

Member
borghe said:
No you understood it correctly. I set it to 40Mbps which should cover most blu-rays. I didn't put it to unlimited in case I get something over 40Mbps it doesn't kill my network.
Click to expand...

I've found some edge cases thats causing issues for me with setting it to unlimited. With both Avatar and Titanic the bluray rips have constant stuttering that goes away when I set the plex bitrate to 20 mbps.

Curiously when I remuxed the video bitstreams (of titanic at least) it plays fine using home sharing. So it seems like a plex bug rather than the atv unable to handle high bitrate h264 streams. Not sure whats going on exactly.
 
M

Mario

Sidhe / PikPok
mrklaw said:
I hope Does Not Commute TV doesn't start a trend. I already have it on iPad and paid to unlock the checkpoints. But I can't download to Apple TV because they made a different version. If it's just the same game tweaked for Apple TV controls it should be a universal app.
Click to expand...

You'll probably see a bit of this similar to what happened with iPhone and iPad initially, but now the pressure to hit launch is gone I expect developers to take more of a considered approach.

I think a large influencing factor here is going to be apps/games which monetize predominantly or meaningfully through ads and/or incentivized video which doesn't exist on Apple TV currently. That makes a case for moving an otherwise free ad supported game on iOS to paid on Apple TV, which necessitates a different version where further IAP, leaderboards etc cannot be shared.

We slaved over that very decision for our game. While we ultimately decided to go free on Apple TV and take the revenue hit in the interest of building an install base instead, I can easily see many other developers choosing differently.


On a different but related front, went to try and find a 64GB Apple TV unit today at lunch. Sold out everywhere :/
 
The Elite

The Elite

BOSS
Apple TV would benefit from a dedicated iPhone/iPad app for typing to the device and browsing the store when away from home.

It could even act like a trackpad/keyboard for web browsing.

I also need SNK to port their fighters over but I doubt that will happen.
 
E

Enzom21

Member
DoctorWho said:
Apple TV would benefit from a dedicated iPhone/iPad app for typing to the device and browsing the store when away from home.

It could even act like a trackpad/keyboard for web browsing.

I also need SNK to port their fighters over but I doubt that will happen.
Click to expand...

There is a Remote app that worked for the previous models but it hasn't been updated for the new one. Most people expected it to be updated for launch but it was inexplicably absent.
I hope the delay means they are making a new app with the ability to use the phone to browse and install apps in the background and some form of Siri search.
 
L

LyleLanley

Banned
Enzom21 said:
There is a Remote app that worked for the previous models but it hasn't been updated for the new one. Most people expected it to be updated for launch but it was inexplicably absent.
I hope the delay means they are making a new app with the ability to use the phone to browse and install apps in the background and some form of Siri search.
Click to expand...

I'm disappointed that Siri on other devices doesn't already control the Apple TV.
 
M

mrklaw

MrArseFace
Just suddenly had the urge to play a picross or sudoku game on Apple TV. Wonder if you could use the trackpad to draw numbers?

Edit: sudoku isn't bad. Can't find a picross game though
 
H

hardcastlemccormick

Banned
Bought an Apple TV over the weekend (over much hand wringing and should-I-spend-the-money). I also bought a Steelseries Nimbus controller.

Pros:
-All the HDMI-CEC integration basically means it turns your TV into a totally Apple product. It really feels like you've got that Apple-branded TV they were rumored to produce a few years ago.
-It's quick to turn on and quick to use. Faster than anything else I've ever used on my TV.
-Even in the early stage, the apps are plentiful and good. iTunes is really great.
-The remote feels nice to hold. Doesn't need to be pointed at anything, it just works.
-The Nimbus is extremely comfortable and easy to set up.
-Uses so little power I don't feel bad about letting it stay on 24/7.

Ambivalent:
-Only a few of the games really benefit from the controller right now. But I probably would have regretted not buying one.
-The touch pad is kind of sensitive and odd. Not very intuitive, but easy to learn after a little while.

Ick:
-Typing in your account info all over again.
-iOS games ported to the TV where the screen tilts.
-Movie companies charging $6 for movie rentals. (Not really an Apple TV thing, I just like to bitch)

After the usual feeling of buyer's remorse I'm generally enjoying myself. It's a nice device now and even if it never got any better I'd be happy with it.
 
J

Junior Mint

Member
Is Plex on the Apple TV able to wake your Mac up? Right now, I have to manually wake my Mac before I can access my Plex library (I don't want to have my computer running all the time).
 
K

Kurdel

Banned
The interface for watching TV shows is hilariously bad.

One long line for every season and episode, and not even in order of release.
 
S

SmackCrackleNPop

Member
Kurdel said:
The interface for watching TV shows is hilariously bad.

One long line for every season and episode, and not even in order of release.
Click to expand...

So bad. I have the Sopranos Complete Series (which didn't work at first) then I saw how it did.

Should just make it like iTunes extras. Background artwork for show, select season>episode.
 
S

SmackCrackleNPop

Member
iTunes

But it could just be because I have two shows as complete series and I get a long row of episodes spanning all seasons.

So it's fine when you bought the seasons individually?
 
B

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
Ummm... That's new... As of like two days ago it showed you a control next to Play and stuff for seasons. Damn.... Hopefully they fix it back.
 
M

mrklaw

MrArseFace
borghe said:
Tv shows where? In iTunes? Or plex. iTunes is fine. Plex is pretty bad (TV seasons I mean)
Click to expand...

Why is plex bad?

On deck surfaces the next episode of the shows your watching (to the main menu of the Apple TV if you have the plex icon on the top row) so you can instantly go to that without browsing for it; seasons clearly show how many unwatched episodes you have; there is nice background art and theme music while browsing a show page; if you go to the 'show page' view it is set up to play the next unwatched by default, and it'll auto play following episodes as each one finishes.

Pretty nice setup IMO? If you think iTunes is better I might buy a few more shows to try it out (mostly only have single episodes of specific shows)
 
Fess

Fess

Member
dmaul1114 said:
I'm really liking the new Apple TV. The remote is great (other than for typing). Touch pad is great for scrolling through apps, fastforward/rewind etc.

Asphalt is pretty fun, enough so that I'll pick up a Nimbus controller to really enjoy it. Shame their aren't any arcade racers like that on PS4 as I'd love to play one with my wheel.
Click to expand...
I thought Asphalt was crap honestly :/ The framerate hovers around 30fps which is horrible for the genre and the controls are kinda wonky even with a controller.

Oceanhorn on the other hand is fantastic with a controller, super smooth 60fps, colorful world and great controls, fantastic Zelda WW clone. You'll need the remote to aim succesfully on the sea and to cast spells though, could be patched I guess but it works quite okay as it is. Don't miss it!
 
I

infiniteloop

Member
Yeah, i played Asphalt for a couple of minutes, framerate is awful.

Oceanhorn is the best example of what the apple tv is capable of (with a controller) great game.
 
H

hardcastlemccormick

Banned
Oceanhorn feels and controls sluggishly with a controller. Your character moves way too slowly.

Asphalt 8 is really fun, though I wish it gave control over the accelerator when using a controller. The frame rate has too many drops but when it smooths out I have no issues with it.
 
S

sonycowboy

Member
SmackCrackleNPop said:
I'm hoping they drop the Siri remote requirement in the near future. At the latest announce it at WWDC
Click to expand...


They will, but they can't afford to right now. The user base is too small to have all of these early adopters feel like they were promised a system that ~could play games, but then you require that they buy a $50 extra controller.. That isn't being carried at any stores right now but Apple ones and online.

WWDC seems like a good place to announce that. They already have a ~pretty well implemented Game Controller Framework, but I could imagine them amping it up a bit to make some higher level tvOS classes to make it even simpler to incorporate. And then saying, that the micro gamepad profile is not required, but that it's still a great, smart idea to include it to reach the widest possible audience.
 
S

Simon Belmont

Banned
Hey guys, sorry if this has been asked before, but with the new Apple TV can I download movies right to my device so I'm not streaming them from Apple every time my kid watches cars?
 
S

SmackCrackleNPop

Member
I got a SteelSeries Nimbus controller but have not found too many games that best use it. I wish the thumb sticks were buttons too (to be like the PS4). But I guess that's the specs Apple laid out for their game controllers.
 
I

infiniteloop

Member
Spoke about this further up the thread:

The Verge | Apple TV gaming is full of problems and potential

The Apple TV box itself is close to ideal for a console. Although it’s roughly twice as tall as the older, appless model, it remains tiny, silent, and unobtrusive, and it wakes from sleep almost instantly. Inside, its A8 processor makes it roughly equivalent to an iPhone 6 Plus (considering the 1080p resolution it’ll output), though it has double the RAM at 2GB. That means it isn’t quite on the cutting edge of Apple’s hardware development, but it should be enough to power some pretty impressive games. Remember that almost everything you see on iOS also has to run well on much older devices, too; with newer hardware as a baseline, tvOS developers will be free to create more ambitious titles.
Click to expand...

As you can read in my roundup, some games do play pretty well with the Siri Remote as their primary control scheme. Others make do as best they can while being better suited to the Nimbus, with mixed results. And other games just won’t make it onto the Apple TV at all while this provision is in place, simply because it won’t be worth the time trying to cram complex controls onto a remote that isn’t designed for gaming. Despite the potent hardware inside the Apple TV, it’s difficult to see developers ever finding a good way to make 3D action games work with the Siri Remote, for example. Competitors like the Nvidia Shield aren’t likely to gain as much developer support, but at least that can play Half-Life.
Click to expand...

Hoping enough media/devs complain to apple about it that they change their policy. Lots of potential.
 
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