iLounge

1

This was just a one-two punch for us dedicated ATV “hobbyists”.

First Hulu gets taken off Boxee.
Then Boxee gets knocked off with this update.

Rationale here is that if there is no Hulu on Boxee, and Boxee has been wiped out that users will not bother to hack their ATV…

Guess what?... You’re DEAD WRONG!

Posted by Jeremy on February 25, 2009 at 7:02 AM (PST)

2

C’mon Apple. Let’s see an AppleTV app store, and a legitimized Boxee. They’re not competing with iTunes, they’re adding value to a product that you continue to try to break.

Posted by Wiley Wiggins on February 25, 2009 at 9:12 AM (PST)

3

I care nothing about what you hackers are doing to your Apple TV. All I want is stability. Mine crashes regularly playing audio.

Posted by Japester on February 25, 2009 at 1:54 PM (PST)

4

I love my AppleTV and have put up with a lot, however I am getting fed up with iTunes and it’s lack of quality video media. I was so surprised and happy that they released HDTV shows and I thought it would become the new video standard. But no, Music Videos and even some Movies look less than par on my TV. Maybe AppleTV would be more successful if iTunes’s video content was actually encoded to be viewed on a television and not just an iPod, iPhone.

Posted by Matthew Bowman on February 26, 2009 at 7:40 AM (PST)

5

The fact that an Apple TV update removes unsupported software is not surprising, since the update basically reapplies the entire Apple TV operating system (hence a large download for what is essentially a very minor update). 

Since Boxee is a hack/patch for the Apple TV OS, it naturally needs to be reapplied after you do an upgrade in much the same way as you would need to reinstall third-party software after you reinstall your computer’s operating system.

Apple is not deliberately trying to “breaking” Boxee here, and in fact you can pull out the same patchstick with the 2.3.1 update and easily re-apply Boxee. However, it’s a bit unreasonable to expect that Apple should spend time releasing updates that tip-toe around unsupported third-party software.

Posted by Jesse Hollington in Toronto on February 26, 2009 at 10:29 AM (PST)

6

All I want to see is an update for the addition of Safari browser, wireless keyboard and mouse and open up playing of more video formats. Is that too much to ask of a video and music player? Apple, stop pussyfooting around and get it done. How difficult can it be!!!

Posted by Steve on February 27, 2009 at 5:48 AM (PST)

7

I cannot understand what people are complaining about. Apple have released an upgrade for their product - as has been previously said, many Apple customers just want stability and speed. The upgrade has achieved improvements with both of these for me.
I have Boxee and I will re-apply the patch-stick… because I chose to hack the product in the first place. I certainly don’t expect Apple to accommodate this.
Notwithstanding any of the above - the Apple TV remains a product that could do better but my main gripe is the iTunes pricing structure which is set far to high - particularly for older movie and TV content.
I don’t think our friends at Apple are stupid of ignorant but they are bound by good business sense. Rightly or wrongly they are largely controlled by the distributors of their content and movie studios are not going to sit back and be happy with Boxee. So, if users want it, they will have to live with the work-around.
As for the keyboard, Safari - they have that - it’s called a Mac Mini.

Posted by Nick Smith on March 2, 2009 at 12:20 PM (PST)