Apple EyeTV and Roku

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Puddlejumper
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Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 11:17 am
Location: Southport, NC was STJ

Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by Puddlejumper »

I finally got around to hooking up EyeTV to a Mac Mini we have on the main tv in the house.

It's amazing how simple it was to plug in, load the software, and setup the channels and TV Guide. The quality and simplicity of Apple products amaze me.

We use a digital TV antenna, no cable or satellite. The video quality is amazing, and it's free! All other video services like news, weather, sport and entertainment comes over the internet to this Mini and to all our other Mac devices in the house.

Now looking at Roku. Any Roku users on here?

Love our Apples! How about you?
JJShaw
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Joined: Wed May 30, 2007 7:11 pm
Location: NC

Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by JJShaw »

We have Roku, we have had it for about a yr now..I got so tired of the Cable company jacking up the bill...or this promotion running out or that one just ran out... its crazy...so when our bill went from 100 to about 160 I decided it was time to do something...and we did...I had them turn it off...my boss had told me about Roku, so we went to Wally World and purchased the little gadget...and I will tell you I am quiet pleased with it..of course we also subscribe to Netflix and HuluPlus which of course adds more channels..and we also have a computer thats strictly for the TV..and as you know there are lots on there...Also, Hubby downloaded XBMC and it works great as well and has lots of channels..and you can also add a video library XBMC by copying all your movies to a hard drive..and have easy access to them..we have found lots you can do for TV without cable...Roku being great item...the kids get Netflix on the Wii and PS3..and of course Huluplus..I love ours..We have the XD, I think...I know we saved about a 100 a month by getting rid of cable, only thing we pay for is the internet of course..I give it a thumbs up..;)
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PA Girl
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Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by PA Girl »

We have a Roku at our cottage. I like it. We watch stuff from Netflix and Amazon. I have a Amazon Prime account that provides a lot of free shows and movies. Rentals of the newer movies are reasonable. I haven't added any other paid channels yet but might do hulu plus.
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2muchsnow
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Location: SLC

Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by 2muchsnow »

We've had the Apple TV for 2 years and love it. It's set up in a different room than our mac mini, but it's connected to our wireless network. We use Netflix and stream the movie and or TV series from the apple store. We also like to view our photos from trips and vacations in slideshow mode when connected through sharing. I did a free Hulu plus trial and it worked well too.
jmq
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Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by jmq »

What about loss of picture quality when streaming video due to data compression etc.?
I think that if I noticed it (likely), it would bug me too much just like when I spend too much time listening to satellite radio using decent speakers.
When we come to place where the sea and the sky collide
Throw me over the edge and let my spirit glide
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2muchsnow
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Location: SLC

Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by 2muchsnow »

jmq - streaming and compression hasn't been an issue from what I have noticed. If you purchase/rent an HD movie it buffers it enough that you don't have compression issues. You will get some pixelization if you are playing an old TV series that was in shot and broadcast in SD on a HD set.

The only problem I have run into is if all the devices (kindles, iphones, touches, etc) in the house are connecting and pulling data across the wifi (or even computer which is ethernet hardwired) at the same time, but that is my fault for having an older wifi router and not porting my appleTV directly into an ethernet cable.
jmq
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Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by jmq »

Well, I just got a new 55 inch plasma TV with built in wi-fi so just did the stream a HD movie thing from Amazon for the first time. It worked pretty well, but I wasnt too happy with the variable quality of the images and obvious (to me) digital and signal compression artifacts and lack of a 5.1 sound feed that I can easily send thru the home theater set up for surround sound.
In other words, I found the somewhat fuzzy quality of the video rather distracting. I probably dont have the fastest wi-fi internet service in the world, so that probably contributed. That said, the internets do tell me that the bit rate for streaming is about 1/3 of a typical HD cable feed, not to mention that the bit rate for a Blu Ray DVD of the same film would be about 10x streaming (!).
I know this doesn't bother some folks (some might not even notice) but If I spend $1100 on a TV then spend 2 hours calibrating it, I don't think I will be watching many streamed movies on it - maybe the odd Sundance/Indie film or a documentary you cant get otherwise, but a mainstream film with decent cinematography? Unlikely.
When we come to place where the sea and the sky collide
Throw me over the edge and let my spirit glide
JJShaw
Posts: 1081
Joined: Wed May 30, 2007 7:11 pm
Location: NC

Re: Apple EyeTV and Roku

Post by JJShaw »

jmq wrote:Well, I just got a new 55 inch plasma TV with built in wi-fi so just did the stream a HD movie thing from Amazon for the first time. It worked pretty well, but I wasnt too happy with the variable quality of the images and obvious (to me) digital and signal compression artifacts and lack of a 5.1 sound feed that I can easily send thru the home theater set up for surround sound.
In other words, I found the somewhat fuzzy quality of the video rather distracting. I probably dont have the fastest wi-fi internet service in the world, so that probably contributed. That said, the internets do tell me that the bit rate for streaming is about 1/3 of a typical HD cable feed, not to mention that the bit rate for a Blu Ray DVD of the same film would be about 10x streaming (!).
I know this doesn't bother some folks (some might not even notice) but If I spend $1100 on a TV then spend 2 hours calibrating it, I don't think I will be watching many streamed movies on it - maybe the odd Sundance/Indie film or a documentary you cant get otherwise, but a mainstream film with decent cinematography? Unlikely.

We had Amazon but didnt care for the quality either..or the fact that it kept freezing..(hubby does IT Support) so we know it wasnt the net..however they did have a great selection of movies and shows...We ended up cancelling our subscription...I am still pleased with the Roku and of course Netflix and we also stream alot of different things from the internet...sorry you had problems..:( maybe try Netflix...or Crackle...see what you think about those...FYI...We didnt like Hulu...it was poor quality as well...our TV is 55 and Plasma as well...but even on the Computer monitor...Amazon and Hulu I can still see the pixels..
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