Badly dubbed adverts really annoy me. Faintly sinister firms make an advert for shoes or yoghurts or incomprehensible children's toys in Germany, and instead of filming a new version for the UK they just do a half-arsed bit of dubbing that doesn't even attempt to match the mouths to the sounds they're supposed to be making. "Oh, who cares," the advertisers think. "It's only the UK."
The Apple TV is a bit like that.
I like the idea of the Apple TV, but like those European adverts something goes horribly wrong when it has to cross the sea to get to Britain.
The price goes up for starters - $99 becomes £99, which either means VAT went up to 50% last night when nobody was looking or Apple's taking the mickey - but more importantly, many of the good bits disappear.
If you look at the US page for the Apple TV, there's a whole section dedicated to HD TV Shows: "Instant TV rentals. Just 99c." On the UK page, there isn't anything. That's because Apple doesn't have the UK deals in place to deliver TV rentals, so there's a big hole in the Apple TV's feature list.
Film rentals aren't much better. Fancy renting Chris Morris's Four Lions? You can't: it's buy-only. Hot Tub Time Machine? Buy only. Zombieland? Buy only. Anchorman? Buy only.
Paying more for less
Apple isn't the only firm who doesn't have the right deals in place for the UK - while things are improving, Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace, now Zune Video, spent a long time with a selection of films that would look rubbish on petrol station shelves, never mind a flagship video service - but it does mean that Apple is charging UK customers considerably more than US customers for a device and associated service that does considerably less.
Video on the Xbox 360 is a handy optional extra on a games console, but the whole point of the Apple TV is to be a home entertainment hub.
I know it's not really Apple's fault - the deals or lack of deals is down to negotiations between Apple and the various film studios and TV companies - but I don't really care: no matter who's to blame, the result is the same. It doesn't even have iPlayer, which rather bizarrely means that for me, my iPhone is a better TV device than an Apple TV is.
What's really frustrating about this for me is that I really want a home entertainment hub: the day I can throw my Sky box in a skip and enjoy high definition television at a reasonable price with an interface that doesn't suck giant monkey balls will be one of the happiest days in home entertainment history.
I really want an Apple TV: it's just that I don't want the one Apple is currently making. In the UK at least it's a Windows Media Center rival, a channel changer instead of a game changer.
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Your comments (8) Click to add a new comment
somethingmissing
September 30th 2010
8. Okay, firstly, the price hike for the UK is clearly outrageous.
And so are the standards of knowledge behind this piece.
Everyone who knows anything knows that it's highly likely iOS 4.2 will push any H.264 video from iOS device to Apple TV, meaning that if you have an iOS device you can stream BBC iPlayer content off it onto your telly. Lazy, lazy muppetry. Tech journalism indeed.
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lovlid
September 7th 2010
7. @ onerichie.
apple took the bashing because because they first, denied the phone had a problem, then told us that other companies had the same problem, but omitting the fact that companies like nokia tell us the very same thing in their phones manuals - using diagrams, pointing out where the antenna/s are - then releasing a non fix, fix.
But mostly they took the bashing because steve jobs told the world they were holding it wrong.
Off topic,,,sorry.
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onerichie
September 6th 2010
6. @volatileacid: Looks like you were so eager to call me a fanboy (an accusation that I will rebuke in a second) that you completely misunderstood what I was saying, as did garymarshall. I don't mean that the article ignored the idea of an exchange rate and that's the reason for the $99 to £99 issue; I'm agreeing with the article in that Apple ignored the exchange rate in doing that, and then I went on to say that I don't know why they did but there is probably a reason as other companies do it too. I didn't make that clear obviously.
As for the fanboy thing, I don't know why defending Apple on an issue makes me a fanboy. I happen to like the Apple TV and disagreed with the articles view on it, so I expressed an opinion that contained valid points....how does that make me a fanboy?
I also stand by my point that the antenna fiasco was unfair...other phones do it too. Why should Apple take a bashing constantly because they A: Ignore exchange rates when pricing products for sale in an international market and B: Manufacture a phone that has weak points in reception, when other companies do exactly the same thing? That was the crux of my argument.
So my argument doesn't fail, I am not a fanboy, I do understand what an exchange rate is and I don't need to go back to school.
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garymarshall
September 5th 2010
5. Onerichie, it's not the exchange rate. No other apple product has dollar to pound pricing that I'm aware of.
> here's an idea: WAIT
Isn't that what I'm arguing? I'm saying that on the basis if what it does right now, in the uk it's a bad buy. Once the deals are in place I'll change my mind - but I think it'll be a long time before I have to. TV giants don't want to give apple the power it has in music.
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volatileacid
September 5th 2010
4. Oh no, another Apple biased fanboy.
OneRichie you pleblington, there is no exchange rate that makes $99 equate to £99 - go back to school you fail, as does your entire argument.
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onerichie
September 2nd 2010
3. Here's an idea: WAIT. You can't expect a massive, perfectly complete library of rentals one day after the bloody thing is announced. There will be more UK content to follow, and more and more "Buy Only" content will become rental, providing this takes off.
And the price issue, $99 magically becoming £99, ignoring the concept of an exchange rate? It's not just Apple that do that. I don't know why it happens but it does and there is probably a reason. Don't bash them for something that most companies do. Just like the "Antenna-gate" nonsense all over again; people attacking Apple specifically for a fault that occurs in all phones.
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caimbeul
September 2nd 2010
2. It IS Apples fault! I bet that if Apple were not being so Greedy and control freeky that many more deals would have been sorted long ago.
Lets face it, Apple ALWAYS shafts the UK. Just look at the hardware pricing of all of its products. There is no justification for the difference in pricing NONE. The problem is is that Appl eis so big and that the have so many followers that are dumb, blind sheep that it keeps gettign away with it.
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bubbahotepuk
September 2nd 2010
1. @a.n.other - You've more or less described a Playstation 3 - which of course also has the benefit of PVR with PlayTV, DNLA for home streaming, video playback from USB, and a legit streaming/rental/purchase service via PSN (not to mention all the new Qriocity stuff coming), superb audio output options etc.
AppleTV suddenly looks a bit of a lame duck against that, even with the lowish price point.
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