In many ways, Apple's media-streaming solution, the Apple TV, was ahead of its time. Launched in 2007, it predated what has become a wave of AV-centric network products, designed to sit on your LAN and provide access to video and audio.

Being an Apple product, the unit is predictably sweet and minimalist, even if the spec isn't mouth-watering (256RAM, 40GB HDD). In practice, neither is an issue, as the bulk of your content won't be on the Apple device, but on a capacious hard drive somewhere else on your network.

In use the Apple TV is quiet and connectivity is good – choose from HDMI, component video, stereo audio and digital optical. You can take it online via Ethernet or wi-fi (I chose the former).

Apple tv connections

The interface is simple and intuitive. But unless you are a dedicated Mac evangelist, its appeal is severely limited. Apple TV syncs with your iTunes library and hooks up to the iTunes store, and can play mainstream audio formats.

However, its video file support is very limited. If your video collection contains DivX, XviD, WMV or MKV, you'll need to look elsewhere. There's also the much reported 4GB file limit and 5Mbps bitrate cap, so this is not a machine optimised for HD.

AppleTV menu

BASIC MENU: Apple simple main menu - with our additions (click here for high res version)

For a non-Apple user (like myself), the most fun the device offers is browsing Apple's movie trailers or looking at popular clips on YouTube. So should you pass it by?

Strangely enough, no. Because it's relatively easy to hack this streamer, giving it the kind of functionality Apple doesn't build into the box. A patch which installs XBMC (Xbox Media Centre) and an open-source multimedia software package called Boxee (created by some of the folks behind the XBMC project) will transform this unit into a must-have AV device. The good news is that hacking the Apple TV is not a difficult procedure, and is detailed on a variety of websites.

Essentially you need to download a Linux USB flash drive creator, called atvusb-creator (choose your OS flavour), and install it on a spare 1GB USB stick to create a bootable patchstick which re-flashes the Apple TV device.

For Windows users, creating this patchstick is actually more of a faff than flashing the Apple box. In a nutshell, this is the routine for Vista users: unzip your atvusb download and double-click on the mk.atv-xbmc-ssh Windows batch file. This runs automatically to give you the USB Image Tool. From this you can install a bootable image of the firmware patch onto the USB stick.

On the Apple TV itself, first check for any Apple updates, and install them. Then power down the Apple box, insert the patchstick, and power back up. The Apple TV will now boot from the USB. You'll know it's worked when you see a graphic of Tux, the Linux penguin, sitting on the Apple box.

The patch itself is installed in a matter of seconds. Once done, power down the Apple device and remove the USB. When you reboot, the Apple TV will start as usual, but the menu will sport two new items: XBMC and Boxee. Check for updates to both of these. Once done, you're good to go – Apple TV has a new lease of life.

XBMC interface

MEDIA MARVEL:XBMC expands your media support significantly (click here for high res version)