10 ms·

The more interesting news is the release of the SDK for the AppleTV. This opens new possibilities.

by athenot 11y ago

ecliptik 11y ago
Plex?
- some-guy 11y ago
  If Plex is supported on the new Apple TV, I will switch right away.
  - thehodge 11y ago
    I can see Plex being in the app store (it's in the iOS app store) but the siri integration would be killer but can't see it happening sadly.
  - sbarre 11y ago
    Let me introduce you to PlexConnect, if you'd like to use your current Apple TV as a Plex client: https://github.com/iBaa/PlexConnect https://github.com/iBaa/PlexConnect
    - acqq 11y ago
      Looks like a brilliant hacker's solution. Thanks.
  - reportingsjr 11y ago
    The nexus player has plex, voice integration, games, etc and is half the price. I highly, highly, highly! recommend it. https://www.google.com/nexus/player/ https://www.google.com/nexus/player/
    - fps 11y ago
      Plex on AndroidTV is a different interface than the version that exists on FireTV. It's more polished than the FireTV version, but the recent additions to all the plex apps around recommendations really annoy me. I don't want Plex to try to be Netflix, I want it to show me unwatched videos in one section and all videos in another section, and that's basically it. Plex on iOS does the same thing, though, so my guess is that Plex on the apple TV won't be better.
    - Brian-Puccio 11y ago
      Is the Plex on Android on Nexus Player experience better than the Plex on Android on Amazon Fire TV experience? I'm very unhappy with my Amazon Fire TV (which only exists for Plex purposes).
      - chambo622 11y ago
        Yes. Plex's Android TV app is very slick. I was impressed.
  - untog 11y ago
    It's already on the Roku, and I'm very happy with it.
  - lobster_johnson 11y ago
    Plex runs great on iOS devices, so this is probably a low-hanging fruit (to port). I did try out the Plex app that runs on the Amazon Fire box (Android), but it was slow and didn't feel very nice. Not sure if that's because it's a different, less-optimized codebase, or the Fire is just underpowered.
malchow 11y ago
Will the new Apple TV be able to play arbitrary files over a network? That would be simply fantastic -- but unlikely.
- superuser2 11y ago
  Apple is in the business of selling legal content through iTunes, and to my knowledge there is no way of legally obtaining non-DRMed video files of movies or TV shows. Making piracy more convenient would be a surprising move. However, I wouldn't be surprised if someone was able to use the SDK to write a XBMC-like app.
  - robotresearcher 11y ago
    VLC is available from the App Store now. And you can make your own movies or license them from creators in various ways other than the general releases. Also in many places other than the US it is legal to rip content that you bought legally.
    - superuser2 11y ago
      You can indeed make your own movies, and a way to stream from Final Cut to your Apple TV is sorely lacking - AirPlay is too choppy. However, playing generic video files is just about the worst way to support this capability, because you can expect to wait 2-10 hours for your movie to render to a file, even on top-end hardware. The more "Apple" solution to this problem is streaming to an Apple TV app hooked into the Final Cut preview mechanism. You can license movies from creators in ways other than the general release, and I have worked with content obtained this way in auditorium film screenings. You definitely wouldn't use an Apple TV for that, though, you use high-end rackmount DVD/Blu-Ray players, HDCP media servers, or specialized cue playback software so that the audience doesn't see you fumbling with controls - they're on a dedicated interface. Granted there are scenarios other than public exhibition, but if it's for consumption in your living room then it's pretty much by definition general release. Apple is one of the first movers in killing physical media. At this point I don't think you can even buy a Mac with a built-in DVD drive; facilitating playback of ripped DVDs would be pretty low on the priority list. Closest thing I can anticipate would be a way to play videos from your Photos library - intended for the ones you shot on your iPhone. It would probably be possible to import an unencumbered video file there, and stream it across your house with Home Sharing, which has been built into the iLife suite for a few years.
heyitskevin 11y ago
Link to that discussion https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10193715 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10193715

The more interesting news is the release of the SDK for the AppleTV. This opens new possibilities.

by athenot 11y ago

The more interesting news is the release of the SDK for the AppleTV. This opens new possibilities.

ecliptik 11y ago

Plex?

some-guy 11y ago
If Plex is supported on the new Apple TV, I will switch right away.
- thehodge 11y ago
  I can see Plex being in the app store (it's in the iOS app store) but the siri integration would be killer but can't see it happening sadly.
- sbarre 11y ago
  Let me introduce you to PlexConnect, if you'd like to use your current Apple TV as a Plex client: https://github.com/iBaa/PlexConnect https://github.com/iBaa/PlexConnect
  - acqq 11y ago
    Looks like a brilliant hacker's solution. Thanks.
- reportingsjr 11y ago
  The nexus player has plex, voice integration, games, etc and is half the price. I highly, highly, highly! recommend it. https://www.google.com/nexus/player/ https://www.google.com/nexus/player/
  - fps 11y ago
    Plex on AndroidTV is a different interface than the version that exists on FireTV. It's more polished than the FireTV version, but the recent additions to all the plex apps around recommendations really annoy me. I don't want Plex to try to be Netflix, I want it to show me unwatched videos in one section and all videos in another section, and that's basically it. Plex on iOS does the same thing, though, so my guess is that Plex on the apple TV won't be better.
  - Brian-Puccio 11y ago
    Is the Plex on Android on Nexus Player experience better than the Plex on Android on Amazon Fire TV experience? I'm very unhappy with my Amazon Fire TV (which only exists for Plex purposes).
    - chambo622 11y ago
      Yes. Plex's Android TV app is very slick. I was impressed.
- untog 11y ago
  It's already on the Roku, and I'm very happy with it.
- lobster_johnson 11y ago
  Plex runs great on iOS devices, so this is probably a low-hanging fruit (to port). I did try out the Plex app that runs on the Amazon Fire box (Android), but it was slow and didn't feel very nice. Not sure if that's because it's a different, less-optimized codebase, or the Fire is just underpowered.

malchow 11y ago

Will the new Apple TV be able to play arbitrary files over a network? That would be simply fantastic -- but unlikely.

superuser2 11y ago
Apple is in the business of selling legal content through iTunes, and to my knowledge there is no way of legally obtaining non-DRMed video files of movies or TV shows. Making piracy more convenient would be a surprising move. However, I wouldn't be surprised if someone was able to use the SDK to write a XBMC-like app.
- robotresearcher 11y ago
  VLC is available from the App Store now. And you can make your own movies or license them from creators in various ways other than the general releases. Also in many places other than the US it is legal to rip content that you bought legally.
  - superuser2 11y ago
    You can indeed make your own movies, and a way to stream from Final Cut to your Apple TV is sorely lacking - AirPlay is too choppy. However, playing generic video files is just about the worst way to support this capability, because you can expect to wait 2-10 hours for your movie to render to a file, even on top-end hardware. The more "Apple" solution to this problem is streaming to an Apple TV app hooked into the Final Cut preview mechanism. You can license movies from creators in ways other than the general release, and I have worked with content obtained this way in auditorium film screenings. You definitely wouldn't use an Apple TV for that, though, you use high-end rackmount DVD/Blu-Ray players, HDCP media servers, or specialized cue playback software so that the audience doesn't see you fumbling with controls - they're on a dedicated interface. Granted there are scenarios other than public exhibition, but if it's for consumption in your living room then it's pretty much by definition general release. Apple is one of the first movers in killing physical media. At this point I don't think you can even buy a Mac with a built-in DVD drive; facilitating playback of ripped DVDs would be pretty low on the priority list. Closest thing I can anticipate would be a way to play videos from your Photos library - intended for the ones you shot on your iPhone. It would probably be possible to import an unencumbered video file there, and stream it across your house with Home Sharing, which has been built into the iLife suite for a few years.

heyitskevin 11y ago

Link to that discussion https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10193715 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10193715