I am an Apple critic that has long bemoaned their practice of trying to lock people into their walled garden. In the past, I used gaming consoles to stream, wh

I am an Apple critic that has long bemoaned their practice of trying to lock people into their walled garden. In the past, I used gaming consoles to stream, which I thought worked well. I finally, angrily caved and bought an Apple TV because I had an app (LFC TV) that would only stream via AirPlay. After using it for a bit, I have to say I love the thing. I liked it so much that I bought a second for my other TV. Reasons: - Build quality. The remote is machined aluminum and feels like a weapon. - HDMI CEC implementation. I used HCMI CEC on the consoles I owned, but there was always something that didn't work quite right. The Apple TV seems to nail it on both setups I have YMMV. - AirPlay. This one makes me a little angry, but if you find a need to stream from an iPhone, the Apple TV is pretty much the only game in town.