Product ReviewsApple TV (1st Generation) 40GB Media Streamer - A1218

jailbroken has many great positives but is not always the answer

We love many things about the three jailbroken apple TV's we have. The biggest issue is streaming. Sometimes it is great and sometimes it stops and starts. We would love live TV and many shows don't work. Easy to use once you spend a lot of time. Overall experience is positive. It can replace Netflix and is better. Still trying to figure out how we can replace cable TV.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: familytree2007

Too outdated to be of much use.

This version of Apple TV was so limited and proprietary that it is of little use with anything modern. I was hoping to be able to at least use it to view YouTube on an older television. You would have to have composite video inputs on an older TV, although the analog audio outs could be useful if connecting to an older analog stereo system. This might be the only saving grace of this device.
There are hacks available for modifying the device to using XBMC, but the box has limited RAM on it so that it is smaller than a Raspberry Pi, which might be more appropriate for XBMC.
YouTube does not appear to function on the device. You have to run this with a computer using iTunes to get any content to stream to it. It is nothing as functional as the more recent generations of Apple TV.
Had I known how limited this was, I would not have purchased one. I expected it to be somewhat lesser than Apple TV 2, but this is practically obsolete.
It won't run Netflix. I won't connect to YouTube. I couldn't even get it to Airplay from my iPhone.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: peteytexas

Great for an iTunes junky but...

This device works great out of the box and plugging it in was a breeze but you need to have an iTunes account and you can only watch Apple-provided content or formated for Apple TV(you either bought it or received it in this format). This being the first generation, it was a kick-ass menu-driven device, smoother than my popcorn hour but less usable to my house-hold since I do not want to re-format our video collection to play on this device. This is perfect for someone with out any experience with AV hard drives or popcorn hour. The Youtube interface was quick over the built-in wireless (I have cable modem). It can interface with your existing iTunes account on a desktop or laptop and play that content if it is shared.
On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a solid 6, the dings being from proprietary video formats only.

Note: There are hacks available for this device that allow you to play other video formats and use other codecs. Some are pretty easy and found with a little searching. Remember, Google is your friend, sometimes.Read full review...

Apple TV Gen 1

Well for those of you who like iTunes and purchase music/movies/tv shows this is a perfect item. If you like to watch other HD types of shows that are not purchased through iTunes you may want to reconsider this item, even with added enhancements that can be added to the system to give you access to Boxee, XBMC, Netflix the unit is lacking.

It will not play media well that does not match Apple Tv's exact specifications, the output stutters, loses audio sync etc. You better off looking at other digital media players. You can add a Broadcom Crystal HD video card but you end up losing the built in wireless aspect of the unit and although it does play media better, it's still not perfect, going by research, did not personally install the unit.

But what it does well, of course, is run all your media from iTunes and if you do not modify the unit with the mentioned enhancements, it is a great little product. For the hardcore media junkies, it's most likely not going to meet your standards.Read full review...

Two thumbs up for First Generation Apple TV player.

I purchased a first generation Apple TV mainly for its hard drive and its ability to store data. I have an extensive music library which is now loaded with over 7,500 songs, assorted home videos and a proprietary photo collection that it flips through as a screen saver.

Super simple to plug and play and easily links to your Apple store ID. The remote is simple and there are plenty of ports for hook up to various TV and stereo equipment.

Unfortunately the video and other media content in Canada is limited so selecting a movie to rent is disappointing. This same issue also applies to Netflix and local Cable TV providers.

I recommend the Apple TV first generation for its ease of use, content storage capacity, the Apple store and seamless integration to other Apple products, libraries and multi media content.

Two thumbs up and they are a great deal on eBay.Read full review...

Good hardware...after adding boxee(xbmc) would give it 5 stars.

I bought this product after we had to cut our cable. I only paid 40 dollars for it and that was only half of month of our previous cable. I use it to stream our collection of tv shows and movies from our computers. I also use it so we can watch netflix, hulu, and other services. Stock the product wasn't so great, limited functions, and mostly paid(high price) shows and movies. By adding Boxee we opened a whole new world. I love streaming Pandora while doing chores and then coming back to watch movies on netflix and tv shows straight from the company(cbs, nbc, etc) I don't mind the commericals because, heck we were pretty much paying to watch commericals with cable. I also looked at the Roku box before this purchase. I decided the ATV over Roku and google because I could add Boxee(and xbmc) to increase the features with a limited price.Read full review...

apple tv (version 1)

the designed use of the apple tv is ok, but rather expensive. there are several tutorials on how to install boxee and xbmc, which is very easy, and radically increases the usefulness of this device. boxee is not as smooth as anybody would like with flash media playback right now, but xbmc is able to stream every content type that i've thrown at it, including 1080p mpeg2 streams captured from cable television. this device makes a fantastic, reasonably priced mythtv front end via xbmc. this device will replace the xbox that i modified to use with mythtv.Read full review...

I LOVE MY APPLE TV!!!

I bought this product because I do not like the hassle of DVDs and I already have an ipod with a few movies. I chose the first Gen. rather then the second Gen. because this has a hard drive. I decided to make the move to buying my movies and tv shows from itunes for this little device almost a year ago and I have never looked back! 160 GB hold plenty of memory, I have 23 movies (some HD) and about 30 television shows and still have about 30 GB left. The quality looks great on my tv and the interface is extremely user friendly! Although, I had trouble with my firewire and syncing my movies to my Apple TV, but I went online and fixed it pretty easy. The biggest down part to the APPLE TV is that there is not on/off switch. It will go to standby and you can hear a slight "HUM" from the internal fan.

PROS: WORKS GREAT, EASY TO USE, AND GOOD VIDEO QUALITY.
CONS: SLIGHT HUM AND NO OFF BUTTON!

I DO LOVE THIS MACHINE!Read full review...

Good but far from perfect

As all hacker software, this allows you to do just what you want but it runs with some quirks. Some links seem quick to disappear but others seem to work rock solid. Use ability is simple with this skin but there is a learning curve on adjustments. Overall an awesome item and an amazing time saver over diy.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: scconsign

Works great

I wanted a Video hub for long trips, with 160gb I can fit a few movies, or tether it to my data plan, now we can have peace of mind while traveling with the little ones while they use the apple tv on the rear video screensRead full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: evalueexpo