AT&T U-Verse

So we gave in. We ordered AT&T U-verse. Only because they gave us a pretty good deal for a year. So far it hasn't been all that enjoyable. With a few service outages and hiccups with our first bill, I don't believe we'll be sticking with them any further than a year.

The technology is pretty neat but the service just seems very flakey. It's totally dependent on where your house is on the street if you will enjoy the experience or not.

It is worth giving it a shot only because of the low price (initially) and the rewards for joining.

Apple TV

Apple TV = Awesome TV

If you're looking for a device that will play your music, tv shows, and movies; then the Apple TV is a great device to own.

The latest device will allow you to stream and playback 1080p video, but is only useful if you have really high speed connection.  Something over 6mbps is perferred. 

I currently own the 720p version and it's fantastic.  It allows you to playback all your TV shows and Movies straight from iTunes with no need to download them first.  This was my major gripe when I first got it.  I bought a couple of shows and had to wait 45min for it to download to watch it.  No more.  Now with the introduction of iCloud, the Apple TV can stream directly off of iTunes.  No need to have a PC connected.

Some other great features include access to 3rd party services like Netflix, Hulu Plus and Youtube.  Those are the only services i've ever used so I can't speak too much on the other services.

Before I got the Apple TV I relied on the XBox 360 for movies and TV shows from the Zune Marketplace.  Now called Xbox video it is still very similar.  The Microsoft services work great, but when compared to ease and use of the Apple TV, it's hands down.  The Apple TV works much faster than the Xbox.  It instantly turns on when I need it.  Streams my free digital copies that get with my Blu-ray purchases.  That is also another reason I decided to get one.



We go out of our way now to purchase the copy of the movie that contains the digital copy.  Simply so I can stream that movie if I ever needed to.  I also keep a copy of the movie on my home server so it can me easily streamed from other iDevices.

 

If you're looking for an Apple TV, it's a great purchase.  And look out for updates coming.  There are rumors of Apple allowing more 3rd parties to develop apps for the Apple TV.