Clarification on what Apple TV can do

[Tenarrows]

I'm looking for clarification on what Apple TV (and AirPlay) can do. Can you stream anything on your Mac hard drive to your HDTV?

Or can you only stream media files DL from iTunes and stored on the iCloud?

Sometimes I DL content from Amazon for example. Or what about digital camera images transferred to my Mac HD? Can I stream and view folders on my Mac HD to my HDTV?

Can you stream and browse anywhere on the web from your HDTV? Or is it only a select few sites like YouTube and Facebook as mentioned in the description?

Thxs.

 

[Kaveman]

I'm looking for clarification on what Apple TV (and AirPlay) can do. Can you stream anything on your Mac hard drive to your HDTV?

No, it streams anything you can play in iTunes.

Sometimes I DL content from Amazon for example. Or what about digital camera images transferred to my Mac HD? Can I stream and view folders on my Mac HD to my HDTV?

No Just what you put in iTunes

Can you stream and browse anywhere on the web from your HDTV? Or is it only a select few sites like YouTube and Facebook as mentioned in the description?

No just the ones in the description. No web browsing.

this changes with the modern Mac and Mountain Lion, then it can mirror what is on your Mac Screen. I haven't done this.

I love our Apple TV! It does everything I want want more.

 

[Tenarrows]

Thank you very much for answering my questions.

 

[Tenarrows]

Bumping this back up for more clarification. I was watching some instructional videos on YouTube regarding Apple TV. It seems your purchased content from iTunes Store are streamed from the servers and not your HD. Is this correct? If so what happens if Apple removes content you already purchased from their servers? Lets say they drop a film or television series from their store? Can I still play the content I previously purchased?

 

[Kaveman]

This is not correct. It can do BOTH, stream from their servers and stream from any number of computers with iTunes.

Just because something is no longer for sale doesn't mean they will remove it from their servers. Yes, you can still play the purchased content.

We buy/rent our movies from the store on our Macmini, download them and stream them from there, because our broadband is not fast enough for streaming HD.

 

[Tenarrows]

Thank you Kaveman. I think you answered the last of my concerns. I've been considering the purchase for a year and a half. I much prefer to watch my iTunes content on my HD Television than my Mac. Think I am ready to take the plunge.

 

[Kaveman]

We love ours, use it all the time!

 

[Jeffery West]

This is not correct. It can do BOTH, stream from their servers and stream from any number of computers with iTunes.

Just because something is no longer for sale doesn't mean they will remove it from their servers. Yes, you can still play the purchased content.

We buy/rent our movies from the store on our Macmini, download them and stream them from there, because our broadband is not fast enough for streaming HD.

Kaveman, you clearly know the Airplay world, so may I ask you how to get my airplay output to play in both channels of my audio system. MBPro, 2.26GhzIntelCore2Duo/8gig men/OSX 10.9.1.

 

[Kaveman]

Your problem may be from the AppleTV to your sound system. AirPlay is not "stereo" its digital, the signal comes down as a single file, if it's going out the optical or HDMI it stays digital and is decoded by the end device, Amp or TV. The only time the AppleTV outputs Analog is if you are using the Optical out for wired out signal, this plug needs to be correct, but it's standard.
So I would look to either the digital source file is not 2 channel, the Amp/TV has a channel problem, or the Analogue cable is not the right one.

If the digital files coming down has 5+ channel data such as movies, and receiver is able to, it can decode it to all those channels, not limited to 2 channel.

I just tested my system!

 

[Tenarrows]

We love ours, use it all the time!

Just a follow up. I've had my Apple TV for about a year now. I enjoy it immensely and use it every day. For watching my iTunes purchases, listening to iTunes music, as my device for streaming Netflix, (It's the only device I've had success in streaming Netflix flawlessly on a regular basis.) Their "Watch Now" and "Go" apps are growing. One of the best investments I've ever made.

 

[Ormond]

I just discovered the Airplay connection to AppleTV today. I only used it long enough to see the connection was successfully made. It looked to me the same as connecting the TV to the Mac with cables and using it as a 2nd monitor. Am I missing something? Is there more to it, or less?

 

[Cory Cooper]

Correct...AirPlay is a great thing. It not only allows mirroring or extended desktop from a compatible Mac, but you can stream audio and video, which I do on a regular basis.

In addition, it's a great tool for the education and business worlds.

Use AirPlay to display video from your Mac on an HDTV

C

 

[Ormond]

Correct...AirPlay is a great thing. It not only allows mirroring or extended desktop from a compatible Mac, but you can stream audio and video, which I do on a regular basis.

So it's the same thing as a cabled connection between the two devices? If yes, that will be handy here.