04-18-2009, 02:59 AM
Wags wrote:
I'm looking for a media center machine to do these things:
Record OFA HD content without a monthly fee (understand this will require additional hardware, such as Eye TV)
Stream TV off the web through Hulu or the network sites through my wireless network
Play DVD's, (Blu-ray)
I've been looking at getting a dedicated Mac Mini to do the same thing but here's where I think Apple is lagging behind: no Blu-ray player, no HDMI outputs, no surround sound outputs. How hard would that be?...Apple gives me no options.
Apple does give you a very good option: Apple TV--$229.
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/sh...y/apple_tv
Apple TV includes 802.11n wireless and provides HD video (720p24) HDMI output with HDCP compatibility and full, discrete multi-channel audio output via optical audio ports. Apple TV is super-compact, totally silent, and energy efficient. It provides lots of functionality easily accessed via a slick dedicated interface. There are plug-ins and add-ons (e..g Boxee) to provide access to services like Hulu.
EyeTV software integrates nicely with iTunes/Apple TV.
You'll need to provide an optical disc player separately although once you start using Apple TV and associated services, I suspect such a player will soon suffer from underuse.
I already said I'm willing to pay the Mac tax
Obviously, going the Mac way would save you money compared to going to the dark side.