Apple TV with iOS 4.4.3 - Entertainment - Television

The iOS 4.4.3 update brings myriad of new features to the Apple TV. This update is for the 2010 model that dumped the hard disk storage for flash storage. Apple put in a lot of innovations into it. First, they reduced its size considerably and halved its price. So what is Apple TV? It is a media box that is designed to use with a Mac computer and iTunes.

The Apple TV is great for use with Netflix, which is a popular streaming service in the US. It streams popular TV programmes and movies for a monthly fee. Unfortunately, if you live outside the US, Apple TV would not be of much benefit to you as Netflix is not available elsewhere. That said, you will still be able to stream your iTunes library without wires. So, you can buy or rent movies online and stream them wireless to your TV via Apple TV. To connect to the Internet, you can use the built in 802.11n Wireless LAN. You can also make use of Gigabit Ethernet port which would let you use your regular RJ45 cable to get online.

The 4.4.3 update adds new features like National Hockey League Content, Photo Stream, Wall Street Journal Live and iTunes Trailers. For most, the most important addition is AirPlay mirroring support. The company has also added support for a new service called iTunes match which allows you to upload up to 20,000 songs to the Apple's servers and then listen to them on any iOS device that is connected to the Internet.

When we talk about videos and streaming, keep in mind that this hardware can only process 720p video. There is no 1080p (full HD) support, so the video may not look very crisp on your 1080p HDTV. The main reason behind this is the fact that it is powered by Apple A4 processor that does not supports decoding of full HD video. This feature was added in iPhone 4s and iPad 2, both of which run on the newer and more powerful Apple A5 chip. The next hardware update will surely bring the A5 chip the Apple TV and then, the users will be able to view 1920 x 1080 videos.

Apple TV, like other iOS devices like iPhone and iPad, can be jailbreaked. However, the jailbreak is tethered in nature. This means you will have to follow the jailbreak steps again if it restarts or is powered off.

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