Apple TV

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The interface
Most video-enabled network media devices have an onscreen interface that could best be described as serviceable--blocky text on monochromatic backgrounds that take you from one series of hard-to-navigate menus to the next. (A notable exception is the media boxes offered by Escient, such as the FireBall E2, but they're considerably pricier than the Apple TV.) Not surprisingly, the Apple TV's interface is a thing of beauty--exactly what you'd expect from the company that's been a trailblazer for interface and aesthetic design in the fields of computer hardware, software, and now, consumer electronics. The onscreen display looks just like a scaled-up iPod menu, with all of the familiar choices on the main menu--movies, TV shows, music, podcasts, and photos. Settings also are available for changing configuration options and connecting to new PCs. But unlike a narrow-screen iPod, the Apple TV uses the left half of the widescreen display to show contextual graphics--album art for music, logos for podcasts, posters and cover shots for movies and TV shows, and so forth.

Diving into submenus and pulling back out to main menus is--again--as simple and intuitive as doing so on your iPod: Use the center play/pause button to select, plus/minus to move up and down a list, and menu to go back. When you enter a submenu or linger on, say, a movie selection, the graphic will pull back to show a short summary with relevant information (including running time, rating, and the like). Otherwise, the system uses subtle animations and the iTunes "cover flow" effect to showcase your digital media. It's all very cool, very slick, and very Apple.

After a few seconds of inactivity, the system will default to a screensaver that consists of a cavalcade of your photos, or a default set of natural landscapes. Any keystroke brings it back to life. Similarly, playing music shows the relevant cover art, if available, and the system will quickly flip-flop it from one side of the screen to the other. In other words, Apple TV is careful to ensure that plasma TV owners won't find album art, titles, or photos burned into their screen.

Another nice usability touch to the system is smart resume. Apple TV remembers where you stopped watching a movie or a TV show--even if it was being watched in iTunes on your laptop. Returning to a previously watched video file gives you an option to resume from that point, or start from the beginning.

Because the Apple TV has live access to the Internet--something no pre-iPhone iPod could muster--it does have a few extra options you won't find on your Apple portable. Movie and TV trailers, for example, are available for streaming live, straight off the Web. There was one curious omission, however: Unlike iTunes, you can't get streaming Internet radio stations on your Apple TV.