I do think the future is from the web, not the DVR, but right now a PVR is the simplest way to easily record and watch the shows I want.

I have used bittorrent, apple tv, sage and Beyond TV, and own 2 Dish DVR units. My satellite tv provider makes it happen so much easier. Convenience is what I am paying for.

That being said, I would LOVE replace my satellite providers monthly DVR fees for something else. But nothing is as easy.

I have referenced your post on a post on my blog here: http://phatphotographer.com/?p=77

As it stands today, my top two ways (and I’m an early adopter) of getting content to my television are through a DVR and through Netflix.

AppleTV can not accomodate either of these methods at present.

memeslider,

I do hear what you are saying though and actually what you are saying makes me think.

I could actually envision a future in my life where I cancelled my broadcast service and just existed on a diet of Netflix and OTA HDTV. But it will still be convenient for me to have a DVD player on the unit connected to my HDTV extender unit and a DVR to capture my OTA content to stream to my TV box device.

I still think the XBox 360 does a better job at this than AppleTV and it is also a kick ass gaming console.

Also, iTunes is still the backbone of the AppleTV experience, and as long as iTunes does such a horrible job with my media library — Apple *please* let your users disable gapless playback and album art as an option — it’s difficult for me to get excited about building a strategy around AppleTV.

While that is true, it doesn’t support your point that Microsoft’s product Does It and Apple’s Does Not. Neither product is a DVR.

I am an Executive Producer at a company that owns a few cable networks. I help create design packages, promos, interstitials, etc. for these networks. I say this because I know that my days in network promotions are numbered. We really don’t need broadcast networks anymore.

As a consumer however, I feel like I am being overcharged for Comcast’s cable TV service. I really only appreciate the premium shows from HBO, Showtime, etc. The other channels are not worth much to me, but I am saddled with them just to get to the Premium tiers. And all I care about are the shows. The content. Not one iota about the network that delivers it.

Doing the math I spend about $1200 a year just on cable TV. Written out, that seems like a lot of money! Why? So I can record a few shows on my DVR? I am happier waiting for the entire season of Dexter to be available on DVD and then watching the whole season in a weekend. I’m a little surprised at this, but I enjoy the show more.

I am beginning to see the value in dumping cable TV and getting a box that will play video files. Files that I buy from iTunes, make myself or, in the not-too-distant future, purchase and download directly from the content producers themselves.

So no more networks… just an internet connection and content. What use then, is a DVR?

You will not see DVR functionality in the Apple TV. Ever. Because Steve knows what I know and will use his company’s resources to design for the future and accelerate the change.

Meanwhile, I better get writing on my show ideas, I’m going to be out of a job soon!

I use my cable service to watch a couple of series. Period. Why bother getting a DVR if I can pay 1.99 and download the episode I want to watch…when I decided to watch, without commercials and without worrying about setting the thing up to record my show?

I watch lots of movies, which I download ripped from BitTorrent for free, watch, and delete. I wouldn’t mind paying 3.99 for having an instant download, better image quality and proper subtitles when needed. But I haven’t rented a DVD for myself in years.

Plus, if I can watch so much independent, creative youtube videos and podcasts, why would I ever care about most of the garbage produced nowadays for TV? Seriously, take out series and movies…what is left?

I think they see what the future will be, and are pushing it instead of supporting old models.

Assuming that the online rental have a decent selection of movies, I’ll cancel my cable subscription and buy an Apple TV the day the service becomes available in Canada.

I could easily be wrong but I’ve yet to see a video streaming service be anywhere close to “instant” when under load, especially if you add HD and most people’s slow internet connections into the mix.

The reason a DVR is important is because without it I never would have watched ‘Life’ (great show), nor would I have seen the wonderful movie ‘The Barefoot Contessa’ with Bogart and Gardner. TV watching to me and my wife is still very much an impulse thing and torrenting or buying episodes makes me think about my time and money. Is watching a new show worth the $2 and download time? Nah, not really. There are a slew of Discovery shows I never would have watched without a DVR and I know for a fact that my wife is too addicted to ‘Heroes’ to wait until the next day to buy it yet we’re rarely ready to watch TV at 8pm. I’ll gladly put up with skipping commercials to have instant, legal and cheap access to whatever I recorded.

One thing I find funny is that trancemist and philip aren’t actually saying anything positive about AppleTV, instead just taking issue with DVR. There are better and cheaper video streamers on the market, the 360 being the best one IMHO, and if all they do is get their content illegally via BitTorrent and stream it to a box next to their TV then that’s a ringing endorsement for streamer, not anything AppleTV does uniquely.