[mythtv-users] Apple TV FE with DVD Player?

[Brad DerManouelian]

On Jun 22, 2008, at 1:13 AM, Jeff Walther wrote:

> I've been reading the postings about using the Apple TV as a Front
> End with great interest.
>
> Then I looked at the Apple TV more closely on Apple's site and it
> does not appear to have a DVD drive.  I guess you're meant to get all
> your media on line, which seems a little silly to me, but what do I
> know about marketing (answer:  very little).

I think it's funny that someone who runs mythtv doesn't see the value  
in having a box without a DVD drive. You've got a powerful media  
system based on central storage for all your media. You should take  
advantage of that by ripping DVD's somewhere else and then playing  
them back on your frontend where you don't have to bother popping in a  
DVD and hear the whirring of the drive, etc. That aside....

> Would there be any obstacle to attaching an external DVD player or
> DVD-R drive to the Apple TV through the USB 2.0 port and using it
> with MythDVD?   It kind of spoils the one-box philosophy, but it
> would still be pretty compact altogether.

This will work.

> I'm in the research and learning phase of setting up a MythTV front
> end and back end, and am still exploring the options to figure out
> what best suits my needs.   It sure looks like the Apple TV could do
> everything I want in a front end at a lower price than I can build a
> quiet attactive PC, except that it does not have a DVD player.

The Mac mini is also a relatively inexpensive computer that will run  
linux without hacking the partitions and boot loader. It has a DVD  
drive. What it might cost you in dollars over building your own, you  
will save in time and know that you're getting as small a footprint as  
possible in an incredibly silent case.