[miffed]

What do you reckon folks ?

Would it be possible to get a Mac mini & connect it to my 37" HD LCD TV & use front row - or would I be better off with Apple TV ?

I realise the latter is actually designed for the job - but I can't help thinking I could use this as excuse to migrate a Mac from my study to the living room ?:D

what would you do ? - (or would I not be able to connect the Mini to the TV anyway ? making it a non starter ? )

[Hands0n]

I'm not sure, at this time, what Apple TV does that Mac Mini doesn't. But, given the choice I would probably opt for the Mac Mini at this time.

Connecting to the TV shoudl be a doddle if you have a HD LCD TV - these normally sport a number of connections, not the least being the standard 15-pin VGA connector. There should also be either a DVI or HDMI connector on the set, either way you can hook up the set to a HD-quality output from the Mac Mini (or Apple TV if you decide to go that way). Adapters between DVI and HDMI are readily available these days.

[miffed]

must admit - the more I think about it, the more I think a Mac mini with a wireless keyboard is the way to go !

Will probably only get a cheap one off ebay

......hmmm , there is a 1.25g one there right now for £120 "buy it now"

hmmm :rolleyes:

[Ben]

I'd get Apple TV. Yes, the Mac mini's front row is pretty similar, but I think it'd be better to have all your music, downloaded video etc in one place (ie on your iMac?) and stream it to your TV. I say that because you'll probably be on your main computer when you decide to download music/video, but infront of the big screen when you want to watch it.

However, with a Mac mini you could get an Elgato EyeTV tuner and have the ability to launch TV through front row. You could also set the Mini to automatically connect to a network share and so still store all your music and video content in one place. The only issue I have with this setup is that after adding content to iTunes on one machine I then have to manually add the file to the library on the other (no auto discovery of new content within the library folder) but it's not exactlya biggie.

Either device should perform admirably for the task and both have their unique selling points.

[miffed]

I'd get Apple TV. Yes, the Mac mini's front row is pretty similar, but I think it'd be better to have all your music, downloaded video etc in one place (ie on your iMac?) and stream it to your TV. I say that because you'll probably be on your main computer when you decide to download music/video, but infront of the big screen when you want to watch it.




^^^^ This was my plan ! When I use front row on my Macbook , I can access all the stuff on the the iMac (as "shared music / Photos / movies etc)
,So Id still be able to keep everything on the iMac (or am I missing something ?)

Oh , I admit it ! ....I am just getting a little carried away with the idea of using my 37" TV as a monitor , & pulling a wireless keyboard out from down the side of the sofa :D

..... Not sure the wife is as keen though , she keeps rolling her eyes when I talk about it :rolleyes: