I’ve also posted about new Apple TV 4th generation here:
Officially Apple is still not selling Apple TV in India through online store or authorised resellers. It is very confusing if somebody gets the Apple TV from outside, will that work or not. What features will work and what will not work ? Will there be any issues in Installing because of different power outlets, Network & TV connectors. I’ll try to answer all these doubts with this write up.
Television is believed to be an Idiot Box which has one way transmission, what ever is channel transmitting, you are consuming. There are hardly any ways to interact with TV. Computers with Internet connection are believed to be very Intelligent Boxes. It is easy to search video content on Internet through YouTube, but unfortunately computers don’t come with larger displays or HiFi sound system. Many people don’t even use desktop computer, instead they have Laptop or iPad to do most of the work. People spend lot of money on LCD/LED HD Televisions with 5.1 Home Theater Audio Systems, but without Internet, TVs are actually Idiot Boxes. Apple TV bridges this gap. So you can send audio visual content from iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad or Mac or PC to Television using wired network connection or WiFi network. Apart from this Apple TV brings many indispensable features that changes your perspective to Idiot box in your drawing room.
Latest Apple TV (3rd Generation) is upgraded with new interface, a new A5 processor, 1080p movie can be purchased through iTunes or as rented through Netflix. Airplay performance is amazing in new 3rd generation Apple TV.
Where to buy Apple TV ?
You won’t be able to buy the Apple TV from Apple online store or authorised resellers. Best way to get Apple TV is ask some friend coming from USA, UK or any other country where Apple TV is sold. This will cost you much cheaper and it is very easy to carry. Apple TV in USA is available for $ 99. As per US Dollar to Rupee conversion rate this should cost less than Rs. 6000. Alternatively you can find few sellers through Google search, but can’t trust them. Here is one found on Rediff who is selling Apple TV for Rs. 7449 + Rs. 200 for shipping in India. Buy from Rediff
Apple officially announced Apple TV in India on 19-Feb-2012 for Rs. 7900 /-
So now you can just visit Apple store or Apple reseller and buy this.
- You should have LCD/LED Television, preferably with Full HD support for best experience.
- Television should have HDMI port to take content from Apple TV.
- If you have 5.1 Home Theater Speaker system that will further enhance your experience.
- Wired connection near the Television or good quality WiFi network signal.
- 1 Mbps above Internet connection for acceptable streaming of video. 2 or 3 Mbps above will make video streaming smooth.
- USA to India power adapter. (You don’t need power convertor. Apple TV accepts 110 to 240 voltage)
- You need to buy HDMI cable separately (Costs anywhere between Rs. 125 to Rs. 400) . This is not provided in the Box.
- Apple TV black coloured small cube.
- Remote Control
- Power Chord
- Warranty & Manual
How to Install ?
- Connect the HDMI cable one end to Apple TV and other end to TV.
- Connect Ethernet cable in case if you do not have WiFi network
- Connect the power cable
- Turn it on. There is no button on Apple TV. It shows white light on front when it is on.
- You may be shown some License and agreement on startup.
- You’ll see only Home & Settings menu on startup. Other menu options appear when you logon to Apple account.
- In case if you are using WiFi network which has password. You can go to general settings to set that Network password. Apple TV also allows you to configure automatic DHCP network settings or Manual network settings.
- Once network is configured, you can login with your apple id to see all the menu options. Also remember, you need to choose the country to show the local TV shows and Movies. India is still not listed here. You need to choose USA / UK or some other country.
- YouTube Videos
- Vimeo Videos
- Photos from Flickr
- Photo Streams
- AirPlay for sending Photos, Audio, Video content to Television from Apple Devices or iTunes on Mac/PC
- AirPlay mirroring with iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad & Mac
- Home Sharing from iTunes and Apple devices.
- Wall Street Journal TV
- Movie Trailers
- Podcasts with Video and Audio content
- List of Streaming Radios from all over the world.
- NetFlix
- MLB
- NBA
- NHL
- Hulu Plus
- Apple Remote App converts your iPhone/iPad in Apple TV controller. This is very useful when you have to type some text.
- There is one more app which works in AirPlay mirroring mode, where it shows pointer where ever you keep the finger on iPad. This can be good tool while showing some demonstrations on Apple TV.
Future plans for Apple TV:
- Apple is in talks with many local channel providers in each country. Just like WSJ channel all the channels can come on Apple TV in future. This will remove the need for separate set top box in home.
- Apple iOS apps model has been very successful on iPod Touch, iPhone & iPad. This can be extended to Apple TV in future. By architecture Apple TV is not different from these devices. The great caution will be required in developing these apps, because 1080p Video transmission or AC3 audio transmission through app may block lot of memory and processing power. There can be camera & Microphone inputs to add more complexity to app.
- Once the Apple data centers starts performing with full capacity, Apple can start providing SIRI (Voice command) software on Apple TV. Day is really not far when you will be able to speak to your Television and ask for program you wish to see rather than searching everything with remote in hand.
View Comments (181)
Thanks mr Deepak
That is very informative and crisp
Thanks Deepak, Though it will take some time to launch the apple TV in India but its always good to know this.....
Dear Rakesh, I've heard Apple is in talks with BSNL to sell Apple TV as packaged product with BSNL IP TV service. If this becomes reality, it wont take long to receive 100+ Indian channels through Apple TV. Also if they can make a deal with Reliance for BigFlix, We'll have complete Indianised version of Apple TV.
Thanks a lot deepak...gr8 article
Hi thanks a lot for the awesome info , I just had a query regarding playing avi format movies. I use good player to watch avi format movies in my iPad do you think I can watch the same via Apple TV or will AirPlay Mirroring pass on the sound too to Apple TV ?
AirPlay Mirroring passes the sound too to Apple TV. If you can tell me the name of the avi player software, may be I can test and confirm :)
Thanks Deepak. Your article was very informative. I had a query . If I connect my iPad through a HDMI cable to my LCD tv I should still be able to play videos from YouTube etc. If my only need is to fire videos from YouTube do I still need to buy an Apple TV? Also Apple TV if bought from US- will it have warranty support in India
Well, it is all about convenience. Usually you would like to sit on couch at distance from TV for watching. HDMI wired connection is fine, if you just wish to play music, show photos or play youtube.
Apple TV bought from US will not have official warranty support in India.
1. Usually Apple way of working is very different. They like to help people who own Apple products. Many times they don't even look into warranty details.
2. Apple TV has no moving parts, it is totally sealed one piece device in small cube form.
An iPad doesn't have a HDMI output. The only way to get audio+video out of the iPad is either through the dock connector or over AirPlay (with a corresponding AirPlay receiver such as the Apple TV 2 or 3). You can of course try connecting a laptop over HDMI to mirror your laptop screen on your fancy TV, but the AirPlay solution is very elegant at a very nominal cost.
You check this official Apple link for connecting iPad to give HDMI output. But I would always recommend rather than spending 39$, it is worth spending 99$. You can do a lot more with that & very conveniently.
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MD098ZM/A/apple-digital-av-adapter
Hi..can we use USB device for connecting to internet like Tata Photon Plus or any other device.....
No,
USB port is available for service purpose. That is not available to us.
Only way you can connect to internet is through ethernet or WiFi.
== Suggestions:
You can connect Tata Photon plus dongle on your laptop and create Ad Hoc WiFi network through your laptop. This can be used by Apple TV.
Alternatively you can buy 3G wifi router, where you can insert the mobile SIM card to access the 3G network and share that connection to Apple TV.
Frankly, iTunes in India sucks!
If you happened to ever see the iTunes offerings in the App Store in the US, you would realize how little we have here.
iBooks, is also no good here.
I wonder what all would be the offerings if I were to buy the Apple TV once they launch it here?
I know shops in Delhi selling the Apple TV for 10K, where they set up a US account for you. I've been in a dilemma to wait for the launch or buy the slight expensive "jugaad"
Deepak, any thoughts?
Dear Anubhav,
iTunes India is in nascent stage currently. But switching between stores in Apple TV is very simple. I keep on switching between stores to explore without any hassel. It is matter of going in settings and choosing country.
10k sounds very expensive to me. I would recommend to find some friend in US or Europe & get that from there. You can also check on ebay.in for better price. There are many sellers on ebay who sell Apple TV between 7k to 9k.
Hi Deepak,
I just brought over my apple tv to mumbai, where i have a tikona wifi connection. So far I am not able to connect up, saying I need to install a profile. However, as I am working on smart devices and windows laptops, not a Mac, i cant work out how to operate the configurator app to set up the profile... I am wondering if you have heard of any other problems using tikona wifi with apple tv?
Best regards
Sorry Natile,
I do not have any experience or heard any problem with Trikona Wifi for Apple TV. I believe when you connect Trikona Wifi on other devices, it shows you browser popup to enter credentials. Unfortunately there is no Safari on Apple TV. That is where it is probably failing. I would recommend you to do initial setup with some wired connection & later try Trikona Wifi. Probably Trikona Wifi engineers might be having some alternative for authentication in manual way.
I am not even sure how you are going to use AirPlay feature on public WiFi. It will be best to get mixed plan from Trikona, where you can use the same account with wire or using WiFi. Your personal router will allow you to connect iPhone or iPad on private network and stream content directly to TV using AirPlay feature. AirPlay feature does not even require Internet connection. Your local private Wifi through router is sufficient.
Hi Deepak,
Good news! Apple TV is connected on Tikona Wifi! All they had to do was assign me a static IP on my connection. They were super helpful too. Really appreciate how they helped me solve the problem. So... hope that may help someone else who encounters similar issue!
Cheers,
Natalie
Hi Natalie,
Thanks for writing back with update. This will definitely help others who are stuck with WiFi connectivity, which expects authentication in browser window.
yes you can...
Hi, is it possible to watch movies on iPhone 5 by connecting it with composite cable? Also, will Apple TV allow the same?
Thanks!
Yes Divya,
You can watch movies from iPhone 5 on bigger screen by connecting composite cable. It is available in Apple store for about 39$.
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC748ZM/A/apple-composite-av-cable
Apple TV also allows the same with AirPlay feature. You get AirPlay button when Apple TV is on & Airplay is enabled. Apple TV definitely gives better experience for 99$. You can sit at distance on couch and wirelessly watch the movie. Your iPhone also can be used as remote of Apple TV.
dear sir, i have an apple tv from australia and i have problem in installation here in kerala, india. should i have mountain lion in my my mac book air for installation? thank u. regards, moorthy
Your Question is little confusing to me. Actually there is no need to have any other device along with Apple TV. Apple TV works along with your TV, without any other Apple device. And Apple TV OS is way different from Mac OS X and iOS. Bottom line you should be able to install Apple TV in INDIA without any other device. If you can be more specific about installation problem, I can help.
Hello. Actually I wanted to ask from you that I'm getting an Apple TV from US so do I need to have a US apple Id or my Indian account is fine.
Indian account is fine.