...If the TV has component video connections. See the details here:

http://www.rogueamoeba.com/utm/posts/Article/appleTV-2007-03-22-21-30

Is there such a thing as a component to S-Video cable? Do AV Receivers do that translation?

If AppleTV does support 480i, it is bizarre to me that Apple didn't stick a S-Video port on there. Why chop off half their market?? Fear of making a bad impression on lousy TVs?

Is there such a thing as a component to S-Video cable? Do AV Receivers do that translation?

Yes, but it requires more than just a cable. It requires a little converter box to 'reassemble' the component signals into luminance and chrominance to be output via S-Video.

If AppleTV does support 480i, it is bizarre to me that Apple didn't stick a S-Video port on there. Why chop off half their market?? Fear of making a bad impression on lousy TVs?

My understanding from reading early reviews & the manual is that, although AppleTV can put out a 480i signal, it does NOT support 4x3 televisions. Since AppleTV outputs only 16x9 signals, it has already limited itself to newer sets. That makes its elimination of s-video and composite outputs of less concern.
-H.

Why not leave behind half the market? Time to progress man. I was gave to see a PC that I bought 5 years ago have:

8 Usb & 3 FW400 ports
No floppy drive , instead a 13-1 card reader
No Printer/Serial ports

Maybe it's just me, but backward/universal compability has to stop eventually...

Not that I'd get an ATV anyway..

Yes, but it requires more than just a cable. It requires a little converter box to 'reassemble' the component signals into luminance and chrominance to be output via S-Video.Many receivers can take component in, and output the signal via s-video. My Yamaha can, just fine.

My understanding from reading early reviews & the manual is that, although AppleTV can put out a 480i signal, it does NOT support 4x3 televisions. Since AppleTV outputs only 16x9 signals, it has already limited itself to newer sets. That makes its elimination of s-video and composite outputs of less concern.
-H.There are reports already of the appleTV running on 4:3 crt's. Most of the reports suggest that the crt must support some kind of "simulated widescreen mode" as reported at Rogue amoeba's website (http://www.rogueamoeba.com/utm/posts/Article/appleTV-2007-03-22-21-30#comments), a mode that has been available for the last 3 years. Little is known about exactly which tv's support this, which is probably why Apple didn't want to include it in its specs--it woud just cause confusion among the masses. Also, 480i and 1080i output is supported.

Somebody should plug the appleTV into the component of a receiver, and its s-video output into a variety of sets to see what happens.

Why not leave behind half the market? Time to progress man. I was gave to see a PC that I bought 5 years ago have:

8 Usb & 3 FW400 ports
No floppy drive , instead a 13-1 card reader
No Printer/Serial ports

Maybe it's just me, but backward/universal compability has to stop eventually...

Not that I'd get an ATV anyway..I agree that backwards compatabiity has its downsides. But if the appleTV can be used for all of the people that have sets that have an "enhanced widescreen mode" (recent 4:3 crt's), or that can get s-video from their receivers (like I did for many years to feed my Sony CRT) from a component source (like I got from my DVD player, and my cable box before I went HDMI), then all of these people can use an appleTV, instead of being frozen out of the market.

This provides an unusual, and unsupported/undocumented strategy for Apple to widen its base, without having to provide the support necesary to hold everybody's hands who don't want to invest in a new HD display, just yet (do you blame them???). It provides an out for out criticism of Apple's only having content for the SD crowd, now that the SD crowd can use the AppleTV--given the restraints for legacy displays (and it is a pretty sizeable crowd). If anything, the appleTV in the hands of these folks will drive them to buy an HD display as soon as Apple gives them an incentive (HD content). Setting the hook, so to say. Can Apple HD tv displays not be far off? Once the appleTV makes inroads, they'd be stupid not to offer them.

4:3 HDTV's with component inputs should all work, at least the vast majority, the display will simply letterbox in the middle with a large black band at the top and bottom.Check out the 4:3 crt running appleTV at Rogue Amoeba. It doesn't show any banding. I think that when the appleTV detects 480i, that maybe it alters its aspect ratio. I'd call this an undocumented "feature."

http://www.rogueamoeba.com/utm/content/images/20070322appletv/480i.jpg

I agree that backwards compatabiity has its downsides. But if the appleTV can be used for all of the people that have sets that have an "enhanced widescreen mode" (recent 4:3 crt's), or that can get s-video from their receivers (like I did for many years to feed my Sony CRT) from a component source (like I got from my DVD player, and my cable box before I went HDMI), then all of these people can use an appleTV, instead of being frozen out of the market.

This provides an unusual, and unsupported/undocumented strategy for Apple to widen its base, without having to provide the support necesary to hold everybody's hands who don't want to invest in a new HD display, just yet (do you blame them???). It provides an out for out criticism of Apple's only having content for the SD crowd, now that the SD crowd can use the AppleTV--given the restraints for legacy displays (and it is a pretty sizeable crowd). If anything, the appleTV in the hands of these folks will drive them to buy an HD display as soon as Apple gives them an incentive (HD content). Setting the hook, so to say. Can Apple HD tv displays not be far off? Once the appleTV makes inroads, they'd be stupid not to offer them.

I guess that's what the Ipod AV dock is for (in a sense), which didn't support HD inputs. I found that disappointing, of course, then this product was announced!

Check out the 4:3 crt running appleTV at Rogue Amoeba. It doesn't show any banding. I think that when the appleTV detects 480i, that maybe it alters its aspect ratio. I'd call this an undocumented "feature."

http://www.rogueamoeba.com/utm/content/images/20070322appletv/480i.jpg

Why 50Hz? It's kind of odd.

50hz is PAL, used in Europe.

Apple TV will output 480i and 576i/50 but it only does so assuming a 16x9 aspect ratio. You can run this on your 4x3 TV but the UI will be stretched horizontally.

Kevin

So in effect AppleTV will do an anamorphic squeeze at 480/576i over component and expect the 16:9 set to unsqueeze it?

I wish I could get my Mac Mini do the same thing -- it only sends a 4:3 image to my 480i/576i set over S-Video.

Apple TV will output 480i and 576i/50 but it only does so assuming a 16x9 aspect ratio. You can run this on your 4x3 TV but the UI will be stretched horizontally.

Kevin
Look at the photo above. The UI doesn't look squished at all.

Look at the photo above. The UI doesn't look squished at all.
Trust me, it is. Its not a horrible experience and I use it that way on one of my TVs, its just not the UI as originally intended.

:)

Kevin