We haven't had a proper TV in over a decade. I would like to have something other than my laptop to watch streaming media, DVDs, Netflix, etc. Can you explain how this works in 2013? I imagine we'd buy something like this Samsung LED HDTV and some kind of speakers. Then what? Do we plug it into a laptop? What exactly is Apple TV and how does it stack up against Roku? This seems like it should be a simple question, but I feel like a caveman emerging from the dark, and am fairly bewildered at all of the options and variations out there. [more inside]
posted by barnone on Feb 11, 2013 - 26 answers

I want a media enabled living room - have I got the right setup? [more inside]
posted by anonaccount on Jan 2, 2012 - 16 answers

I'd like to use a 2007 Macbook Pro + 2TB FW ext HD as a NAS setup, but the drive keeps falling asleep and slowing and causing video to hiccup. How can I prevent this and get smooth movie playback? [more inside]
posted by miomiomio on Jul 9, 2011 - 5 answers

Unexpected Holiday Gift: Someone got me a Zune HD! Problem. I already own an ipod Nano and know next to nothing about Zune. What can the Zune do that my nano can't? How do you use yours? What does the Zune do well? Any tips or trips or strange things/ 3rd party applications I can use?
posted by The Whelk on Dec 9, 2010 - 3 answers

Do you think Apple are going to discontinue the iPod Classic in the near future? [more inside]
posted by Spamfactor on Sep 1, 2010 - 28 answers

Tossing an idea around here ... I'd like to use my old Powerbook as a media server for my Windows network. [more inside]
posted by chairish on Jul 12, 2008 - 5 answers

Can someone with an Apple TV tell me something? When you listen to a music track on your Apple TV, does the play count of the song in the relevant iTunes library increase?
posted by ascullion on May 14, 2007 - 4 answers

Ideas for seeking corporate donations of tech equipment and air travel? I'm one of the co-founders of a free arts/tech workshop happening for the first time this August in Serbia. We've already had some modest success getting funding for this through traditional channels, but I also want to approach hardware companies and airlines to see if they can help us. [more inside]
posted by allterrainbrain on Mar 6, 2007 - 5 answers

I need a good media center application for OS X. [more inside]
posted by triolus on Jun 22, 2006 - 7 answers

I need to find a some kind of media player for friends' Apple Powerbook. Quicktime won't play the files I have... [more inside]
posted by curiousleo on Feb 18, 2006 - 11 answers

Can I use the OSX CDs that came with my iBook to upgrade a desktop G4 from OS9? [more inside]
posted by kmel on Oct 12, 2004 - 10 answers