Apple has updated Apple TV to version 4.2 which, along with AirPlay support for third-party iOS 4.3 apps, also adds the following:
• MLB.TV: Access schedules, stats, scores, and standings. MLB.TV subscribers can watch live and on-demand Major League Baseball games.
• NBA: See scores and more, plus League Pass Broadband subscribers get live and archived games.
• AirPlay for apps: Use AirPlay to wirelessly stream video from apps and Safari on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
• Netflix Dolby Digital 5.1: Enjoy Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound when watching Netflix movies and TV shows.
• New slideshow themes: View photos with the new Scrapbook, Photo Mobile, and Holiday Mobile slideshow themes.
• Improved on-screen keyboard: Search and enter names and passwords more easily with the redesigned on-screen keyboard.
MLB.TV and NBA League Pass are available via Apple TV’s Internet menu. Schedules, scores, stats, standings are available to all Apple TV users. Live game streaming requires subscriptions to MLB.TV and NBA League Pass content.
Enjoy select Spring Training games and a full slate of regular season games on Apple TV.
MLB Regular Season features include:
• HD Quality (where available)
• LIVE and archived games
• Home and away broadcasts (Available to MLB.TV Premium subscribers only. Blackout and other restrictions apply and are subject to change. Visit MLB.TV for details.)
• Quick navigation to run scoring plays or a particular at bat
MLB.TV costs US$99.99 per year. MLB.TV Premium costs $119.99 per year. For the extra cost, MLB.TV Premium on Apple TV offers both Home and Away Broadcasts
More info about MLB.TV subscriptions: http://www.mlb.com/appletv
Access NBA.com League Pass Broadband on Apple TV: Watch up to 40+ live and archived NBA games a week. With NBA.com League Pass Broadband, you can access your account on Apple TV and follow all the amazing NBA Action all season long.. (Local and National blackout restrictions apply)
• CHOICE: Choose up to 7 teams to watch thoughout the regular season. – $64.95
• PREMIUM: Watch all 30 teams thoughout the regular season. – $99.95
More info about NBA League Pass subscriptions: http://www.nba.com/appletv
For more info, visit http://www.apple.com/support/appletv
AppleTV just keeps getting better and better. Have one in the bedroom and one in the living room… for $99 how can you go wrong. Now… where are the apps for AppleTV?
Looks like the MLB and the NBA have been working on this for awhile.
I might try baseball for a month, I’m just not that big of a fan of sports anymore.
Almost 100% totally useless as long as they black out local teams.
Assuming you like the local team. A lot of folks don’t so this may not be a big deal.
I agree that’s a big drawback. I live in western Kentucky, more than a three-hour drive to either St. Louis or Cincinnati, yet they black out all the Cardinals and Reds game here. I only really care about the NL, so it greatly diminishes the attraction.
I’m a displaced Cincinnatian in Columbus, OH, and here they block out the Reds, Pirates, and and Indians. Like you I only care about the NL, and especially the NL Central since that’s where the Reds are. But they’ve blocked out two Central teams, and by doing that, they effectively block four of them when they’re both playing Central opponents.
I too am a displaced Cincinnatian – in Philly. Sadly, after having grown up during the Big Red Machine era and having watched the Reds disappoint me over and over again for the 13 years that I have been here, I can honestly say that I have become more of a Phillies fan than a Reds fan. I still root for the Reds, but now I root for the Phillies when they play each other.
Also, on a side note – the entire Phillies regular season is already sold out and has been for almost a month now!
Go Big Four!!!
Sweet. It keeps getting better and better. Upgrading as soon as I get home. Now I really have to replace my Original Apple TV 🙁 and purchase my 2nd ATV 2.
Apple needs to slow down. My bank account can’t keep up with all these new products and features. HAHAHA!! i am joking by the way.
It’s awesome I can officially dump cable and boost my internet speed. Sport is the biggest drawback from dumping cable. All the news channels now stream over the internet and stories appear on the website before they go on air anyway. Now if they can finagle NFL to let them in we are in true good form, but that damn DISH company.
NHL for me, but I totally agree with what you`re saying. With this new IOS 4.3 update I`m sure developers will have their apps updated to all airplay and mirroring, with news and weather I could easily dump cable.
I miss being able to purchase TV shows on the Apple TV b
Buy them on your home computer and stream through home sharing. That’s what I do if I want to buy a show.
This is great, I’ve been using the NBA broadband package and having this available on Apple TV is sweet!
Broadband ISP options in Houston absolutely suck, especially if you want something in excess of 3.0 Mbps (about 2.4 Mbps after overhead).
And the cost!!! Qwest offers 20Mbps in other states for less than I pay for 3.0Mbps in Houston. It’s criminal.
I’m in League City, basically Houston. Get Verizon FiOS! 25 mbps up AND down on fibre for 70 bucks a month Internet only. As soon as my intro price on Comcast is up that is what I am switching to.
IF you can get FIOS, then I agree. If you live in an AT&T area, no FIOS? Maybe you can get Uverse. I live in League City, and FIOS is not available in my neighborhood.
FIOS is nice, when you can get it.
The only reason I have DirecTV is because they carry EVERY St. Louis Cardinals game, home or away on Fox Sports Midwest. Comcrap used to black out about 25 of their games every year.
I would go the MLB.TV route in a heartbeat on ATV if I could be assured of seeing all Cardinal games. Something tells me most of their games would be blacked out on MLB.TV. that would be bad, can’t figure out why I would want to get MLB.TV if that is the case.
I already have NBA LeagePass on my MBA, do I have to pay again to stream this thru my ATV2?
“With NBA.com League Pass Broadband, you can access your account on Apple TV and follow all the amazing NBA Action all season long.”
That’s from the link. Just reading it, it appears that my NBA LeaguePass acct should work on my ATV2. Now, I have to go and try it to see. That’ll be great if it works!
Okay, I’m home. It works awesome. No additional cost, but the feed is now much, much better. HD, not sketchy SD. That’s one more step towards cutting the cable cord.
Netflix Dolby Digital 5.1: Enjoy Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound when watching Netflix movies and TV shows.
Bout time.
As for the blackouts.. That’s a contract thing, it’s not apple or cable/sat providers decision.
Because of the Dolby Digital 5.1 upgrade I’ll now try out Netflix for a few months.
I’ve been waiting for years to watch MLB.TV on my ATV. The only thing I’ve missed since ditching cable. I saw this update appear the moment it came out. I downloaded, saw the MLB app and immediately subscribed to MLB.TV. I’m now 6 innings into a Mariner game and loving it. (Despite how pathetic my beloved Mariners are).
You gotta love that Steve went ahead and extended two middle fingers to the networks today. Live sports and mirroring is all the convincing many cable subscribers need to ditch permanently. You know he gave them the opportunity to make money with an iTunes subscription service but they were too stubborn to play ball. Fine now we’ll get our ala carte programming without them. Silly networks, Steve Jobs on a sick day is smarter than any of you on your best day. Steve strikes another blow for consumers. Go Steve.
YAWN!
5.1 Netflix Streaming, now if only Netricks stream DVD and shows that are released also. Not just the B movies and a few premium ones here and there.
There are some hidden gems on Netflix. Just watched a bunch of Kurosawa films last week. Highly recommend 7 Samurai.
ESPN3.com. Please.
Apple TV “just a hobby”? Yeah, right. Love my
Apple TV !!! Just keeps getting better and better.
🙂 🙂 🙂
Nice update for the ATV2, the MLB/NBA stuff doesn’t do anything for me.
Oh Boy, did MLBatBat just tick me off or what? I called before I bought, just to make sure that what I was getting what what I thought it was. I was assured that I could watch ALL the Yankees baseball during regular season except when they’re playing 1 of the 4 blackout teams for my area. In addition, I could watch ALL the Yankees games during pre-season since none of those are blacked out.
I go online to watch the Pirates/Yankees game that starts at 7 tonight. Audio only. Huh?
I called. They said well of COURSE you can’t watch that game, since no one is airing the game. Huh? HUH? But…but…you said I could watch them ALL. You never mentioned that no one is gonna show up with a camera. Of course, that was BEFORE you got my money. I felt lied to, so I cancelled and demanded my money back. They complied. But I’m still pissed.
(DirecTV did almost the same exact thing last year when I signed up for their service.)
I’ll take my free Phillies games courtesy of Comcast, thank you very much.
Sounds like a great way to watch sports. I hope Formula 1 content will be available on it soon.
Just did the update and no NBA in Canada so far.
This is too cool. I really hope there are more to come. I cancelled cable last Friday. 120 a month saved. I would buy NFL, CFL and NHL. I hope the baseball takes off so the other pro sports see the value of this model and implement it. This could sell a boat load of AppleTV’s, and there may come a day when ATV’s are discounted when subscribing. I recently turned three people on to the AppleTV at the office. They can’t believe this tech exists for 100 bucks. Nice hobby to have in your back pocket. Smirks.
-G5Man
So does this mean that AirPlay streaming will work with SlingPlayer on an iOS device?
Why should I pay an extra $100+ bucks a year to get something on AppleTV that I pay for already (or get free over the antenna)? Geeze, just build in the option of recording what I already pay for Apple. How tough is that? TiVo can do it but Apple can’t???
It seems like Apple does so many great things for the consumer with everything they make BUT AppleTV. With that one, they just gouge & gouge & gouge.
Well, until it records & distributes what I already own or am legally allowed to use, it’s just a toy. Nice & all, but I ain’t buyin.
Just tried to purchase the MLB season package so I can watch it on Apple TV. Too bad their website doesn’t work with Macs. It doesn’t work with either Safari or Firefox. You fill out the form and try to click the “Buy Now” button and nothing happens. The button isn’t active. I try it on a Windows machine and the “Buy Now” button works with either IE 8 or Firefox. Pisses me off.
Email support is no help. “Try shutting down and restarting”. What a lode of crap. Basically they tell me to call customer service.