Apple TV overnight upgrade services debut

Worried about ruining more than the warranty of your Apple TV whilst trying the DIY hard drive upgrade? Then why risk getting your hands dirty - TechRestore and MacService are more than happy to take care of the heavy lifting for you. Both companies have recently debuted overnight Apple TV hard drive upgrade services that begin with 60GB drives and go all the way up to 160GB. While both companies are fairly hush-hush about what this service does to your warranty (hint: say your goodbyes before shipping the device off), the good news is that drives they install do carry warranties of 3-5 years.

Looking through the two services reveals some interesting differences. First, MacService more or less offers all-inclusive packages - overnight shipping through and through, with a single list of prices laid out to keep things simple. TechRestore, on the other hand, offers a couple of shipping options and seems to be slightly cheaper (especially when choosing the full overnight option) in price, though I've never had experience with either company to see if 'you pay for what you get' (a Dave Matthews twist on the ol' adage) holds true.

Both services are live and kicking, so feel free to comment on your experience if you take advantage of the upgrade.

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Hardware Hacks Apple TV

Worried about ruining more than the warranty of your Apple TV whilst trying the DIY hard drive upgrade? Then why risk getting your hands...

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ThinkInDifferent

I agree with yakov chodosh (post 5). I currently have 1.5TB of media streaming to my AppleTV over wireless. And, all I have to do to access it is to leave a single computer on. While it would be nice to have a 1.5TB AppleTV, that's not very realistic since AppleTV was intended to stream media, not host it. 40GB is more than enough for my entire photo library, a few favorite tunes, and a movie or two to support an evening with the family.

Anyway, Apple will likely open up the AppleTV's USB "service" port to external hard drives in the near future. Then, 3rd parties will be free to design external HD's that mimic the AppleTV's style and form factor to fit snuggly beneath. Until then, I'll be keeping my AppleTV under its original warranty.

March 31 2007 at 1:10 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Chris

@ yakov chodosh,

If you sync your media, then...
...your computer doesn't have to be on.
...your computer (thinking of notebook) doesn't even have to be at the residence.
...viewing is instant and doesn't have the delay associated with starting/stopping/pausing/fastfrowarding/etc. of streaming media.

March 31 2007 at 11:52 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Yakov Chodosh

why is this necessary? the appletv is a STREAMING device. it can STREAM all your movies over wireless n. no need for storage!

March 31 2007 at 10:23 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Chris

This doesn't include adding codec support or including various,popular hacks to make it more functional?

What I'd really like to see is a full size HDD option for the AppleTV. This would, of course, require a new base plate with raised sides. This would increase the overall thickess of the AppleTV. But so what; I've now got a 500GB, 750GB or even a 1TB AppleTV.

March 31 2007 at 9:03 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Jacob Loeb

We have been selling a pre-upgraded 120GB version of the Apple TV at PowerMax.com for a few days now. I have a little picture / info page setup explaining what we do. We are only selling the unit pre-upgrade because we give it a 1yr warranty. It costs less that way as well. Take a look, it has been a fun process for me. http://www.powermax.com/appletv-take-apart.php

March 30 2007 at 8:32 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

FamousPete

Way to work in the DMB reference. ;-)

March 30 2007 at 8:24 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Zack kitzmiller

200 bucks to upgrade my 300 dollar device?

Also, I'm thinking they need to upgrade the icon for iTunes. The green makes me shake a little inside.

March 30 2007 at 7:18 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply