Jason Unger

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I need your help.

Here's what I want to do:

• Setup a NAS or "home server"-type product to store all of my movies, maybe managed through iTunes?
• Stream them to clients throughout the house — probably Apple TVs, so podcasts can come through too
• Not use my iMac as the server

What's the best way to set this up?

I was thinking Drobo, since it can run an iTunes server - but it looks like it can only do music, not movies.

I like the idea of an Apple TV because I can watch my podcasts (at least the HD ones) on the plasma.

But, I'm open to all suggestions.

Little help?

Big news: I bought my first Mac.

After years of using PCs, I'm testing out the waters with a new iMac (20", 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2 GB ram, 320 GB hard drive) but need your help.

I'm looking for 10 fresh tips to get the most out of my new Mac.

I need tips like:

• essential software
• speeding up the system
• what to avoid

If you're an Apple fanboy (or just want to help), leave a comment with a tip for new Mac users like me.

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of watching video podcasts on my computer. It just doesn't make sense.

Even though I've got two screens running — one of which I use for "passive" applications (like IM, Twitter and podcasts) — having a video running while I'm working is awfully distracting (DUH).

This content needs to be on my TV. I didn't spend $2,500 on my Pioneer plasma to neglect it.

Of course, this is what Internet TV really is — using the Internet pipes to deliver video to your TV. It's NOT watching video on your computer.

We're starting to get there. Now that Netflix is coming via the Xbox 360 and LG's new Blu-ray player (called here first), the pipes are starting to get used to deliver content to the living room.

When any of those devices gets access to Hulu content, that'll be another big step forward.

In order to make the move into the living room, I've been thinking a lot about getting an Apple TV. I'm already locked into the iTunes universe. It's just one more step to my Apple-fication.

TV content is meant to be enjoyed in a passive setting, not when you're leaning over the keyboard.

Got a first-gen iPhone you want to mix with a new, 3G unit in an AT&T family plan?

Here's how it's going to be priced, according to an AT&T CSR I spoke to today (this is assuming you go with the lowest, 450/700 minute plan):

- The phones share a voice plan ($69.99 for 2 units)
- The 3G model pays a monthly $30 data fee
- The EDGE model pays its normal $20 data fee
- The EDGE model still gets its 200 text messages built in
- The 3G model can add text messages at the indidividual rate ($5/month for 200, $15 for 1500, $20 for unlimited)

Total that up — for a 2 person family with one 3G iPhone and one EDGE iPhone, both at the lowest plan:

$69.99 (voice)
$30 (3G data)
$20 (2G data)
$5 (200 text messages for 3G)
=
$124.99

Presumably, you will pay the data rate for each additional iPhone added and $9.99 more for voice, so another EDGE phone would be $29.99 more and another 3G phone would be $39.99 more.

Compare that to the 2 line, 3G-only FamilyTalk plan.

At first, it seems reasonable — but consider that two individual plans would cost you only $10 more and you'd get 200 more voice minutes.

When I spoke to the CSR today, she had to go to a higher-up to find out this info — so hopefully AT&T gets their act together and distributes it to store reps soon.

Now that Debbie has an iPhone, this is most likely the route we're going (especially since she gets to keep her text messages).

iPhone 3G: What you need to know (AT&T)

The iPhone is the perfect device to function as the ultimate convergence remote.

Think about it. Remotes suck. Nearly everyone agrees that there's not a truly great remote out there. They have too many buttons, poor user interfaces, and sometimes even use a stylus (which is ridiculous).

Even worse than remotes, however, are keyboards. Since Media Center PCs and Internet-connected consoles/TVs are an active experience (which is a bad idea, in general), you need a keyboard.

But really, who wants to use a keyboard with their TV? Nobody.

To balance the active interaction of typing in URLs (keyboards) with the passive experience of changing channels (remotes), you need a device that can function as both. The iPhone, with its portable form factor and touchpad keyboard, can.

(Sidebar: I call remotes a passive experience because you can't go OUTSIDE of what it allows you. You can only go up or down. Like the elevator vs. the Wonkavator)

Obviously, the iPhone is not the first touchpad controller commercially available. But nearly everyone who has used one agrees it's one of the best.

In the home automation space, both DIY solutions and manufacturer-created options for controlling your home systems have popped up.

SpeakerCraft's Jeremy Burkhardt has even said the iPhone will kill keypads.

"I hate to say it, but this is the beginning of the end for keypads," says SpeakerCraft president Jeremy Burkhardt. "Soon any keypad that isn't emulated on a device like the iPhone will be obsolete."

But don't you need some hard buttons — like for power, volume and channel? Well, maybe. There aren't a lot of hard keys on the iPhone — one power, two volume and a sleep — but I don't see that as a huge hinderance.

The idea here is that the iPhone may not permanently replace your universal remote (since you can't be talking on it at work while someone else wants to change the channel), but when you're in front of the TV, you whip it out of your pocket, bring up the interface, and do everything you need.

When you just want to see what's on, you've got the simple channel/volume/power interface. When you're on YouTube and want to search for a video, the keyboard pops up. It's the best of both worlds.

As I was writing this, Dave Zatz posted a video where he's controlling his TiVo with his iPhone over Wifi, using some Crestron functionality. See? It's starting.

Considering that so many consoles and TVs are getting WiFi, the capability is there. All we need is the official functionality.

Image of the GUI is from Residential Systems Design, which does Crestron and AMX programming.