Apple Movie Junkie

Have you ever wondered what it means for that little light in the front of your Apple TV to be blinking and changing colors? Below is a list of actions that your light might be indicating.

1. If the Status light is solid white, your Apple TV is on.

2. If the Status light is off, your Apple TV is off or in Standby Mode

3. If the Status light is blinking Amber, your Apple TV is starting up

4. If the Status light flashes white once, your Apple TV is accepting a command from the remote

5. If the Status light flashes amber once, your Apple TV is rejecting a command from the remote (you’ve paired a remote with Apple TV but you’re using a remote that’s not paired).

6. If the Status light alternates between white and amber, your Apple TV is having issues, refer to this Service FAQ

If your new to the Apple TV, you may be wondering how is it you turn the box off? If you haven’t discovered the fact that this little box runs kind of hot, you will. The short answer to this question is there is no way to turn it off, unless you unplug it completely. What Apple did though was include a Standby Mode, which is a way to turn it off without turning it off. To put Apple TV in standby mode, select Settings > Standby from the main menu, or If you are on the main menu, you can also press Play/Pause on the Apple Remote for about three seconds to put Apple TV in Standby Mode. Below is a list of things your Apple TV might be doing in Standby Mode, which will give you an idea of why it doesn’t cut power completely.

1. The hard drive spins down when not syncing or downloading content.

2. Video displays black even though video output remains active.

3. Audio does not play.

4. Download of any content (rented or purchased) from the iTunes Store continues uninterrupted.

5. Apple TV continues to appear in the iTunes device list, allowing you to view synced content.

6. Network connections remain active and Apple TV continues to appear in the iTunes device list, allowing you to sync content.

7. The fan continues to operate.

8. If the Apple TV is in standby mode during a sync operation, content continues to write to the hard drive.

Did you know that starting with Apple TV software 2.3, the latest Apple TV update, the + and – buttons on the Apple remote can control the volume when playing music. To enable this capability, choose Settings > Audio & Video > Control Music Volume. This feature is ONLY for music. You must use your TV or audio receiver remote to control the volume for video. Don’t forget that you can also use a third-party remote with the Apple TV.

With Germany being added to the list of countries which can now buy or rent movies from the iTunes Store, I thought it might be important to review what iTunes content is available for what countries.

If you click on the thumbnail below you will see a break down of available content by country. This table is directly from Apple’s support page. Remember, high-definition content is not available in all regions. If an item is available in high-definition, you’ll see an HD logo.

As an original 40gb Apple TV model owner, I often think of how awesome it would be if I was able to plug in an external USB hard drive to that USB port on the back of the Apple TV, especially with HD movie purchases now available. So if it’s not possible to plug in an external USB hard drive or any other USB device, why did Apple even put it there?

Officially, the USB port on the back of the Apple TV is only used for service and diagnostics. A USB keyboard, mouse, hard drive, or any other device will not be recognized by Apple TV.

Unofficially there are hacks to enable the USB port for external storage, but how about Apple making it easy and just enabling the USB port for things other then service and diagnostics in their next update.

We post tips and how to’s about the Apple TV from time to time on the site, but over time they get buried, so we’ve decided to create a new section just for these tips called The More You Know. On this page you’ll find links to help you out with anything from installing Boxee on your Apple TV to setting up your own home media server. If there are any other Apple TV features you would like to see us cover please feel free to let us know. Enjoy.