Phuketscooter

pagallim, on 2011-11-25 22:44:36, said:

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  In U.S. RELEASED LAST YEAR: Apple TV 2 was one of the final products Steve Jobs launched..

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  SIMPLE: The remote control for Apple TV 2 is not exactly crowded, but does the job.file:///C:/Users/Heikki/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image005.jpg

  CONNECTIONS: Power, HDMI, micro-USB, optical audio and Ethernet. The box also features built-in wireless network with N-standard.
GETTING THE AMERICAN ITUNES ACCOUNT: Get a U.S. iTunes account in order to rent movies and TV series from the United States. Remember to switch countries to the United States at the top of the first window where you must approve the terms of use. If you need a U.S. address to register, you can get this via Jetcarrier. .
  
The box costs around 4,500 bath, which can not be said to be too great investment - especially in terms of what you can get out of it.

How you get it from the store gives box instant access to a lot of fun. But if you are willing to go a step further, you can open up an entertainment center that far outperforms everything else on the market.
Small and simple
First of all we take for ourselves what it is you get out of the box. ATV2 is, as with most other Apple products, a very simple gadget to deal with right from the start. The "little black" is not much bigger than a hockey puck, and is ready for use immediately after you have put into power, plugged it into the TV with an HDMI cable and entering your iTunes account information.

With the small, silver remote with only three buttons give you quick access to iTunes'  movie store, where it now is a thousand films of various quality.

Having connected the box up to your iTunes account, you also get immediate access to the content - movies, music and photos - you may already have connected to your iTunes library on another machine on the same network, if this stands. Also music and pictures you have on icloud will after the last update appear on the TV screen. Content that is not supported by iTunes, you however do not streamed directly without any further - but this will come back to.

Another handy feature is AirPlay. With this you can stream stuff from your iPhone or iPod directly to the TV. This makes it as easy to show pictures or videos from your mobile phone in the living room, or send music from your phone - also from services Wimp and Spotify - the living room speakers.

Do you have an iPad 2 or an iPhone 4S, you'll also be able to reflect everything that is on the screen of the device up on the TV screen, such as opening up for you to play mobile games on the TV, something more and more games have their own functions.
Movies and series from the U.S.
That ATV2 only now been launched in Norway, does not mean that the first is now Europeans have begun to buy it. With a price of only $ 99 in the United States has long been a favorite souvenir from overseas trips, simply because it is also very easy to rent movies and television shows from the U.S. iTunes.

The reason why you want this is that selection is a lot bigger - at a cheaper price. In the U.S. iTunes also have a wide variety television shows.

Thus, for example, you see the episodes from series like "Dexter," "The Walking Dead" or fresh "Pan Am", the day after they aired on television in the United States. It takes a long time before we see similar deals in Thailand.

It is not difficult to "move" to the U.S. on ATV2. All you need is to create a U.S. iTunes account. Then fill in the money in the account, which is most easily done by buying U.S. iTunes card because the service would usually take U.S. credit cards and PayPal accounts. These gift certificates can (in addition to the U.S. Apple stores) available at various websites - including eBay.

When you have a U.S. iTunes account with credit, you can easily switch countries from Thailand to the United States in the settings on ATV2, and log in with your email address you used on the U.S. account. More is not to get full access to one of the world's most comprehensive digital video stores.
Good quality
Whether you rent movies from the Thailand or U.S. iTunes (it's easy to switch back and forth), the quality is impeccable. Many of the films, and all the new, are available in HD resolution (max 720p), and a test for both wired and wireless networks at home gave a very smooth playback.

Also online services like YouTube and Vimeo, radio stations, podcasts, and NHL and MLB broadcasts of special interests, floats like a dream - the videos here playing with crystal clear picture (as long as the source is good) without significant buffering.

This clearly shows that when the product is designed for one thing: to play the video, made the return very well. Previous experience with a standard PC connected to your TV has nearly given an equally smooth and user experience.

The only catch with movie rentals from the U.S., of course, is the lack of subtitles.
Netflix with no problems
For many, it will largely stay with access to U.S. iTunes to be satisfied. But there's a lot more goodies to pick from the Apple TV if you want to go a step further.

The film offers on the net come very much shorter in Thailand than it has in the United States. They include long had "films in response to Spotify," Netflix - a service that allows you to stream as much as you want from a rich archive of films and television shows for a low monthly price.

The solution to watch Netflix content in Thailand has previously been to use a so-called VPN account, which receives services to believe that you are in a different country than you really are in. As ATV2 not support VPN, it has long been difficult to take advantage of Netflix, like when you have a U.S. iTunes account is a standard program on the menubar.

But now it's easier than ever. Thanks to the relatively recent service Unblock Us just by replacing a series of numbers in the network settings on the box, and then have access to Netflix without any problems. A good guide to this can be found at Mac1. With this service, you have the rest of the supply of other U.S. Internet services - on all machines you may have in the home.

It has never been easier to watch movies from the service in Thailand, and never before seen better. It streams movies and TV shows in HD without problems, while on my HTPC and other devices have chopped in HD and not been entirely satisfactory in lower resolution.

To take advantage of Netflix, you must of course have a Netflix account. Again, you must have a U.S. address by hand, but in return you have the option to pay for the service with your Thai credit.

The total cost Netflix and Unblock Us around 1,600 Bath a month, which can not be said to be a lot of free access to all movies and TV series service has built. Until we get the opportunity to pay for such service in Thailand, I have no problems sending my money to the United States.

  
Local streaming of files
As previously written, you have basically not able to stream local files from a PC, Mac or NAS server ATV2, with the exception of those located in the iTunes library.

For those who had to sit on the other files - it's not going to ignore that a lot of downloading things in Thailand - it is still possible to view other video files on ATV2, such as high definition files of the MKV format (up to 720p ).

An easy way to do this if you have a Mac is to run the program Subler locally on your machine, as described in a guide from Mac1. This makes the incompatible MKV files to compatible M4V files in a snap, and allows you to also watch iTunes movies with text if you wish.

A more comprehensive action requires that you called jailbreak ATV2, a process that is not quite easy for the uninitiated - but also not worse than that you can easily do that by following this guide (ask any help from your permanent support-friend / family member / colleague / neighbor). To do this you need a micro USB cable, not included with the purchase.

It is possible once your ATV2 is jailbroken, is that you can install more advanced media center applications. Although I have gone for XBMC, an omnivorous and well-developed solution that gives you full access to all of your media files on local computers on your network.

Installing this is even more tortuous than jailbreaking and requires manual input via a SSH client.

When XBMC (or other solution) is installed, start it as any other menu choices on the main menu to ATV2, and easily jump out again afterwards.

Just remember that by jailbreak ATV2, you are in danger of breaking the warranty. Should you do something wrong, or regret for any reason, it is nevertheless not worse than to restore the device - when is it good as new.
A warp
Given that you often have to pay thousands of dollars for similar solutions to other TV-connected machines, there is a faint warp when relatively simple to get all this out of a ATV2 to 4,500 bath.

After receiving a completed Prepared ATV2 into the room, all previous solutions - and a long way cable television box - have been discarded in favor of television content is now available with a few simple keystrokes. Completely legal, it is also.

So far, all my digital antics been so difficult to use that I have been having them for myself. With ATV2 in the living room is now so easy to rent, buy and stream movies and TV series that I recently for the first time felt that my better half got comfortable with Netflix and started an episode of "Grey's Anatomy" - on their own.

If you use the internet connection and get VPN,
Then a TV box sending it to your TV.
Often you can download program for free or for a small fee get it directly or save it, for you to decide when you like to watch it, when you wanted.
Even on a tablet if that is better for you....
Find a computer friend to set it up for you, if you don`t feel you can do it...

My way to transfer my money here, was to check out first witch bank that have the best rate. Then I talked to the manager and he told me they could give better rate if we where talking big money. more then one million Bath. Then she offered me different solutions and my way to do things now is to let the currency stay in original  currency and with a card I can transfer in seconds what I need, or on any computer. Then you must remember that the government garanti is one million Bath, for every bank in Thailand.

Why not make things easy, as it is only a limited time you are going to stay here. Book a hotel and look around, business is slow so there should not be any problem finding a place.
Generally I tell my friends that wanted to stay for a longer time, rent first and try different locations first. When you have a place you like, bye it. Everything is for sale for the right price.

You apply at a Thai Consulate outside of Thailand, fee is the equivilant of 1000 Baht, the 1900 Baht fee I mentioned was for the extension in Thailand should you decide to stay longer. I believe Amsterdam has a consulate as well as the U.K. has them at Hull, Cardiff, and London.
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I like to do things easy. So I would get the automatic 28 days visa on arrival, and then before the 28 days (but not earlier then the new 28 days are covered by the time you are leaving) bye an extension for new 28 days at the nearest immigration office. The cost is 1.900 Bath and as little hazzel as possible. But this is just an suggestion.