AppleTV Update: Notes and Observations

Apple finally released the anticipated “AppleTV Take 2″ update yesterday.

The ATV Guided Tour.
Engadget has pics.

Notes+Observations after a quick update and run-through:

_ATV now includes 1080p support.
_Compatible/works with AirTunes.
_You can now stream radio stations from iTunes. Very interesting. (New idea—how about Xm/Sirius integration?)
_Purchases on the ATV auto-sync back to the paired iTunes, pretty much how the mobile purchases from the iPhone/iTouch iTunes store also sync back to iTunes.
_Can’t actually subscribe to podcasts from the ATV, but can mark as “favorites”. Subscriptions from and thus syncing the OPML between the ATV/iTunes would be a nice “power-user” feature.
_The search podcasts by provider option is really nice.

I found the rental interface kind of interesting—the main/”home” screen is simply a wall of video “covers”—essentially the same experience one would have browsing a physical video store:

The paned main interface feels like a bit of a kludge. Not sure why.

iPodlounge has a good roundup, from which a few things stand out:

Not All HD Videos Offer The Same AV Encoding: HD video rentals do not uniformly guarantee the same AV experience. Some of the videos, such as Transformers, feature Dolby Digital audio encoding, while others such as “Two Weeks Notice” do not.

Hidden iTunes Features, Unlocked: Updating to Apple TV 2.0 unlocks features included but previously hidden in iTunes 7.6, including a choice between Automatic Sync and Custom Sync, AirTunes streaming to the Apple TV, and the ability to transfer rented movies from iTunes to the Apple TV for viewing. Automatic Sync lets iTunes choose which audio and video to sync to your Apple TV, giving priority to newer items, while Custom Sync gives you the choice of audio and video to sync, giving priority as space allows to movies, TV shows, music, then podcasts. AirTunes treats Apple TV like an AirPort Express, enabling it to wirelessly receive audio sent directly from an iTunes-equipped computer, and perform it on a connected audio system.

Related: Visual Hub dropped an update this morning adding support for 5.1 surround encoding for ATV.