Have an Apple TV 2 to Try Out

Thanks to my son-in-law's grandfather, I now have an Apple TV 2 to try out for a few days.  If you point your browser to http://www.appletvhacks.com, you can find a wealth of information about making this item dance and sing way past what Apple is willing to let you do.  It is unfortunate that Apple is making it more and more difficult to use the Apple TV the way that I would like to have it used, namely stream from other than iTunes stuff and allow me access to my HDHomeRun Prime.  I am still in the development stages of the home network, mainly because it is fun to do; and one of those things is to replace the Verizon set top boxes with something cheaper.  As I get closer to my retirement, I need to be able to reduce costs all the way around.  I will keep Verizon's FIOS TV and Internet, but I need to get the cost to go down.  Otherwise, I will be in the process of looking for something else to replace it with.  Hence, the changes to the network which will include this Apple TV 2.  Right now there is no jailbreak for the Apple TV 3, which I have two of in my house.

My game plan is to first jailbreak the Apple TV 2 (which has a 720p output) and attempt to get the streaming that I want to my downstairs HDTV.  I plan on connecting Plex Media Server, iTunes, the HDHomeRun Prime, and Netflix as streaming options.  What I will probably need to do is setup XBMC on the Apple TV 2 to connect to the HDHRP to complement the capabilities of the device.  I have other Apple Products which allow for AirPlay, along with AirParrot which can AirPlay from my Windows 7 laptop.  I should be able to have a complete media experience without some of the shortcomings that Apple and Verizon have implemented into their system.

-- LW