The trendy Aloft Hotel in Cupertino, which is located a mere two blocks from Apple's headquarters, has installed an Apple TV in each of its 123 rooms. Using the Apple TVs, hotel patrons can access television shows and movies via iTunes, and use Netflix and Hulu in addition to the Apple TV's other apps.

AirPlay is available for playing videos and music, and according to Square International, (via CNET) the company that installed Aloft's Apple TV system, the hotel can use the set-top boxes to provide guests with important information and access to the front desk.

The system can be customised to include your branding and images associated with the hotel. Additionally, you can integrate information about hotel services, including room service menus, the spa brochure, restaurant menus, shopping catalogues, local maps and city guides.

Our powerful, yet easy to use PC, Phone or Tablet management system allows Front Desk, Housekeeping or Engineering to use any web-enabled PC to enable / disable the system to act as an additional revenue stream, clear down all guest information with one click and even quickly and clearly see if a unit is offline.

appletv.jpgThe Apple TVs can be customized with iTunes accounts from any country and are wiped after each use to allow guests to access their private iTunes accounts.

Though the Apple TV is often referred to as Apple's "hobby" project because of its lack of popularity, Apple CEO Tim Cook noted that more than two million of the devices had been sold during Q1 2013, an increase of 60 percent year over year.

Cook also reiterated that the Apple TV was an area of intense interest for Apple, saying "I tend to believe that there is a lot we can contribute in this space and we continue to pull the string and see where it leads us."

The Apple TV recently received a stealth update that added a smaller A5 chip to the device, but Apple is rumored to be working on a more substantial upgrade that could range anywhere from improved content and the inclusion of third party apps to a full blown Apple-branded television set.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Caution)

Top Rated Comments

aristotle Avatar
144 months ago
No, I'm talking about the horrible look of the Apple TV interface, i.e. compared to the elegant look of the PS3 interface.
Your stating your opinion as if it was fact without giving any specifics. I don't have a problem with people having different tastes. What I do have a problem with is when people state their opinions/preferences as if they were "facts" agreed upon by the majority without giving any specific reasons or criteria.

I happen to like the UI of the AppleTV as it has continued to evolve over time. The Sony XMedia bar interface, however, has not changed much over the years. It is a set of icon menus with with hierarchical submenus items. I find it frustrating to use at times.

Contrast that with the current AppleTV UI, each program is represented by an Icon and all settings are under the "Settings" icon. There is no hierarchical menus cluttering up the screen. Once inside the Settings section, you navigate into another submenu as another "screen" which can be easily backed out of.

If we compare the configuration screens for networks, for example between the Sony Playstation and the Apple TV, the sony version is really frustrating to use if you want to customize an existing network connection for DNS settings. With the Apple TV, you select the connection and then you can chose among the different settings of the connection from that screen. To change the DNS on a connection on the PS3, you have to select the connection and then go through the setup wizard again for that connection in order to switch from a dynamic DNS to a static (manual) address.

I'd like to see a detailed explanation from you or alternatively, stop stating your "opinion" as if it were fact. Did you notice that nowhere did I directly state that the PS3 was "horrible"? I stated my feelings about different aspects of it with specific examples. You can say that you "don't like it" or "I think it sucks" or "I think it is horrible" all day long but if you say "it is horrible" then you are making a statement as if it were fact without providing any reasoning behind it.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RetepNamenots Avatar
144 months ago
So how much is MR being paid by this hotel?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aristotle Avatar
144 months ago
Could be, but compared to the elegance of the PS3 interface, the look of this Apple UI is truly horrible... where did the taste go?
Are you talking about the Netflix UI on the PS3? I happen to have Netflix on both my Apple TV 3rd gen and my PS3. I hate the UI for netflix on the PS3.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gnurf Avatar
144 months ago
Gosh, that user interface is ugly...

You should try it. The interface makes sense for a device with a five-button remote. Best Netflix browser I've found on any device, too.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JasonElise1983 Avatar
144 months ago
My guess would be hotel advertisements. Possibly by turning on the apple tv, ads will load before the main apple tv menu. That's my guess

Sure... makes sense. But how do you go about customizing an tv? No 3rd part apps, no way into it... nothing. Curious to know if they worked with apple on development for it as maybe a test run.

-je
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
flash84x Avatar
144 months ago
Where's iOS 7?

What? Try in June during the WWDC Keynote.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
iPhone Home Screen Gradient Blank Spaces 1

Sources: iOS 18 Lets Apps Be Placed Anywhere on Home Screen Grid

Sunday March 24, 2024 1:33 pm PDT by
iOS 18 will give iPhone users greater control over Home Screen app icon arrangement, according to sources familiar with the matter. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
iPad Pro 2024 Landscape Camera Feature

New iPad Pro Again Rumored to Feature Landscape Front-Facing Camera

Monday March 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
The next-generation iPad Pro will feature a landscape-oriented front-facing camera for the first time, according to the Apple leaker known as "Instant Digital." Instant Digital reiterated the design change earlier today on Weibo with a simple accompanying 2D image. The post reveals that the entire TrueDepth camera array will move to the right side of the device, while the microphone will...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
sonoma desktop wwdc

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 With Fix for USB Hub Bug

Monday March 25, 2024 10:10 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.4.1, a minor update for the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 comes three weeks after macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌ 14.4‌.1 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.6 release for those who...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18 Will Finally Bring This Android Feature to iPhone

Monday March 25, 2024 6:42 am PDT by
iOS 18 will allow iPhone users to place app icons anywhere on the Home Screen grid, according to sources familiar with development of the software update. This basic feature has long been available on Android smartphones. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, our sources said that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18....