After two weeks it's time for another progress update - and sure enough there has been progress, progress, progress! We've been hard at work pushing aTV Flash (black) forward, moving closer and closer to release.
Read more below for a deeper look into details surrounding the current status of aTV Flash (black).
Jailbreak Update
Thanks to some excellent work from the iPhone Dev Team the new Pwnage Tool (version 4.1) is now capable of jailbreaking the 2nd gen AppleTV. This opens the doors for many exciting things including the ability to run aTV Flash (black). As of right now the jailbreak isn't much use to the average user until aTV Flash (black) is available, but a guide for using the Pwnage Tool to jailbreak the AppleTV can be seen here.
App Development
It's still early, but we've made some great progress getting apps up to snuff for the new model. Currently the basics for running Couch Surfer Pro and Last.fm on the new AppleTV are in place - though there are still quite a few issues that need to be addressed. We've also found some encouraging bits that may allow for streaming HTML5 (with an outside chance of Adobe Flash) video on the AppleTV. We'll have more details as Couch Surfer development moves along. A few screenshots showing current progress can be seen below.
Couch Surfer Pro for 2nd gen AppleTV
Last.fm for 2nd gen AppleTV
What about installation - there's no USB port?
Installing aTV Flash (black) will actually be much easier than before. No more searching for a USB drive or fumbling with cables - aTV Flash (black) can be installed on the AppleTV directly from your Mac (a Windows version will be coming later). Once installed, any new or updated plugins can be downloaded directly on the AppleTV (very similar to the current version). An early preview of the new installer can be seen below.
So...when will it be ready?
We've still got a few semi-critical hurdles to overcome which will take some time, but we're hoping to release some beta level features over the next few weeks. If you'd like to receive progress updates via email you can signup using the form below.
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