Sitting in the Front Row

I just got a new Mac mini this week to run as both a media center and a PC. I haven’t yet set up the PC portion, but after a couple of days of using it as a media center, I’m loving it, mostly because of the beauty that is Front Row.

Apple’s super-simplified media center software and hardware combo (the machine comes with the much-talked about Apple Remote) is a joy to use. And while computing on my Samsung Slimfit HDTV is a little too blurry (apparently I should’ve done my reading beforehand), Front Row couldn’t be more crisp.

I’ve used ot to do all sorts of things already, from listening to iTunes, watch DVDs, and maybe most impressively, watch iTunes Store videos, like the Lost Season 2 finale and the Complete First Season of The State. They look impressive, much better than the Basic Quality setting on my Tivo, and, believe it or not, possibly better than the Medium setting as well.

What baffles me about the whole setup though is the onscreen difference between standard OS/Application stuff and Front Row. Clearly there’s a disconnect here. And while I’m glad that Front Row is the clean-looking half of that duo, I’d rather they both work like a charm.

As it stands, I think it will work anyway. The reality of it is that the computer cost more than the TV, and while this TV’s only months old, I’m more likely to upgrade that before I get another new computer (this was my third in 6 years). In the end, I’m writing this entry on the new mini/TV combo while sitting on my couch, and you can’t beat that.