ArsTechnica has a nice comparison of the Apple TV versus the Xbox 360 as the best choice for home entertainment system or digital hub. It’s a pretty easy for me with the Zune and a PC to take the 360 as a better choice for my digital lifestyle and it’s probably the better choice for millions of Windows users as well.

Apple TV is probably great for some folks but why would you miss out on the gaming capabilities and Xbox Live by choosing an Apple TV unless you already have a Wii or Playstation and no need for the Xbox game console? Seems like the Xbox 360 is an easy choice over the Apple TV for most of us.

Mano a mano: Apple TV vs. the Xbox 360: Page 2

Why the Apple TV is better:

* Cheaper than the Xbox 360
* Cheaper HD rentals
* Less restrictive licensing
* Build quality
* Better integration with the iTunes store
* Silent running
* Small form factor

Why the Xbox 360 is better:

* Lots of features when combined with Vista Windows Media Center
* Better picture quality (at the expense of file size)
* Plays games
* DVD drive (and the option of HD DVD)
* Includes cables

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Here is a very interesting article written by Patrick Klepek over at the Multi Player Blog at MTV.com that asks if the Microsoft Live Anywhere Initiative is dead? For those of you who do not know what the Live Anywhere Initiative is take a look back at the Wikipedia page for more details. In a nutshell Live Anywhere is Microsofts global plan for dominance of our digital lifestyle where they want us to be able to access their services from anywhere at anytime through Windows, Xbox and now Zune.

Patrick asks if the Live Anywhere Initiative is dead and I don’t understand how he came to this conclusion really. I think that Zune is actually the most important component to the Live Initiative. I think Zune will cover most if not all of the mobile components and is not limited to just music and phones. I realize that everyone has been waiting for a mobile Xbox platform to arrive but I think its already here in the form of Zune. I think that Xbox will be reserved as the home entertainment console with a focus on HD movies and IPTV which I think will make an obvious partner with Xbox as the preferred content delivery method of the future. There will not be a mobile Xbox game player or platform, its going to be Zune Game Players. I believe that Zune is the mobile platform and the “Anywhere” aspect of the Live Anywhere Initiative that is still very much alive. It’s progressing just fine but what our friend Patrick has missed is that it will not be developed under the Xbox brand as so many expected it would be it will be under the new brand of Zune.

My money lies on a portable game player from Zune and not Xbox. What better way to insure the success of the Zune brand then to build the mobile game player on that platform? It won’t matter what they call it they mobile game player from Microsoft is a sure success and by building it on the Zune platform they guarantee the success of their new mobile entertainment and communications platform. Once they integrate more Windows Mobile and Live features into the Zune game and music players the convergence of Live Anywhere exists. The Live Platform is all of the Microsoft services including Windows, Windows Mobile, Xbox and now Zune. It began as Xbox Live with the games because that was the easiest to generate a community with and they will slowly make it a Microsoft portal with access to everything Live. This should make it easier to understand why Microsoft has been dumping billions into Xbox when you see that it was about much more than just games and why they will dump billions into Zune which is about much more than just music.
MTV Multiplayer » We Asked Microsoft: Is That ‘Live Anywhere’ Initiative Dead?

At the Microsoft’s press briefing at E3 2006, Bill Gates came on stage to introduce Live Anywhere, an ambitious company initiative to integrate the Xbox 360 experience into everyday life via mobile phones.Nearly two years later, Live Anywhere has yet to materialize.

Is Live Anywhere dead? Here’s what Xbox Live exec. John Schappert (who took the stage for Microsoft’s keynote at GDC this year) told Multiplayer in an e-mailed statement:

Technorati Tags: zune, xbox, live, microsoft, live anywhere, xbox live, zune live, zune games

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