My Digital Ecosystem

February 11, 2010 in blog

Over this last year I have become completely digital. Not only that but almost all of my media and communications are shared between multiple devices. Check out my setup.
This is something we keep hearing about but until recently has not been completely integrated. You would have a an iPod but couldn’t play it everywhere. You needed multiple DVD or BluRay players in different rooms and may not have the right media to play on them. A computer, a phone, a PDA.. Stereos in each room and you would have to transfer the CD…  This year, for me, they have all converged. I also hate to be an Apple fanboy, but I have been trying to do this for a while now and Apple was the company that finally got me there.

LET ME EXPLAIN

Let’s start with my media. Like everyone else I have Music, Movies and Photos that I want to see anywhere I want. For this Apple has been amazing.

1. I put all of my media on a 1TB Hardrive (scary I know, but I’m working on a backup system)
2. I connect my hardrive to the Apple Airport Extreme that allows it to act like a server and allows for wireless access through the house.
3. I have one central computer that runs itunes and holds all of the media.. Think of this as the control panel since I have it automatically storing on the server drive.
4. I have both my Apple TV in the living room and my iPhone synced with iTunes.
5. I have an older computer connected to my TV and use my iPhone as a remote.
6. Just like I did with my music a while ago, I have now converted all of my 150 DVD’s to digital files that can run in iTunes, Apple TV and on my iPhone.
7. I even bought a cheap iPOD video to connect to our little portable TV for my 18 month old son to watch Elmo in the car. His iPod has about 20 Kid movies on it instead of 20 DVD’s in the car.

THE RESULT

The Result is that I can consume my media where ever I want. I believe this is what Apple has been trying to setup for a while now. Not just them but all of the companies. I have even found myself using my iPhone to read Kindle books… And eventually I’m sure that will turn into me reading on an iPad. This doesn’t even include my calendars, email and all the other things that I do completely digital now.

Tags: Apple, digital, Media, Technology