I’ve read countless reviews about the Apple TV (both the first and second version), and in my eyes it has always been too locked down, the feature matrix just can’t rectify the price tag.

Thus, for a long time, I’ve been using my laptop as media center (w/phono and SVHS inputs), but after having switched from CRT via LCD to a whopping 46″ Samsung LED-TV, this is no longer a good match. The laptop VGA output just doesn’t give me the quality I want.

I was very happy when my employer agreed it was time to invest in new computer equipment, so now a i7 15″ MacBook Pro (via a mini-DP->HDMI adapter) serves as a media center in my home (amongst other things, of course – having such an expensive computer just as a media center would be … overkill :-)).

I’ve tried out several flavors of media center software, after quickly having thrown out Front Row (movies has to be imported into iTunes… Ugh!), and finally I have landed on Plex, a great piece of software excelling in both features and ease of use.

Then, today, my RSS reader notified me of an interesting post on the Plex website, announcing that something is about to happen on 1st September. And what a coincidence – Apple decides to have a media event at that very same date (Apple announced their event first, of course). I just put together two and two, and I’m pretty certain this isn’t just a new version of Plex which is about to be announced (although, of course, it can be…).

Nobody knows for sure, of course, until after the announcements, but I am fairly certain of a connection between these two events.

Remember: You read it here first!