Section 84. Watching Movies and TV Shows

84. Watching Movies and TV Shows

Front Row (included with OS X when you buy a new Mac Mini or iMac) provides a slick, uncluttered environment for playing DVDs, videos, music, and photos. Using the Apple Remote, a six-button remote not much bigger than a matchbook, users can find and play all kinds of media: songs, movies, and even photos stored on other networked Macs. Videos play full screen, giving even home movies the benefit of a cinematic look and feel.

Put simply: Front Row offers a level of integration and performance no PC media interface can match, and it's easier to operate than a TiVo.

Looking for a basic, standalone media player? Try QuickTime (supplied with the Mac) or cross-platform open-source VLC (www.videolan.org, free).