It’s pretty easy to forget about the Apple TV during all the update hubbub yesterday, but if you’re into hockey, and more particularly the NHL variety, you’re going to want to fire up your Apple TV and run the software update.
A number of new features have been added, including AirPlay Mirroring, iCloud Photo Stream, Wall Street Journal Live, and Trailers, but it’s the addition of the NHL Network that has this particular Canadian smiling from ear-to-ear this fine Canadian morning.
The new NHL Center Ice package lets users who have paid for access to Center Ice online ($159.00 CAD) log in to Center Ice on the Apple TV and get access to live, out of market game streams on a nightly basis, as well as highlights and scores from around the league. Results may vary based on your Internet connection — it is a streaming technology after all — but on the whole it looks pretty fantastic. Much like the web version, the stream is adaptive. The quality of the feed will change on the fly as your bandwidth becomes constrained.
I’ve been saying for a while now that live sports is the only thing keeping me attached to my traditional cable package, and this finally changes everything for me. Live hockey, along with Netflix, and some apps on my iPad are all that I need. I guess what I’m trying to say is this: I’m putting money where my mouth is today and cancelling my cable. I’ll be sure to follow up and let you know how it goes.