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 Front Row v2 (Included withSnow Leopard) | |
| Developer(s) | Apple Inc. |
|---|---|
| Final release | 2.2.1 (314) / November 9, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-11-09) |
| Operating system | Mac OS X |
| Type | Media Center |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | www |
Front Row is a discontinuedmedia center software application forApple'sMacintosh computers andApple TV for navigating and viewing video, photos, podcasts and music from a computer, optical disc or the Internet through a10-foot user interface (similar toKodi andWindows Media Center). The software relies on iTunes and iPhoto and is controlled by anApple Remote or the keyboard function keys. The first version was released in September 2004, with two major revisions since.Front Row was removed and discontinued inMac OS X 10.7.[1]
Front Row was first unveiled on September 19, 2004 with the newiMac G5 (along with the built-in iSight camera, theApple Remote, andPhoto Booth). The software was billed as an alternative interface for playing and runningiPhoto,DVD Player, andiTunes[2] (Internet radio stations could play by adding the station into a playlist in iTunes).
In 2006, Front Row was added to thefirst Intel Mac Mini, which also gained a built-in infrared sensor and Apple Remote. The model's media center features were reviewed positively byPC World.[3] This new version of Front Row could stream media from other computers on thelocal network.[4]
The next incarnation, released in the originalApple TV software in March 2007, was a complete, stand alone application that played content directly from libraries. Among the features added were more prominentpodcasts and TV show menus, trailer streaming, a settings menu, streaming content from computers on the local network, and album and video art for local media. In the summer of 2007, Apple released an update adding streaming ofYouTube videos.
Released in November 2007 withMac OS X v10.5 (Leopard),[5] version two ofFront Row included the new features introduced with the Apple TV (except for theYouTube viewer), a different opening transition, endingAirTunes functionality, and a launcher application in addition to the Command+Escapekeyboard shortcut.
Front Row 2 has an undocumentedplug-in architecture, for which various third-party plugins are now available, based on reverse-engineering the Front Row environment. Because it usesQuickTime to render video,Front Row can utilize any codec installed in QuickTime, includingDivX,Xvid andWMV, and play DVD images copied to the hard disk. However, becauseFront Row does not useQuickTime X, it lacks support for certain codec features like Sample Aspect Ratio.
In January 2008, Apple announced an update branded "Apple TV Take Two" forApple TV Software. In addition to the prominent addition of direct downloads for movies, TV episodes, and podcasts via theiTunes Store, movie rentals, the ability to view online photos fromFlickr oriCloud (branded.Mac at the time), and the ability to stream audio toAirTunes were added. This update did away withFront Row and introduced a new interface for the original Apple TV in which content was organized into six categories, all of which appeared in a large square box on the screen upon startup (movies, TV shows, music,YouTube, podcasts and photos) and presented in the initial menu, along with a "Settings" option for configuration, including software updates.[6][7]
Front Row was discontinued with the July 2011 release ofMac OS X Lion (v 10.7). The software appeared in neither the early Developer Previews nor the final version.
While it was initially possible to reinstallFront Row by copying the frameworks and application into OS X Lion,[8]iTunes v 10.4 on 22 July 2011 broke compatibility, causing those who updated iTunes to lose access to their music throughFront Row.[9]
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