New Apple TV -- Anyone planning on it?

@Granosalis: I don't have any 24/96 content, but I assume that the new Apple TV will work like the previous ATV and AirPort Express (AirTunes & AirPlay) and does not support 24/96. Sorry I can not give more info. I would be interested in knowing the answer, too. I'll keep you posted if I find out anything.

I am a current owner of a 160GB AppleTV (with about 350GB of digital music, almost all in Apple Lossless (M4A) format. I've done very close listening comparisons and can't hear a significant and consistent difference between my AppleTV and my Oppo BDP-83 as a transport. (Neither sound as good as my old Theta David, but then neither require a $400 laser replacement every few years, either.) I highly recommend AppleTV for any audiophile.

I am split on the new one. I love my current 160 GB Apple TV. However, I see two advantages of the new one:
1) Silence - I can hear the current hard drive spinning, which is annoying during late night music listening. The new one would be silent.
2) Higher res Netflix streaming than I currently get with my Wii. (It's my only other streaming device). Also, my Wii audio is only connected to my TV, not my system, so it would give me that.

There are two reasons why I may stick with my current:
1) The loss of having some hard drive storage for those times when my computer is not on.
2) The apparent lack of emphasis on music in the new UI. Music is buried under "Computers," not at the top level.

I believe that things will change soon. There is every indication that the new AppleTV will soon allow apps to run, like all other iOS devices.

Hey Edge22 - you can stream in full resolution from a hard drive on the previous gen Apple TV - it's in the setup. I stream about half my music and it works out just fine.

I thought airtunes or apple tv would transmit 24/96 hi-rez files (as long as audio-midi is set to 24/96)...you just need a dac on the receiving end to decode.

@Aberyclark: Form what I understand, anything that AirTunes and AirPlay transmits is converted to Apple Lossless, which makes it 16/44 only. The new AirPlay protocol might change this. Could someone comment on this issue?

Just to clarify, my music is in Apple Lossless. I have about 80GB of music (and gradually loading more) and so it all fits on the 160GB hard drive. (FYI, ATV Flash is a program/hack that allows you to add an external hard drive to the Apple TV if you need it.)

When I was listening to the Apple Lossless being streamed through the Apple TV, it sounded good, but not as good as when I use my CD transport into my DAC. On the other hand, when I listen to the Apple Lossless from the Apple TV hard drive (which is how I normally listen), it sounds equal (if not better) to my CD transport into my DAC.

Darkj, have you noticed this difference between listening to "pure streaming" versus from the Apple TV hard drive?
It is possible that the difference that I hear is simply my wi fi connection. I have an Airport Extreme router (which is an "n" router) and get a very solid signal (usually 4 out of 5 bars) in my listening room, but my listening room is not terribly close to my router and is upstairs (with the router being downstairs).

I agree with Darkj that new Apple TV will likely be able to run Apps in the future. I personally find the 160GB Apple TV to be quiet and do not notice hearing the spinning of the hard drive.