As an original 40gb Apple TV model owner, I often think of how awesome it would be if I was able to plug in an external USB hard drive to that USB port on the back of the Apple TV, especially with HD movie purchases now available. So if it’s not possible to plug in an external USB hard drive or any other USB device, why did Apple even put it there?

Officially, the USB port on the back of the Apple TV is only used for service and diagnostics. A USB keyboard, mouse, hard drive, or any other device will not be recognized by Apple TV.

Unofficially there are hacks to enable the USB port for external storage, but how about Apple making it easy and just enabling the USB port for things other then service and diagnostics in their next update.