Can you imagine an Apple TV:
It will be priced twice as much as any other TV.
It will immediately be classed as innovative because it is 0.001mm thinner than the rest.
It will be missing standard functions like colour, brightness and volume which will all be deemed not necessary by Apple zealots.
It will use an LCD claiming millions of colours but you will only get a few hundred thousand.
It will overheat.
It will break down and when you complain about it all the Apple zealots will blame you for buying a revision 1 product.
When you turn it on you will be greeted by a picture of Steve.
The remote will only have 1 button.
You can only watch Apple approved shows. If you want to watch your own movie you will have to submit it for approval, wait several weeks. have it rejected because the storyline was similar to an Apple approved movie only to find out your next door neighbour got the same one approved.
After 2 years they will bring out another TV and discontinue all support for yours.
Colour, brightness and volume will be added in and hailed as innovotive new features.
Between the Lines
Larry Dignan, Sam Diaz, Andrew NuscaShould Apple make its own TV?
Summary
There’s a good amount of buzz about a Piper Jaffray report handicapping a possible move by Apple to reinvigorate its Apple TV lineup and even enter the living room with a television set. Should Apple make its own TV?
The possibilities, outlined here by Sam Diaz, boil down to the following:
Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster argues [...]
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Larry Dignan
Biography
Larry Dignan
Larry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and SmartPlanet as well as Editorial Director of ZDNet's sister site TechRepublic. He was most recently Executive Editor of News and Blogs at ZDNet. Prior to that he was executive news editor at eWeek and news editor at Baseline. He also served as the East Coast news editor and finance editor at CNET News.com. Larry has covered the technology and financial services industry since 1995, publishing articles in WallStreetWeek.com, Inter@ctive Week, The New York Times, and Financial Planning magazine. He's a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and the University of Delaware.
For daily updates, follow Larry on Twitter.
Sam Diaz
Biography
Sam Diaz
Sam Diaz is a senior editor at ZDNet. He has been a technology and business blogger, reporter and editor at the Washington Post, San Jose Mercury News and Fresno Bee for more than 18 years. He's a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and a graduate of California State University, Fresno.
Andrew Nusca
Biography
Andrew Nusca
Associate Editor
Andrew J. Nusca is an associate editor for ZDNet and SmartPlanet. As a journalist based in New York City, he has written for Popular Mechanics and Men's Vogue and his byline has appeared in New York magazine, The Huffington Post, New York Daily News, Editor & Publisher, New York Press and many others. He also writes The Editorialiste, a media criticism blog.
He is a New York University graduate and former news editor and columnist of the Washington Square News. He is a graduate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He has been named "Howard Kurtz, Jr." by film critic John Lichman despite having no relation to him. A native of Philadelphia, he lives in New York with his fiancee and his cat, Spats.
There’s a good amount of buzz about a Piper Jaffray report handicapping a possible move by Apple to reinvigorate its Apple TV lineup and even enter the living room with a television set. Should Apple make its own TV?
The possibilities, outlined here by Sam Diaz, boil down to the following:
- Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster argues that Apple will launch a new Apple TV product with support for subscription iTunes services and digital video recording (DVR).
- This digital living room takeover revolves around iTunes, which will connect your TV with the iPod and iPhone.
- In the long run, Apple will manufacture a TV set that’s connected.
Thus far, Apple TV hasn’t been a runaway hit, but a retooling could work. The bigger issue is that your living room already has too many set-top boxes. That’s not going to change. And for a subscription iTunes service to work, Apple would have to cut carriage deals with a bevy of media players who are a suspicious bunch. We’ll also table the fact that Apple chief Steve Jobs has talked down subscription services at every turn.
The most intriguing idea here is Apple making a connected TV. Would enough consumers pay a premium for an Apple television set?
Munster argues:
Yes, TV hardware is a challenging business if you don’t change the rules of the game, but we see potential for Apple to offer best-in-class software and hardware and charge a premium. As of November 2008, 40 million US homes (35% of households) owned an HDTV, and the Leichtman Research Group estimates the number will double in the next four years. This equates to a US addressable market of 10 million units a year. The argument that Apple will not enter the television market because prices have declined by ~70% in the past three years is a similar argument used to conclude Apple would not enter the cell phone market, given phones had seen similar price declines. The bottom line, 10 million HDTV’s sold in the US a year is a real market, and if history repeats itself, Apple will find a way to compete in a commoditized market with a premium priced product.
It’s a solid argument, but color me skeptical. Apply the science behind Apple’s innovation. Would you make a TV?
Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily e-mail newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.
Larry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and SmartPlanet as well as Editorial Director of ZDNet's sister site TechRepublic.
Disclosure
Larry Dignan
Larry Dignan has nothing to disclose. He doesn’t hold investments in the technology companies he covers.
Biography
Larry Dignan
Larry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and SmartPlanet as well as Editorial Director of ZDNet's sister site TechRepublic. He was most recently Executive Editor of News and Blogs at ZDNet. Prior to that he was executive news editor at eWeek and news editor at Baseline. He also served as the East Coast news editor and finance editor at CNET News.com. Larry has covered the technology and financial services industry since 1995, publishing articles in WallStreetWeek.com, Inter@ctive Week, The New York Times, and Financial Planning magazine. He's a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and the University of Delaware.
For daily updates, follow Larry on Twitter.
More from “Between the Lines”
Related Discussions on TechRepublic
Did you know you can take part in these discussions with your ZDNet membership?Talkback Most Recent of 113 Talkback(s)
-
eqpc08/21/2009 06:49 AM -
yes!
I have been looking for a smart tv for a while and it came only as a PC connected to a big monitor.
Somebody has to break the ice, and, if it's Apple, more power to them.
Linux Geek08/21/2009 06:57 AM -
As far as "smart" TV's
Samsung is already leading the way on this one (although I'm sure if Apple did release one, they'd claim everything was their own innovation and ideas!)
http://www.samsung.com/au/led/
With WiFi and Internet TV built in, can stream media across from Win7 machine, use my PC/Notebook to actually control playback... no streaming device required.
You're talking as if you have to wait for Apple to be the innovator here, but Samsung's Model is already leading the way on this one, and getting damned good review (for very good reason).
kaninelupus08/21/2009 07:22 PM -
They already have...
a product that turns any modern TV into a smart TV capable of being
connected wirelessly to a network and the Internet. They have had this
product out for at least four years and it is called a Mac mini. Such a
system has been in operation at our house from the time we got our new
TV and simultaneously replaced the Mac mini with a new laptop. So now
the Mac mini has made our TV smart and much more useful because it is
connected to the Internet. ITunes and Netflix movies don't look as nice as
a DVD, but are definitely watchable.
arminw08/21/2009 08:10 PM -
Yes Yes Yes
Not for me though as I have no need for a rebadged Samsung with a three hundred dollar premium to get a standard HD TV in pure brilliant white. I'll stick with my 52" Sammy thanks.
That said there are learly enough Apple fanboys who need that to go with the rest of their stuff. I think it could be a nice earner oops I meant product. Even better if it linked straight in to one of those other products; and even more better if it needed a small (but expensive) interface. I can see this proposition getting better all the time. Should be in the shops next week at this rate.
GetReal-mac.com08/24/2009 01:14 PM -
So what?
It will still sell out!
GuidingLight08/21/2009 07:12 AM -
LOL!
It will also be the first time you will ever see people camping out for days to get a TV!!eqpc08/21/2009 07:19 AM -
Which of course will prove that your entire rant
is nothing more than the product of your "I hate Apple because they
make me feel inadequate" complex.
frgough08/21/2009 09:18 AM -
Or it has proved
that you have no sense of humour as I own an iPhone and 2 iPods.eqpc08/21/2009 09:24 AM -
gosh!
so this is how "some" of you Apple fanboys feel? adequate? and you look down on others for even saying anything against apple? shame.. get a life!
I'm glad the writer was only showing his sense of humour cos he owns apple products..
nessrapp08/21/2009 09:28 AM -
Thank you
I use things that fit my needs best. I prefer Windows for my PC needs and I got an iPhone because it was the best device on the market at the time. It is getting a bit old and battered now and when I come to replace it I will have another look to see what device fits my needs best. I don't care whether it is from Apple, HTC, Nokia, etc. I do think I will have a Zune HD when they come out though to replace my Nano iPods.eqpc(Edited: 08/21/2009 09:40 AM) -
You said it!
As for the Apple fanboys, as for Internet streaming for movies. There is already
Roku on the market, 99 bucks and a wide range of FREE and good movies
from Netflix plus movie rentals via Amazon. And picture quality is pretty darn
good too. So go ahead and waste your money, but just remember, no matter
how many Apple products you own, you're still a geek like the rest of us.
nothingness08/21/2009 10:44 AM -
@nothingness: But he's an adequate geek!
You can't put a price on that
tikigawd08/21/2009 11:27 AM -
@nothingness...
I stream it through my XBOX360 and yes...the Netflix watch instantly content is awesome. If anyone reading this doesn't have Netflix, I highly recommend it...even if you just use the DVD service and watch thier "Watch Instantly" content on your computer. There are also some blueray players that have the software to watch the content via those devices. I thik this is going to become pretty common place (Yay for the consumers heheh!!!) The Roku/XBOX360 model is what I think they should go after. Plugins could also be created for other devices...like they do with the XBOX360. It makes more sense. Why reinvent the wheel or recreate devices that already exist when you can focus your technology on a single part. I look forward to the day when IPTV will replace cable.
owner@...08/21/2009 02:13 PM -
Yes!
Come on, dude. You know Apple TV programs will only show up on Apple's proprietary hardware.
mgp308/21/2009 07:49 AM
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