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Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

Summary: While Apple seems to be having some success with its latest iteration of its Apple TV product, things aren't as rosy with Google TV. The latest sign that's something amiss: Logitech is planning to cut the price of its Revue set-top box featuring Google's entertainment platform to $249 starting next month.

Sean Portnoy

By for Home Theater |

While Apple seems to be having some success with its latest iteration of its Apple TV product, things aren't as rosy with Google TV. The latest sign that's something amiss: Logitech is planning to cut the price of its Revue set-top box featuring Google's entertainment platform to $249 starting next month.

Why the price slash? It's not because sales are great. While Logitech had expected fourth-quarter 2010 sales of $18 million related to Google TV, its earning statement showed that it only achieved $5 million in Revue sales -- and that inventory has swelled by 28 percent. Thus far, the Revue and Sony's Internet TV box are the best-known Google TV units, though other manufacturers have stated they have plans for Google TV devices.

Google TV has suffered from technical issues, content blocking from TV networks, and an unfriendly UI. The tech giant hopes to jump-start the platform by adding the Android Market to Google TV next month around the time of the Google I/O conference. It also would certainly help things if prices for the devices dropped -- a lot.

Unfortunately for Google TV device makers, consumers may have a better experience buying an Android tablet and beaming its video apps to a connected TV, and surfing the Web on a screen that sits right on their lap.

How can Google TV be saved? Let everyone know your ideas in the Comments section.

Topics: Hardware, Apple, Google, Mobility

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19 comments
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  • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

    Yep. Google cannot understand consumer. They are best doing search and adwords
    browser.
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

      @browser. Google understand the consumer fine. But to make the OS/Web TV thing work they need to change the browser to no longer identify itself to Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix as anything but a Linux based PC browser. Right now Google doesn't have the desire/sack size to try it. But eventually someone will figure out that, "Hey, a browser is a browser, and my phone is no different than a web enabled computer ...why can I do this on my PC and not my smart phone?"
      Socratesfoot
      Reply Vote

  • Some Sucess?

    Over 1 million Apple TVs sold... you call that some success? I'm proud owner of 2 :) makes everyone go wow, how do you access all your stuff on your LCD??!
    Hasam1991
    Reply Vote

    • Actually, few millions sold already

      @Hasam1991
      DDERSSS
      Reply Vote

      • According to last Apple report

        @denisrs <br>2 Million up to last quarter.
        dazzlingd
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

        @denisrs

        No surprise watching the 2 of you loving one another publicly.

        Anyone buying Apple TV are idiots when for another $100 you can get a world class gaming platform in the XBOX 260 that does everything Apple TV can do without the iTunes tax which is garbage software.

        I suppose the people that go "wow" are saying "wow, you paid for this"!
        omdguy
        Reply Vote

  • It has a mouse cursor

    I mean FFS, they put a mouse cursor on it, connected to a little scroll wheel thingy.

    At some point you've gotta call the designer a frikkin idiot.
    guihombre
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

    It wasn't really marketed correctly. It does so much more than AppleTV, so even you don't understand it since you're comparing the two.
    Droid101
    Reply Vote

    • Yeah, but does it do anything anyone wants?

      @Droid101 I never understood the attaction of GoogleTV. With AppleTv you [i]know[/i] what it is, iTunes media to your TV. GoogleTV is some kind of pan-media search device that let's you Tweet in your living room while finding YouTube videos or broadcast/cable TV shows? Not exactly an barn-burning idea.
      matthew_maurice
      Reply Vote

      • As an owner of both the first and second generation Apple TV units

        @matthew_maurice

        I never viewed the primary function of the Apple TV as a device to aid viewing downloaded commercial video content but as a bridge device that wirelessly streams any digital content from any Apple device to the home HDTV set.
        kenosha77a
        Reply Vote

  • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

    Well, Microsoft tried the same with WebTV more than decade back without success. Later Sony tried and couldn't get to near of the consumers. Apple is still trying with little better results, but not that much. Now Google came and will eventually pull the plugs one more time. I think Consoles like XBox, PS, Wii will do more than Google TV anytime, so why would people really get into Google TV. If they want information at hand, Tablets like iPad, G-Slate, Xoom etc., smart phones are there and for everything PCs are there, what additional stuff Google TV would bring other than integrated search, YouTube etc to the platform. For that I could just plug my TV as external monitor to PC.
    Ram U
    Reply Vote

  • On the right track, but needs more.

    The Logitech is on the right path. I want my cable box to go through one of these devices so I can layer apps on top of the picture. I think this would be awesome for sports with realtime data. I don't want to have to switch my TV to Video 1 for Cable and Video 2 for PS3 and Video 3 for Logitech. I want it all controlled through the device. So Logitech is close, but Google still needs to focus more on the experience.
    jefflouella
    Reply Vote

  • The future is built-in

    The future of the connected TV is a built-in OS which allows access to everything today's Roku device does and receives quarterly updates/bug fixes - much like any connected device today does. That built-in OS doesn't need to have any brand on it either. As long as you can access your content in a relatively intuitive manner, consumers will buy it and use it.

    These current set-top boxes are only a stepping stone to this future and will likely disappear once the transition has been made. We really don't need to pay too much attention to market trends on which device offers better value. It simply won't matter in a couple of years.
    jeffchapmanjc
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

    "Unfortunately for Google TV device makers, consumers may have a better experience buying an Android tablet and beaming its video apps to a connected TV, and surfing the Web on a screen that sits right on their lap."

    This is the very issue I saw with GTV from the start and the reason I called the whole approach backwards. With tablets and smart phones rising in popularity, they should have put the focus on these devices we have now instead of having consumers fumbling with yet another expensive complex box for the living room. With fugly UI, PC keyboard and giant remote pointer. The first time I used this Logitec device at Best Buy I laughed out loud. Is this the future of TV, a large PC-like pointer remote for navigation at a time when we are getting used to multi-touch? Felt like 1990's again with WebTV. What a joke!

    http://www.zdnet.com/tb/1-88768-1682981?tag=talkback-river;1_88768_1682981
    dave95.
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Logitech to cut Revue price to $249. Another sign Google TV = Fail?

    Future is all about clubbing - Android with Google TV and Chrome OS which is what I am looking forward to in the Google I/O this year.
    srikanthreddys
    Reply Vote

  • Wrong Paradigm

    Google thought search = channels. wrong. search is extra work.

    Apple gets apps = channels. just buy the few you want, and they give your much more stuff than CATV can.

    but no doubt Google will copy Apple soon. they always do.

    yeah, built into the TV is best. so Apple is licensing AirPlay. but what HDTV OEM's will use it? i bet Vizio is first.
    AlfieJr
    Reply Vote

  • Since this is ZDNet's &quot;Let's Bash Google and Android&quot; week consider this

    The iPad app, HBO Go, just went live tonight. (And, as I'm typing this on my iMac, I'm watching a streamed "MacGruber" movie on my iPad2.)

    I mention this because this seems to be another nail in the coffin of Google TV.

    If you have a tablet, why not watch streamed cable content when you want to on your tablet. (I'm sure other apps along the lines of HBO Go will be shortly introduced.)

    BTW, if you don't have a tablet, just watch HBO Go on your computer screen.
    kenosha77a
    Reply Vote

  • the pipes are clogged

    in USA internet TV hsa to be a fail whoever doe it. My internet is supposedly 14Mbps - fast enough for practically anything you'd think.

    if I actually try to use it I hit the cap and download speed drops to a crawl - inadequate for even watching any videos

    How much fun is it to watch :buffering" instead of TV?
    redking44
    Reply Vote

  • Basic design flaws

    These things continued to be designed by geeks who LIKE playing with devices, rather than by user experience designers who understand it's all about the content, and the device is a means, not an amusement in itself.
    terry flores
    Reply Vote
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