“Make no mistake about it, the personal electronics ecosystem is going to be the way that companies like Google, Microsoft and Apple want to get in your life,” Quoth the Raven writes for Seeking Alpha. “Not only do they want the phone in your pocket, but they want the PC you use at home, the watch on your wrist, the OS in your car, and the television in your living room.”
“We all know an update to the [Apple TV] set top box is coming in way or another. More and more, it’s starting to seem like it isn’t going to be Apple producing an actual TV, but it’s starting to look like they’re going to take Apple TV a little more seriously,” Quoth the Raven writes. “And, that’s just where the times are heading. With Google’s Chromecast so widely available due to its price, the introduction of ‘smart’ TV’s, and streaming available from your cable provider like Comcast or Time Warner, it’s nothing short of an all out war for your living room.”
“Apple has a head start,” Quoth the Raven writes. “The success that the company has had over the years with tablet and mobile has created a loyalty and familiarity for the brand name. When Apple launches its new set-top box (expected in the first half of 2014), it’s likely to do exceptionally well and be the de facto choice for many consumers that are already part of the growing constituency of customers that have catalyzed Apple’s meteoric rise.”
Read more in the full article here.
How widely available is Chromecast? Hasn’t it been out for less than six months?
It’s been available since last July. While it was initially out-of-stock for a while, it’s been available for immediate shipping for quite some time. It’s been #1 on Amazon’s top Electronics list (mostly) since the holidays. Sales estimates are all over the place with no real data, but it’s likely somewhere north of 2 million and less than 10 million.
While I’m no fan of the Chromecast, there’s little denying that it’s been successful in terms of units sold. However, that doesn’t really equate to profit. It’s sort of the “netbook of TV decices”. A lot of initial interest, a lot of lacking in functionality, and there’s likely to be a lot of drop-off in sales unless newer models are radically improved. It’s a very limited device that adds little to no functionality to most smart-enabled TVs on the market today.
Can’t wait for the new Apple TV–whatever it may be. My household is all apple: 4 iphones; 3 MBPs; 2 iMacs; and 1st gen Apple TV. Been waiting this long. Hoping it happens this year.
Sounds like a very happy household indeed. 🙂
It’s like the end of “Trading Places”.
Everyone just KNOWS what the market is going to do.
Billy Ray and Louis wait until the Dukes dig themselves into a deep enough hole, then they pull the trigger.
All these companies think they know what Apple is going to do. It’s a Watch, it’s a TV. If Apple was the first mover, companies would just copy Apple and say “That’s what we were doing!”
Apple lets those companies dig themselves a nice deep hole, get all invested in whatever crap product they come up with then BANG.
Apple will unveil their well thought out, well designed product.
If the companies copy Apple now, everyone KNOWS IT.
So this rocket scientist just figured this out? Apple has known this from the beginning.:)
Customers have also known this from the beginning.
We only have to buy a stupid device that lasts for only 6 months to swear of buying cheap crap that crumbles in a short time.
When I buy from Apple, I know what I buy will almost certainly last for 4-6 years and even then it gets passed down to someone else.
Seeking Alpha with a pro-Apple article? The sky must be falling for that to happen.
Maybe it’s just me but, when I look at what’s on offer on TV here in Britain, every week it’s the same–99% crap that I don’t want to watch. And even with the coolest set-top box (doubtless made by Apple), it would still be the same endless succession of boring moronic rubbish, day in, day out, interspersed with boring moronic adverts.
No, give me a good movie or ebook (on my iPad), or good company (face to face, or online chat), and the telly will remain switched off.