“Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that the subscription internet TV service Apple’s been trying to get off the ground since 2009 appears to be finally headed to market,” John Paczkowski reports for BuzzFeed.
“And now sources familiar with the company’s plans tell BuzzFeed News that a successor to its dusty and recently discounted Apple TV set top box is headed to market as well,” Paczkowski reports. “Apple intends to show the device off at its annual World Wide Developers Conference in June along with a long-awaited App Store and a software development kit to help developers populate it.”
“Expect an updated design and new innards: the company’s latest A8 system-on-chip — or a variant of it: a dramatic increase in on-board storage to accommodate app[s] — well beyond the 8GB in the current device; and an improved operating system that will support Siri voice control of Apple TV, and enable it remotely for a selection of Homekit-enabled home automation devices, as earlier reports have suggested,” Paczkowski reports. “Presumably it will also feature a new remote.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: To debut with Apple’s new “skinny” Internet TV bundle(s), presumably. This is going to be a momentous WWDC! We are so ready for this!
(We’re also ready for a remote that isn’t designed to disappear into furniture crevices.)
Note: This all-new Apple TV could be unveiled at WWDC and immediately go on sale or the Apple TV SDK could be released for developers to prepare apps for the new Apple TV to be released in autumn alongside Apple’s expected Internet TV service.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Kevin D.” for the heads up.]
Hang in there Gene…
I don’t think this happens, because Apple just lowered the price for the current version of Apple TV to $69. Why would Apple encourage more customers to buy the current version, and reduce the number of customers available to buy the new version just a few months later? If a new one was coming so soon, Apple would keep the current version at $99, and then lower the price to $69 at the same time a new higher-end model with more features is released at a higher price, like $149 or $199.
The Internet TV “skinny bundle” rumor DOES fit the price reduction. Apple is trying to make the potential audience for the TV content package as large as possible, ahead of introducing the Internet TV service.
I’m hoping for a new Mac mini (using a version of the tiny “Intel M” logic board in the new MacBook) that’s the size of the current Apple TV (maybe a bit thicker). It comes with an IR remote control and has a built-in “Apple TV” app that makes it look and feel like using the current Apple TV. As a Mac, it runs standard OS X and OS X apps (including games). This would be the “Apple TV with apps” without the need to create and maintain a whole new “ecosystem” for apps that only work with Apple TV. Price: $299 (or $399). For customers who only want the Apple TV media player box, it’s still available for $69.
For the same reason that any manufacturer lowers the price of obsolete products: to blow out old inventory to make room for the new model.
It remains to be seen if Apple, acting as middle man, will have any power in reducing prices to the end consumer. Apple doesn’t own the content and it doesn’t own the pipes, so it’s hard to see what incentive the entrenched media powers have to allow Apple to erode their high profit margins. MDN loves to keep the rumors flying, but Apple hasn’t even made obvious incremental steps with its current Apple TV other than add channels that are available on other boxes or on the internet. So essentially right now Apple TV owners pay $70 for the privelege of using an Apple interface to access subscription-based services that they could get from their Macs or competing devices.
We can only hope Apple figured out the next great leap forward, but as of 2015, true high definition a la carte delivery without long-term subscription is a fantasy that even Apple doesn’t address. On the contrary, Apple seems to be pushing FOR subscription-based services, since that’s been a major theme from Cook (multiple music streaming options, iCloud rental).
Frankly I am much more excited about this year’s release of 4K BluRay players that will offer spectacular home theatre experience.
Apple is not “any manufacturer.” Apple does not “blow out” existing iPhone models before release of the new models. Apple lowers the price of the old model, at the same time as releasing the new model.
Of course they do, its just a bit more subtle with the iPhone. The volume flow is higher, distributors are involved plus the previous iPhone become the next cheap model (which you mentioned). Also carriers start throwing out more discounts during the summer which probably means Apple lowers to price to the distributors too.
For Macs, there is also back to school savings and other discounts which comes before model updates in the fall.
For the AppleTV, the volume is low so a basic drop in price is a good way to clear the channel.
Nope. Having to do a “blow out” or “two for one” fire sale before the next model indicates lack of discipline to control inventory or a product that is highly unpopular. Any price reduction in iPhone before a new release is subtle (not across the board), and some Macs get a discount for “back to school” because it’s a good opportunity, not because new Macs are coming. New Mac releases do not even follow an annual schedule.
If there is a brand new Apple TV in just a few months with significant new features (as rumored here), it would be much more important to Apple to keep those potential customers available to buy it, instead blowing them on a blow out of the current model. It would also make the ones who bought the “$69 special” mad, and Apple wants its customers happy.
The reduced price simply makes sense to increase the customer base for Apple TV before the debut of the Internet TV service. That service needs to be the focus for Apple TV over the summer months, not new hardware with new features.
I had completely forgotten about BluRay. Has a very low profiles these days.
We grab Blu Ray rentals all the time from RedBox or other local stores. Cheaper than any other a la carte service, and better quality than practically any streaming service.
I don’t see that changing as 4K displays become the norm. Your local ISP will ensure that streaming ultra-high-definition video will cost you an arm and a leg, no matter what.
Since, many older and current generations of Apple TV are still sitting in on shelves at a variety of Non-Apple stores. Like Staples, BestBuy, Futureshop, Walmart, etc — I must agree, that (not in such harsh terms as “blow out”) BUT, yes, a reduced price point makes perfect sense.
1) Apple TV, though sells fairly strong, has not been tracked in its number of sales like other Apple products, many different models still in retail stores
2) Apple TV has been called a hobbyist project for Apple
3) 69.00 really becomes appealing for those who avoided it before
4) a higher priced, better performance, more featured Apple TV Pro makes wonderful sense
This finally takes on a clearer and timely strategic move for Apple as the Apple TV last generation lags behind in some features compared to the competitions offerings, even though, the Apple TV is a better – more solid product still.
You missed the part where Apple changed its description of the Apple TV to “Starting at $69.” Right now there is only a single device that costs $69, so that VERY strongly implies that there are additional devices coming soon that cost more than $69, but are still called Apple TV.
Apple TV Basic with Channels. Apple TV Plus with Channels and the ability to install apps.
What if $69 dollars is the new price point for AppleTV? Like the way they dropped the prices on their ProApps when they revamped them?
PS, before anyone says anything, FCP X is better than previous versions.
It IS the new price point. This is NOT a fire sale at 30% off to get rid of inventory. Apple doesn’t do stuff like that… 🙂
Going forward, here’s how the new price will be used.
Apple TV – $69 FREE with one year subscription to [Apple’s Internet TV service]
I’ve been waiting for the next iteration of the AppleTV so I can retire my old one (G3) to the bedroom TV. As for an AppleTV service… I’m undecided
I’ve said it maybe one other time on this forum . . . I’d love to see an Apple TV remote that repurposes the the “old” click wheel tech from the iPod.
It’d be awesome to be able to scroll through menus more precisely than is current available . . . and maybe an updated processor would allow that.
My thumb already wants to do that with the current remote design.
The new Force Touch Pad should be worked into the remote.
I’d like to see a rectangular remote slightly larger than the current one, that is just a large force touch track pad. add a mic for siri
My bad, and didn’t read far enough down the list.
That remote exists. It’s called an iPhone.
“All-new Apple TV set to bow in June:”
Didn’t that look like a new Apple TV monitor being announced at first? The use of the word “set” unfortunate.
If they’re smart, they’ll include a DVR function. My major worry with a streaming TV service is how to time-shift it; my TiVo only works with cable service right now, and if they can’t replicate the entire cable-based infrastructure they won’t have me (and millions of others) until they do.
Did you know that streaming can be done without being tied to specific arbitrary network times? It is inherently a ‘DVR’ because you control what you want, when you want for as long as you want. Get it?
DVR functionality with significant onboard storage would allow a new Apple TV to provide not only the current on-demand streaming services, but also allow people to enjoy time-shifting of content that is ONLY offered via broadcast or cable channels. Live sports, for example. If Apple continues to offer only a middle-man interface for content that is already available elsewhere, then a new ATV won’t be worth any more than the current hobbled Apple TV.
I wait for how many years to buy an Apple TV, I finally get one, and now I’m hearing rumors of an upgrade!!!
Who knew?
It’s pretty dry where I live, can you come up here and wash your car please?
Let me run PLEX on iOS and I’m totally in. That’s the only thing that’s held me back from owning an AppleTV. I mainly use my Roku for my PLEX video and music library, although I do have Amazon Prime Instant video which I occasionally watch. I don’t care what Apple is charging for a streaming box that can run iOS apps. I’d buy it right away. It would absolutely pull in an awful lot of users. Please let this not be some false rumor. I really want to see this happen.
This is something that is way over due. But better to wait for a big change than just a slight incremental change. If Apple can get unattached programming that isn’t as expensive as Sony’s Vue or Sling TV it might be a game changer. If they follow either of these two then it’s going to suck. Vue and Sling charge to much and bundle there content which is exactly what NOBODY wants!
Just don’t tell Siri ‘tune to pawn stars’ when the kids are in the room, cause knowing Siri, you will get p0rn instead.
I hope that apple announce 5k cinema displays which are ATV compatible at the same time…
I’d like to be able to use my iPhone as the remote for my Apple TV…
Oh? What’s that? I can?! AWESOME SAUCE!!!! I don’t care which seat cushion ate the original anymore. 🙂
“Apple TV SDK could be released for developers to prepare apps for the new Apple TV to be released in autumn”
Surely you guys have heard of the “Osborne Effect”.
Predicted long ago here:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/2292645-apples-new-strategic-centerpiece
I bet anyone that Apple will have a couple of extra ‘exclusives’ at launch. How about those elusive original Nintendo Mario games?!
Part of the equation for Apple’s to be successful with streaming is to offer something better than anyone else. The A8 has hardware encoding/decoding for h.265 video which can deliver 1080 P video at half the bandwidth. They can also use h.265 capability to deliver 4k video to most homes with broadband.
We can dream. The next ATV will have to have much more onboard storage to buffer a 4K video stream … assuming that your cable provider doesn’t throttle it to death.
~Dreaming~Of~My~New~TV~
But I’ll believe it when I see it.
Me thinks the watch is going to be a voice activated remote control for the new AppleTV. My two cents.
Awesome. And finally. I have several ex co-workers that are on the team and they haven’t told me crap, those loveable punks.
I can imagine it now. I walk into the family room and say: “Siri, turn on the Cubs game”. After watching them get their ass kicked for a couple innings I say: “Siri, switch over to House of Cards.”
Of course, then my wife walks in and says: “Siri, switch to The Good Wife.”
Maybe, in addition to child controls, Apple in install some wife controls on the new Apple TV. Just a thought.
I am ready to upgrade the four AppleTvs in my home. My family uses them everyday.
“Starting at 69”
Reminds me of high school dating…
Ouch. Record number of down-votes in a row.
Wonder what THAT is all about.
Somebody just hates ALL the posters today?
This tv debate has me completely befuddled. 😜💥😱🚀😴👀😛😍