Television

Kuo: A7-driven Apple TV in 2014, iTV in 2015-2016

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Citing supply chain sources, DisplaySearch yesterday shattered analyst Gene Munster's 'Apple-televison-set-due-this-Christmas' pipe dream to pieces by claiming Apple has put the iTV project on the back burner as it focuses on wearable projects, a new priority for Tim Cook & Co. And guess what reliable analyst restrains himself from making wild Munster-like iTV predictions?

That's right, Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities.

Thus, it goes without saying that Kuo's note to clients in which he analyzes Apple's television plans hasn't gone unnoticed with us. In short, he's suggesting that with the technological pieces all in place now Apple is about to introduce significant improvements to the existing $99 Apple TV set-top box.

Bonus: I also get to deconstruct some of the outrageously inaccurate predictions by crazypants Apple analysts Gene Munster!

Curved-glass full-on Apple television concept

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

A report by DisplaySearch may have dashed hopes for an imminent Apple television introduction as Apple turns its attention to wearables, but there's no stopping prolific 3D artist Martin Hajek from imagining what a full-on television set with the Apple logo could/should look like, all over again.

Taking cues from Bloomberg's report which calls for curved-glass iPhones in 2014, Hajek is now seemingly torn between a flat and curved-glass iTV variant. I know which one I'd take in a heartbeat, but how about you?

DisplaySearch: Apple prioritizes wearables, puts iTV on the back burner

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 11, 2013

So what's up with the supposed Apple television set, that elusive iTV? According to the latest chatter, the iTV plans have been put on hold as wearables take priority inside the 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino walls. The notion jives with Tim Cook's recent assertion calling for new a Apple product category in 2014 and a bunch of patent filings and high-profile hirings pointing to an iOS-powered wearable device with health and fitness sensors, the rumored iWatch.

Of course, that a non-Apple product is delayed by another unannounced product isn't necessarily newsworthy in and of itself, but given the source - DisplaySearch - we thought you should at least be informed about what's making the rounds across Apple's components and supply chain in Far East...

Twitter unveils ‘See This’ button: watch TV shows and change the channel from a tweet

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 9, 2013

Ending weeks of speculation, Twitter today announced a new feature that has the potential to take social television to the next level.

Twitter users will soon start seeing a new See It button embedded in tweets that, when clicked, lets folks immediately tune into live programming through their set-top box or a mobile devices such as a smartphone or a tablet.

To replace your remote, Twitter partnered with cable provider Comcast and its fully-owned subsidiary NBCUniversal, giving Xfinity customers the ability to also schedule DVR recordings on-the-fly, directly from Twitter. The feature will debut with NBCUniversal offerings including The Voice and Sunday Night Football.

Go past the fold for the full reveal...

ESPN’s News and Deportes channels added to Apple TV and iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 17, 2019

Less than 48 hours after Apple added new video content from Vevo, Weather Channel, Disney Channel, Disney XD and Smithsonian Channel to its $99 Apple TV set-top box, ESPN announced Wednesday it's enabled access to two new channels - News and Deportes - on the Apple TV and iOS devices, through the WatchESPN software for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

This is important because ESPN is a global powerhouse.

Owned as a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Corporation, the U.S.-based cable and satellite television channel is a lot of people's go-to source for all things sports...

Apple TV gains apps from Vevo, Weather Channel, Disney and Smithsonian, we go hands-on

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 31, 2017

Just as we've been expecting, Apple has updated its $99 Apple TV set-top box with 24/7 music video streaming by way of Vevo TV. But that's not all, Apple has surprised us all by adding support for several other premium content sources. In addition to Vevo, the update has brought out four additional apps: Weather Channel, Disney Channel and Disney XD, as well as Smithsonian Channel, co-owned by CBS and the Smithsonian Institution.

What's really interesting is that Weather Channel seems to be the real app rather than just a simple streaming channel, although both Smithsonian Channel and Weather Channel offer on-demand clips. Go past the fold for the full reveal and Jeff's video hands-on.

UPDATE: people who use a DNS trick called PlexConnect to stream media to their non-jailbroken Apple TV through the Trailers app should be aware that this morning's update appears to have broken the hack. More on that here...

iTV said to come with pay-TV service

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 22, 2013

The Apple television saga continues with a new report by Quartz today offering a fresh insight behind the curtain of Apple's ongoing negotiations with content owners. The crux: while the talks have stalled as Apple's faced significant hurdles, the company is cunningly hoping to get at least a few content providers on board for a rumored iTV launch.

Afterwards, Apple is hoping to get cable companies to play along, the report notes. Apple's ultimate goal is to have the rumored standalone television set launch with a pay TV service that would see Apple “essentially becoming a cable company itself”...

Foxconn starts selling own TVs in Taiwan

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 19, 2013

The New York Times in May said Apple's favorite contract manufacturer Foxconn was looking beyond the iPhone due to slowing sales of the Apple smartphone caused by the broader tech biz slump. As you know, Foxconn also builds consumer electronics for Sony, Amazon, Dell and many other Western brands.

Conventional wisdom says the manufacturer's been growing concerned about its reliance on Apple orders accounting for well over half of its total revenues. Today, The Wall Street Journal is out with a report saying Foxconn has teamed up with the convenience store chain 7-Eleven to push its own television sets in Taiwan.

Interestingly enough, it was reported last year that Apple had been working with Asian suppliers on several designs for its rumored TV sets that Foxconn was supposed to build...

Intel’s TV box to include server-side DVR that records everything for at least three days

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated December 22, 2017

We've been hearing for months how Intel's been hard at work developing its own Apple TV contender, which sources claim includes a television service of sorts. Conceivably frustrated enough with “everyone doing a half-assed Google TVs," the world's top chip maker reportedly set on to engineer a set-top box itself "and do it right.”

These rumors may soon prove true: according to a new report, Intel aims to turn the industry upside down by introducing supercharged DVR functionality said to tap a powerful server farm that records and stores every piece of programming for at least three days.

Now, TiVo devices have had a similar patented DVR feature called Trick Play for years. But Trick Play doesn't hold a candle to Intel as it relies on local TiVo storage to record just up to half an hour tops of recently viewed television...

WSJ: Google working on own set-top box with Kinect-like motion gestures

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 26, 2013

The Google TV project has seen modest success (and that's putting it nicely), but nowhere near the level of interest of Apple's set-top box which holds more than half the world's market for streaming boxes.

People who are serious about software make their own hardware, Alan Kay once famously said. In this regard, Google is just as eager to become a hardware maker as Apple is adamant to double-down on online services.

That being said, it's no surprise Google is rethinking its approach to the living room. Earlier this week we were offered a glimpse of Google's renewed living room effort as the search giant announced a $35 TV dongle called the Chromecast, alongside the second-gen Nexus 7 tablet.

That's just the beginning, though. The Wall Street Journal now reports that Google is working on its own set-top box hardware with built-in motion recognition technology akin to Microsoft's Kinect...

WSJ: Google seeking game-changing live TV Internet service

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 16, 2013

I know, I know, Google runs the world's greatest video streaming machine, YouTube, so why wouldn't networks broadcast live TV there, no? Not so fast.

For starters, Google might be interested in marketing a rumored live TV Internet service separate of its other offerings.

Let's also not forget Apple hasn't had much luck persuading networks to license TV channels directly instead of going through operators.

Be that as it may, the search giant is said to has been months into negotiating an over-the-top video service that would let customers stream live TV programming over the Internet, in turn totally bypassing cable operators like Comcast and Time Warner Cable.

There's no question cable-cutters should have a field day when, and if, Google's live TV becomes a reality...

Is Apple’s magic wand ‘the simplest interface’ for iTV that Steve Jobs envisioned?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

As Tim Cook & Co. continue “pulling the string” on the TV space, readers with a keen interest in Apple's many patent applications are aware of a 2009 filing involving a wand remote of sorts that may include a motion detection component meant for the television interface.

Last June, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) granted that patent. And just last month, another major wand-related patent surfaced in USPTO's database that could be the magic required to make the TV experience “just work.”

It outlines a remote control containing fingerprint sensors, theoretically enabling identity and trust in order to authenticate viewers securely and deliver personalized content. It's especially noteworthy in the context of the rumored fingerprint scanning thought to be the killer feature of the upcoming iPhone 5S...