The next Apple TV revealed: cloud storage and iPhone OS on tap... and a $99 price tag
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted May 28th 2010 10:19AM
posted May 28th 2010 10:19AM
Not only will this be priced to sell (like hotcakes), it seems that Apple is moving away from the model of local storage, and will be focusing the new ATV on cloud-based storage (not unlike Amazon's streaming scheme, though we're talking instant-on 1080p, a la Microsoft). For those still interested in keeping their content close, there will be an option to utilize a Time Capsule as an external storage component, but the main course will be all about streaming. The new ATV will do away with its current OS X-lite variation as a operating system, and will instead adopt the iPhone OS for the underlying experience. There's no word at this point on whether apps and the App Store will be coming along for the ride, but it makes sense given the shared platform. Of course, scaling iPhone apps to that 52-inch plasma in your living room isn't exactly a no-brainer. Perhaps not surprisingly, Apple won't deliver the ATV news at the upcoming WWDC -- that event will be focused on the capabilities of the new iPhone -- but development on the product is most definitely full steam ahead. Is your TV screen the next battleground in the platform wars? Survey says: hell yes.
it is ABSOLUTELY amazing how many Apple HATERS have been on this site for the past 3 months and then this comes out and people are saying, "ill buy it". Just yesterday people were saying F apple and Jobs... So many jabs have been taken at an "unreleased" iphone already and watch when the full retail product comes out... again.. people will have a shift in their attitudes and comments on here. Borderline Soap Opera.
I bought a Roku box as soon as it became available, and it's been the best entertainment dollar I've ever spent. I'm hoping Roku will negotiate a deal to add Google TV to their next model, I'd be all over that.
Don't see much sense in bringing Apple's walled garden to TV.
Only video out? Audio is an important part of video... If it's hdmi ok, but still! I havnt upgraded to hdmi ready stereo system yet!
I've wanted an Apple TV since they came out but by time I could afford one I was buying a PS3 which worked even better, especially when apple updated their UI, now this - if they want to sell me another iPod just tell me quit calling it an improvement, I'll spring the extra $50 for an internal hard disc drive, otherwise a160GB iPod works just fine ^_^
Already have a 360. Thanks but no thanks.
Wonder if existing ATV owners will get a software upgrade or are we under the bus?
All depends on content and content pricing.
Is Apple going to get a deal done for subscriptions? And get more content?
They need a way to combat the free OTA network channel content as well. With a lifetime Tivo you get record that stuff for free, skip commercials and watch anytime. and some won't like switching between devices to watch content from one or other although this ain't terrible.
Long before google my white ass.
16GB????? is that a joke????
What I don't get is why the AppleTV needs to be a separate hardware device. Why can't it just be an app on an iPhone??? All it would then take is a dock type device permanently connected to your TV, plug in you iPhone and away you go. This way apple automatically reaches millions of users...
$100 for an iPhone without a screen? So the iPhone screen costs, what, $250?
Didn't Vic Gundrotta say something like this at Google I/O?
As soon as you ask the user to press a button to switch between TV and Internet (like this new Apple TV will), they blew it!
and the heat continues... Google vs. Apple. more product redundancy in the living-room gadget market. lately it seems the 'hipsters' of the technology world are doing things like deleting their facebook accounts, buying android phones, and indiscriminately bashing apple. why? because it's the new trendy option for the nerds. though healthy competition is crucial toward elevating technological advances... let's step back and analyze a few points (and correct me if i'm wrong). apple had a mobile platform (hardware & OS) to market before google. then came android on a rash of third-party handsets. apple had a home entertainment option (AppleTV) to market before google. now comes GoogleTV. i can't remember who had a browser first, i think it was apple (Safari vs. Chrome). google is developing Chrome OS, of course Mac OS X has been around for years. do you see the trend forming? if apple goes full-steam (which i seriously doubt) into search, the two companies will be virtually identical in every target market. this is far from a death match, but product convergence is growing eerily similar. it's like a pissing contest to prove who has the biggest britches. apple rejects flash on mobile, so google embraces adobe. apple rigorously protects its intellectually properties, while google embraces the open-source movement. there is more than enough room to move for both titans, but what is the end game? for one to put the other out of business? so much discussion to be had regarding this thread, and the future will only bring better toys. but hey... in the end i guess the geeks (us) win.
@Eugene--wow, you've really shown your credibility. Who had the first browser? Ahhhh, let's see....Have you heard of Safari...think it was about 2001. Chrome is like 2 years old, dude. And I haven't heard anything about Apple getting into search--that would sort of be futile, that game is done, for the moment. In fact, Apple's argument AGAINST search is that it's not relevant in mobile, where Apple is currently focused. This came out with the iAd thing--unlike Google, which is trying to tie mobile into search for the advertising bucks, Apple thinks the advertising bucks will be within the Aps. Read up on it.
This will certainly be locked down Apple. I've got an Apple TV, which I love...but that's because I've hacked it to death. I buy very little from iTunes (and when I do it's music), so my video is usually in other formats. So, you've got to add Fip4Mac and other codecs to watch other video formats--all fine and good when it's OSX based like the current ATV, but I haven't seen any similar mods for iPhone OS (have you?) I'm not sure the current iPhone hardware could handle that, but maybe the A4 could. Apple really needs to at least open up the video in iTunes and iPhone OS as much as they have open up the music formats in iTunes and OSX. Otherwise that thing will be seriously crippled unless you buy your content strictly from iTunes, convert to mp4 or m4v, or maybe Apple opens up to some other partners (like Netfilx, which I think is critical).
As far as control, I'm sure this thing could be easily controllable by another iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad--today's Apple TV is .That also gives you a keyboard so you can interact with other applications (like App Store apps) and have full browser experience.
Of course, that really puts you square in the center of the Apple Universe--ATV, iTunes, iPhone.
@pjroberts Hey geek head - he said he didn't remember which was first. And Safari is totally crap browser - a lame excuse for a browser (not that chrome is that brilliant either though)
I like the idea, but i'm stuck on Google TV. Google TV just looks to be better then PB&J. I'll probably check it out though!
It's probably not just about movies/tv/music.
think gaming... think apps for your living room, all delivered through the appstore.
Throw in app store games with ability to use Iphone or iPod touch as accelerometer controls via Bluetooth connection and Apple wins the TV war end of.
@bloodypom exactly - BOOM! world (domination)^2 consider even 3rd party BT peripherals to play games...
@bloodypom Ends TV wars? Seriously? And there is a war going on?
I'll be avoiding this. I'm quite happy having a PC connected to my TV. I can play whatever content I like, regardless of format. You can guarantee new Apple TV will locked down to Apple approved formats (no MKV, OGG or WebM formats there).
On top of that,the lack of local storage will be a serious issue for those that don't have bandwidth caps. Sure, the cloud may sound great, but when your net bill is based on your bandwitch usage it isn't so flash. On top of that Apple is sure to charge a premium for using their cloud, and you can guarantee Apple won't let you use any other cloud for storage.
I cannot see Apple offering this without offering content for it. This announcement will most likely be coupled with the announcement of HD movies available on the iTunes Store, but the only way you will access them is from your new AppleTV. This will be just another example of Apple's increasing lock-in culture.
I hate to disappoint, but unless you have a multitouch plasma - the apps are going to be largely useless. You could have an ipod touch as an input device, but the abstraction would similarly balls-up the experience.
If they come up with an innovative input device, Nintendo might look a little green gilled.
I don't think Google TV is supposed to actually "cost" anything. I think the idea is that eventually it would come installed on something you'd already buy like a TV or a BluRay Player.
Google TV (Android) vs. Apple TV (iPhones OS)
Fight!
Google TV (Android) vs. Apple TV (iPhones OS)
Fight!
It's 99.00 for the hardware and 99.00 per year for MobileMe. Great for existing users, of no interest to others.
This has got to be the most biggest pile of crap I have ever seen. And to see all these fan boys rally behind it...amazes me. People seem to forget that several major studios WILL NOT BOW TO APPLE. They WILL not change their libarys to suit Apple's needs. That is ALOT of content that you wont have access to. Second, Google TV IS FREE!!! I love reading the comments of mindless automatons who would buy anything that a certain man would crap out.
@topgun966
Google TV is not free - you have to purchase a box or a new TV - and no one knows what that the actual experience will be.
I can already search for TV or videos. So it's a new UI for search and Google does search better than most - but what *is* my experience? Google's UI track record isn't the best.
This is probably going to be the Apple product with the lowest profit margin. However, I would not worry about paying a monthly subscription because Apple has the pay-as-you-want iTunes "subscription". With this low price they're looking for market penetration. As at looks by the comments, Apple did their research and hit a really good price point.
$99 for Apple TV with TV Out only, or $199 for Revo with USB, Ethernet, expandable memory, full OS option, XBMC/Boxee, etc, etc, etc.
$99 sounds very good. However, it seems like a clever way of getting people even more hooked into buying content from iTunes.
@Ruthless That was really the only purpose for Apple TV period. It's a logical plan but unfortunately for the users they never took it much further than that.
Seriously, people, please don't make this into a Apple TV vs Google TV (Apple vs Google) battle. Apple TV's market competition will be media players like WD TV Live, Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ media player (now FreeAgent GoFlex TV HD Media Player), Popbox, Roku, etc which also have a $100-150 price tag.
Apple TV is a device with limited functionality running a closed platform. Google TV is not a device, it's a PLATFORM based on Android. Logitech's implementation of Google TV might be completely different to XYZ Company's. We'll see a lot more features added to Google TV as companies get their hands on the SDK (just as we have seen Android evolve from it's very humble beginnings).
If Apple updates Apple TV on the same pace as it has on the 1st version their only chance of decent sales are clever commercials that make it SOUND like they innovated the hardware media player and you absolutely need it.
Without dual TV tuners this isn't an all in one device.
Without being an all in one device there is no point to this product.
Even my PS3 has dual DVB-T Tuners!
i'm not a apple fan but if this is at 99 bucks of course i'll buy it!
"capable of full 1080p HD (!)."
What's with the exclamation point? Google TV's does TWO full HD's.
Well, if its really that price, perhaps as a wasted buy - but its Apple with their censorship, no flash, and worse, no Android.
Wait - if iPhone OS is simply a shell version of OS/X (as Steve always says) and Apple TV is a simplified version, why can't they simply put the new ATV OS on the existing Apple TVs?
I love my Apple TV - but I will be plenty p*ssed if a new version comes out and they don't provide even a somewhat upgrade for existing users.
Ok, so Apple TV was meant to steam your iTunes library to your TV, buy shows and movies from the iTunes store and that's basically it, right? So...does that just mean this one will stream content rather than download it? How does this compare to Google TV? Are either going to stream content for free along the lines of Hulu? Where does this leave users outside of the US? Most of the networks in Canada allow you to stream content from their websites but it gets to be a pain only being able to watch it on the computer (without speakers at that, my Macbook's digital out is stuck on. Tried everything to fix it).
It's never really been entirely clear to me. I don't have cable because there are only about 5 channels I'd actually watch, so streaming shows has been the best option. It's just getting to the point where I wish I could turn on my TV and stream TV shows without needing to hunt down a torrent first and fire up the Xbox 360.
If either the new Apple TV or Google TV will solve any of this, count me in.
@stokd Nevermind. Just looked around a bit more and answered my own question.
@stokd
AppleTV's Canadian content is iffy at best. HD videos are very rare to buy (example: Forrest Gump can be rented in HD, bought in SD but is not available to buy in HD ?!?!?!?)
The TV content isn't bad but the costs are crazy ($74 for a season for some shows when you can buy the DVD for $20).
This seems entirely unlikely. However, were it true it would depend on a very fast internet service and perhaps a touchscreen remote or perhaps even a gaming controller. The device would need WiFi 803.11N as a minimum and back itself up locally and stream from the Time Capsule (which so far neither the iPad nor the iPhone does).
Additionally, the price point seems exceptionally low for an Apple product. This is just as pointless as Google TV. I don't need to find the content I know exactly where it is. Trapped on my cable DVR.
To replace my cable TV, Apple would have to stream 1080p of all the shows I want on demand including live local news, weather, and sporting events and archives everything I wanted to see but missed.
I would actually pay for that if it was bundled with my internet access.
But really all Apple has to do is allow me to stream from my cable DVR to my iPad and iPhone over the network and internet. Problem solved.
I am completely uninterested in this box. One reason is that it appears to offer no options for watching HD live sports, so I still have to have my cable subscription. I have an HTPC with Windows Media Center and thoroughly love it.
Apple Cloud TV? I'll believe it when I see it. These are the same people who brought you MobileMe and the people who won't let your very expensive phone mount as a drive to you computer. You don't think they would have annoying restrictions all over this device? Think again.
If this thing comes with gamepads it could be very cool.
I'm sure dozens of other people have mentioned this over this post's 500 comments but...when exactly did "rumored" become equivalent to "revealed".
I've been seeing this more and more on various sites and it's just flat out deceptive. Virtually every tech and game site on Earth had an article "Nintendo 3DS revealed" when Nintendo simply mentioned the thing existed. I think at the very least you need to have an official image of the device and its capabilities to consider it "revealed".
Does my Cable TV go out if I hold it?
Forget this. Nobody's going to get an Apple TV if they want a DVR for mobile:
EyeTV and it's QAM/HD ($300)> Mac Mini ($850) > iPhone 4 ($213/$313)