iTV To Go 'Beyond Streaming'?

[pmd]

How do you record channel 105 from 5:30PM to 6:30PM on Friday? Damn...that would take forever with 4 buttons.

I assume you've not used a TiVo then? The TiVo interface allows you to set manual channel and time recordings with just up,down,left,right and select, which is exactly what the Apple Remote has. It works just fine.

But on the TiVo, you rarely need to make a recording like that - you just select the program in the guide.

 

[mduser63]

With a hard disk in it. iTV will not require a computer - will give you internet access on your TV. Dock the iPod, and allow you to buy directly movies, songs & content. I.e. without streaming. Direct download through a Wifi intenet connection. Could even have the ability to stream from the internet - I.e. cable, etc.. coupled with a DVR for recording. Would be amazing if it could do all of the above.

As stated in some interview with Bob Iger that I read somewhere, the iTV will have an internal hard drive. I also have it from someone at Apple that it will have a hard disk, although they didn't tell me anything else that we don't already know and were very cautious about revealing too much.

 

[zeppiecr]

why not put a bluray in the itv?

 

[Carniphage]

why not put a bluray in the itv?

Why not put wheels on a boat?

 

[Carl Spackler]

Why not put wheels on a boat?

I like the cut of this man's gibberish.

 

[redAPPLE]

i just want to know if this will replace the airport express.

 

[Nym]

Why not put wheels on a boat?

AHAHAH!

That was nice

You guys are always speculating about what it will or will not have, I mean, you could all be right, but then.. you could all be wrong, I'm not betting on anything till I see the real thing
And there's one problem, is iTv supposed to be international or a USA only service? If it's supposed to be international Apple has to watch those "features", what's the point of people in Europe buying an iTv if half the "features" are not supported outside the US?

However, Apple has always surprised us, iTv is gonna be great IMO, is there another way?

 

[Peace]

i just want to know if this will replace the airport express.

Don't think it will replace the Airtunes but be a product of it's own.
There will be an updated Airport though..802.11n.

 

[colinmack]

A great opportunity to change the model

...
Broadcast TV is a business model from the 50s which needs to die. But if you *really* want your TV content determined by the marketeers of ant-acid remedies then stick with your DVR. Stick with Celebrity Love Spacktard. Cheer it up for American Idle. Wave pom poms like a sixteen year-old for the vacuous, empty spam that the networks churn out, to fill the gaps between revenue-generating advertising.
...

Dead on, in my opinion.

 

[Rocketman]

I was not aware of that, but breaking the agreement with Apple records not to get into the music distribution business has worked out for them I think.

It's funny, the first hifi company I thought of for an Apple HT product was Mcintosh, the complete opposite design asthetic. If I could choose I would prefer someone a little further down the price scale. Rotel would be a nice match, very good performance for the money, for speakers Paradigm comes to mind.

The text of that agreement was posted in a lawsuit thread. Apple Computer is precluded from "producing" music not distributing it. The recent claim by Apple Records was bogus and properly denied.

So does anyone know the current business status of Mc Intosh?

McIntoshAudio.com link

Rocketman

 

[Carl Spackler]

The text of that agreement was posted in a lawsuit thread. Apple Computer is precluded from "producing" music not distributing it. The recent claim by Apple Records was bogus and properly denied.

So does anyone know the current business status of Mc Intosh?

McIntoshAudio.com link

Rocketman

I believe their site is http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/

 

[Delicious-Apple]

A Touchscreen device is what I would like to see with the iTV (iTablet, Video iPod or iPhone). The beginnings of a device that can sync/serve every area of your digital life.

Leopard Features and iTV Companions:
iChat with the remote desktop features in particular
Bonjour, iCal, iSync, .Mac, iLife, Front Row etc

Video iPod/iTablet:
A touch screen Chameleon that acts as a remote control, Video/Music iPod, games controller and much more.

* Check your email on the way out of the office,
* View your Nike+Apple Stats/Report for the day,
* Dock the device in your car and listen to some music to unwind as you drive home,
* Walk through the door and automatically sync with iTV (and your Mac which is acting as a server),
* Collapse on the sofa and challenge your kids to a game (iTV or Mac based games of varying complexity). Turn your portable tablet landscape and it becomes a controller,
* Dock the device next to your mac for recharging, drag and drop new software components for added functionality.

Apple could add other hardware components such as lighting/home applicance control, wireless speaker systems, digital iPhoto frames; the list goes on FOREVER!

Software Add-Ons (iTunes style) would become the big sellers. Add lighting control functionality, game controller functionality, music functionality, email, basic photo editing. It's a DIY computer made up of modules.

It may take a few years of drip feeding for us to get there but I'm waiting, impatiently!!!

 

[babyj]

The quoted price is $299 which nominally translates to £157 + Apple stiff a brit tax + Government screw yer countryman tax.
I'm expecting £199.

If you think the iTV will do everything that a media centre pc circa(£800) does then i want to know what you are smoking?

It'll be a highly focused 1st release ie, everything in the Sept presentation + RSS feeds rebranded as clever channels, delivering usual junk off YouTube and Google video.

Games, ichat, online imovie editing, they'll be in patch releases, when you buy iTV 2 or never, cos Steve thinks those things suck ass on a TV.

I'm not expecting iTV to do everything a Media Centre PC does, but it needs to be able to do what the Xbox 360 can when connected to a PC running Media Centre. Whether that means it has to connect to a Mac or do it stand alone doesn't matter, but it needs to compete with the Microsoft solution.

If you've got an old PC (or you buy a cheap 2nd hand PC) you can run Media Centre on then it only costs £80 for Media Centre, £200 for an Xbox and £50 for a TV card.

I'd of already gone with Microsoft but I want to be able to download video on to my iPod - the different video formats make that a pain in the arse at the moment.

 

[MauiMac]

Mac Mini + SlingBox + Tivo = iTV!!!...

I HOPE!!! !!!

 

[PodHead]

You know what I would like with iTV?

Live content.

Think about it for a moment. I think everyone hates how expensive cable TV is. I am paying $45 per month just for 50 channels or so, with maybe 10 of those I actually watch (the networks, MSNBC, NESN, FSNE, ESPN, and a few other random ones).

Apple has the TV Shows issue fixed, thanks to $1.99 per show on iTunes and season passes.

However, live content is the big issue. I would love to ditch my cable tv subscription and go soley iTV. But I like to watch sports, especially baseball and football. Also you need TV for news events, especially breaking news. iTV and iTunes does not (yet) allow you to watch live streaming content.

If Apple could somehow strike a deal to cover sports and other live content such as news...that just really opens the door. Major League Baseball already does it with MLB.TV, except it is browser based. Imagine the same thing, but on iTV!?!?

Do that, and I would seriously cancel my cable tv subscription and go a la carte with iTunes. I spend roughly $540 a year on my 50 channels of cable TV, of which I at most watch 10 channels. I would much rather spend say $270 (half of the $540) on the 5 or so shows I watch, plus season passes for my local baseball and football teams, and the news channel of my choice.

That is where iTV could become a real winner.

I'm in the same boat!! Except I live in Japan. I rely solely on iTunes to watch my favorite shows in the U.S. But...I usually have to wait an extra day (not including the day it takes to appear on iTunes) to watch them. By the time the Packers have won (being optimistic) I'm two, sometimes three days behind (or ahead depending how you look at it) the news. I would totally stay up til 3:00 am to watch them live from the states.

 

[PodHead]

The concept of internet based content is very attractive, bandwidth issues aside. I pay too much money for too many channels I don't need/want. And I don't want to watch when NBC tells me too. A selective subscription to the media I'm interested in is just what I want. The lowered cost associated with online distribution versus a whole network of channels being pumped into every home opens the door for the little guys with very focused content to get stuff out there, just like podcasts, and hopefully make enough money to keep improving their material.

Very interesting point. With video podcast, everyone can have a TV show. Imagine that...independent T.V. Much like indie music.

 

[LastZion]

If iTV has some PVR functions in it, it is going to be tough to compete with. Very exciting

 

[lizard79]

one thing i was wondering about the iTV is: why hasn't it got an iPod dock on top of it?!

 

[Aniej]

one thing i was wondering about the iTV is: why hasn't it got an iPod dock on top of it?!

I mean I get what you are saying, but it doesn't seem like it would be very useful for two reasons. 1. By the very nature of how iTV works, you have a Mac somewhere else in the house and therefore have a tiny, hidden out of the way docking station right there. 2. iTV should either slip seemlesly into your aray of tv components and look elegant. Slapping an ipod on it makes it look like just another charging dock station and not nearly as sleek as the houaing it is in now.

 

[lizard79]

well - that's my point. I'd like my mac for work at my "working" place and the iTV connected to the hifi-system, external hdd with the iTunes library, movies etc. close to the "entertainment" area. And the ipod should be closer to the entertainment than work area..

hope you're wrong - althought I think you might be right

cheers. hans

I mean I get what you are saying, but it doesn't seem like it would be very useful for two reasons. 1. By the very nature of how iTV works, you have a Mac somewhere else in the house and therefore have a tiny, hidden out of the way docking station right there. 2. iTV should either slip seemlesly into your aray of tv components and look elegant. Slapping an ipod on it makes it look like just another charging dock station and not nearly as sleek as the houaing it is in now.

 

[Delicious-Apple]

The iPod will gain a wireless dock (or wireless functionality integrated) so it can communicate with the other components such as iTV and wireless speaker systems that Apple are supposedly experimenting with.

 

[Linito]

Actually, I was thinking they were working on a car

no no no think big, an airplane or a satellite maybe even a spaceshuttle

 

[TheManOfSilver]

I posted this a while ago - but I think Jobs was hinting that apple wants to be everywhere. iPod is a lifestyle product, as is the iTv.

Apple has proven that they have a true understanding of the user experience, and can spread that halo wherever a user may go. Hence the iPod's success, and perhaps the iTv and phone future success.

Bottom line, wherever there is media, apple wants to be there, showing everyone how to do it the best way.

I agree with your line about Apple wanting to be in multiple places. The one place I see them finally going themselves is the car ... not designing a car, but rather replacing the head unit on your car with a true video ipod interface. No onboard HD, just a true 3" video interface that shows your iPod's content just as it would on your iPod, while it's safely stowed in your glovebox, armrest, etc.

No one has done iPod integration right yet, because no one is Apple. Apple could go the route of designing a new iCar head unit itself for aftermarket sales and could sign deals with the automakers to offer it as an optional feature. They could partner with a big name in high quality car audio to get the sound quality right, but they would design the front end.

Perfect opportunity for Apple to fill a need that no one is addressing in an elegant, simple fashion.

 

[islanders]

iVo

I’m waiting on buying a HD DVD or BlueRay until the price comes down, so I could see iTV offering a HD alternative, and filling that niche.

Two premium channels cost $20 a month so iTV would sell you the device to steam movies, some broadcast, download like Tivo, so you wouldn’t need a Blueray or HD DVD.

What else could be practical? Of course it will have a hard drive… a cable box DVR has a hard drive.

If it also has the ability to surf the web and run a word processor, handle video from DVR and digital camera, I’ll get one…

That is if the price is about $500.

Some unanswered questions are where are they going to get the bandwidth to do all this? You will have to have a cable subscription, perhaps just a basic subscription, but even then bandwidth is limited.

They will need their own satellite, if they really want to compete. But that would make them iDish? hmmm

This could be very interesting. I have often wondered why all the cable companies and satellite companies are within $5 pricing difference of each other? Is this the rock bottom competitive price so they can break even or are these prices fixed?

I would love to get rid of so many commercials. I’m paying $78 a month for basic digital subscription and have to use a DVR to record programs so I can zap though the commercials.

Obviously I don’t know what the limitiatoins are here for an iCast or iDish, and anticipate something like a TiVo that can surf the web, upload video, and download HD.

 

[SeaFox]

I’m waiting on buying a HD DVD or BlueRay until the price comes down, so I could see iTV offering a HD alternative, and filling that niche.

I'm waiting for one format or the other to win, and I don't have an HD set anyway.

What else could be practical? Of course it will have a hard drive… a cable box DVR has a hard drive.

You're comparing apples to oranges now. A cable box is a tuner and a self-contained unit. As far as we know, iTV will not have a tuner. Its only known function at this time is to stream content from a Mac, so that makes iTV like a Slingbox, not a cableco DVR. And Slingboxes don't have hard drives.

If it also has the ability to surf the web and run a word processor, handle video from DVR and digital camera, I’ll get one…

I wouldn't hold my breath on the word processing and web surfing. WebTV showed surfing the internet on a TV sucked because trying to read normal-sized text from six feet away was hard, and bumping the text size up would goof up the page layout generally. Same reason word processing would be silly.

That is if the price is about $500.

I'm predicting a price around $400, but I'm also expecting a streaming device.

Some unanswered questions are where are they going to get the bandwidth to do all this? You will have to have a cable subscription, perhaps just a basic subscription, but even then bandwidth is limited.

What bandwidth? The stuff you watch is downloaded to your Mac first, or even the iTV itself. They don't stream it every time you want to watch it. The iTunes Store is open for business for movies. The bandwidth problem has already been addressed.

This could be very interesting. I have often wondered why all the cable companies and satellite companies are within $5 pricing difference of each other?

That's lack of competition caused by effects of previous government sanctioned monopolies. And some "cooperation" by the different players in the industry. Kinda like how airline tickets and auto insurance are all pretty much the same.