Target to Carry Apple TVs?

[MacRumors]

Appleinsider claims that Target stores will begin carrying Apple's new Apple TV at retail locations by the end of the month.

Target will reportedly mimic Apple Stores with a full demonstration unit connected to a widescreen HDTV. No further details on the size of the launch are available, but Target already offers the Apple TV for sale on their online store.

The news comes in the wake of earlier reports that Best Buy had gained a brief "exclusive" on Apple TV sales for the first few weeks. According to anecdotal reports, sales of Apple TVs at Best Buys have been slow.

The Apple TV has seen a lot of interest in the technical community with efforts to hack and expand the device. Whether or not Apple TV will enjoy a large consumer adoption remains to be seen.

 

[4God]

Whaaaaaaaaaaat? Just doesn't seem right for some reason.
I understand the target audience, but I just couldn't see myself walking
into Target for some Apple advice/info, even if it were for just the AppleTV.

 

[DMann]

Apple TV

Whaaaaaaaaaaat? Just doesn't seem right for some reason.
I understand the target audience, but I just couldn't see myself walking
into Target for some Apple advice/info.

True, but then again, the advice you get at Comp USA is not all that much better....

 

[siurpeeman]

it makes sense. target sells ipods and hdtvs. it isn't a stretch to sell apple tvs, too.

 

[LagunaSol]

"Target will reportedly mimic Apple Stores with a full demonstration unit connected to a widescreen HDTV."

Yes, but will they mimic Apple Stores with the utter crap quality video media being used for the Apple Store demo units?

I hope not.

 

[quigleybc]

This news is positively huge,

I am flabbergasted and floored...

Oh wait....

nevermind,

 

[4God]

True, but then again, the advice you get at Comp USA is not all that much better....

You're right about that, I guess I'll stick the online store.

 

[macsforme]

Cool, we need Apple products spread to as many stores as are willing to carry them.

 

[chris.niziolek]

Yes, but will they mimic Apple Stores with the utter crap quality video media being used for the Apple Store demo units?

I hope not.

I have yet to see an apple store display. I highly doubt that apple would demo a video that is of "poor quality". Maybe you just have way too high of standards.

 

[GanleyBurger]

. According to anecdotal reports, sales of Apple TVs at Best Buys have been slow.

Whether or not Apple TV will enjoy a large consumer adoption remains to be seen.

Duh...

No one knows what the thing does!!! All the commercials say is "If it's on your computer... and on your ipod... it's now on your TV" or something. What the hell does that mean???

Sorry, Apple. Remember English class ..... "Show, don't tell" your reader about things.

The days of cute little hip ads need to go. Show show show.

 

[LagunaSol]

I have yet to see an apple store display. I highly doubt that apple would demo a video that is of "poor quality". Maybe you just have way too high of standards.

I wish you were right. Frankly, I couldn't believe what I was seeing either. The video demos were bad. Really bad. Not quite YouTube bad, but they looked closer to YouTube than they did to DVD. Honestly.

If you read any of the forums just after the AppleTV was released, you would have seen others report the same thing, from stores across the country (I had hoped it was just an issue at my local store).

I'm not sure what went wrong, as owners of AppleTVs later confirmed that video really did look better than what was shown at the Apple Stores. So why the demos were (are?) so bad is a mystery that remains unexplained. But seeing these things in action gave me a "no way I'm buying one of these if this is what the video looks like" reaction. And I typically have a hard time finding fault in Apple products.

Someone should have been fired for the junk those demo units were churning out for all the world to see.

 

[robPOD]

Whether or not Apple TV will enjoy a large consumer adoption remains to be seen.

does anyone now how well the tv is selling?

 

[Bonte]

AppleTV is aimed at the tech savvy community, its ready for mass consumption when it won't need a computer in the network and get its content direct from the internet.

I would love an add-on with bigger HD, DVD player that can rip and mediacard reader.

 

[EricNau]

Apple is really pushing these things. They really do believe that the Apple TV is the next iPod. I guess we'll see.

 

[GFLPraxis]

I work for a major medical IT company in the region, Windows-based. All the higher ups now use MacBooks for mobile videoconferencing, and I'd seen the front lobby 50" plasma displaying 3D photo slideshows in HD, looked pretty good...just today I saw the cabinet open, and lo and behold, it was being run by an Apple TV.

I was rather shocked to see one made it into the corporate offices. I guess i'm wearing off on them

 

[swingerofbirch]

Yeah, I don't think some people are even getting what the Apple TV commercial says. Most of my friends don't use computers the way we (the people on this board) do. They are just starting to import CDs into iTunes. I doubt they know iTunes even sells movies. So that first shot of the iMac playing a movie might as well be a shot of the iMac playing the DVD of the same movie. Then they show it on the iPod. I for the life of me can't understand why anyone would want to watch a full length movie on an iPod (I have a video iPod and never use it for video)...and then the finale, now it's on your TV! Wait, what? The DVD that was playing on the iMac is playing on the TV, yeah I could already do that....Oh, no? You mean I can buy one of 250 movies from iTunes that is almost DVD quality, buy a $299 Apple TV and stream one of those movies to my high definition TV? Yay! It just doesn't make sense! Why does Apple require a widescreen TV, which are usually HDTV, if their content is below DVD quality and many of their shows they offer are still in standard format 4:3?

I don't GET this product or WHY they introduced it, my best guess is that its to please investors beause it smocks of synergy? But I didn't think Apple was the type of company to make a product for the sake of making one...

I can see that this product would be useful when hard disks are big enough on computers to store a typical number of movies in a person's library and when iTunes offers something more rare (HD movies). Right now it's just a burden to store movies on a computer (too much space) and it's not worth it (better quality on DVD).

It's like Steve Jobs said about the Zune having that silly song sharing feature: why not just do the natural thing and share an ear bud! Well, I think it's true with this, why not just take the DVD out of the iMac and put it in your DVD player!!!!

 

[AlanAudio]

I'm not sure that the general public are ready for Apple TV yet.

It's nicely made and well designed but I don't get any sense of ordinary people being excited about them at the moment.

Until such time as it's established as a good solution and with a wide selection of content, I think it's better sold at specialist outlets, otherwise there is the risk that it could be sold to people who don't properly understand what it is, or be sold by people who don't properly understand what it's intended to do. Either way, there is the risk that some customers may find that it isn't what they think it was going to be and it make acquire some negative associations.

Selling via Apple stores and in similar outlets is a much better way to ensure that it's sold well and for the right reasons. Once it takes off and has become established, widening the range of outlets would be a natural step to take,

 

[russellb]

Why Apple TV

ummm I dont understand how a few of the previous posts can say Apple TV has no place or they cant understand the product.


Simple ... I record all my TV on my Mac in my office at home BUT like 99% of most households when I site down to TV after getting home from work I dont want to stuff about with keyboards and mouse or watch it on my mac.

EyeTV records my entire weekly TV schedule automatically. I walk to the lounge and Apple TV has all my recorded TV shows streaming from my mac.

Whats not to get

Especially when they introduce more and better features with sofware updates...

It's the perfect product .. except for a few first release things that could do with a polish.

My wife sits down and flicks through all the latest Movie previews with a simple 6 button remote and no using a computer ... whats not to get ??

My Wife asks me to buy from itunes her favourate TV shows .... she sits down in the lounge and with a click starts watching them

Whats not to get ????

I dont get why people dont get it

 

[sgarringer]

The news comes in the wake of earlier reports that Best Buy had gained a brief "exclusive" on Apple TV sales for the first few weeks. According to anecdotal reports, sales of Apple TVs at Best Buys have been slow.

I went to 3 separate Best Buy's and was told in two that "they don't carry Apple stuff". The other one the guy said he'd go ask someone if they have a TV Apple, even after I corrected him twice and he never came back. I ended up finding them there, in a dark corner next to Tivo Series 2 boxes. No display, no nothing, just 3 AppleTVs sitting there with not so much as a price tag.

Yeah, its no wonder they havn't been flying off the shelves.

 

[MacVault]

....Apple Stores with the utter crap quality video media being used for the Apple Store demo units?

Ha! You've got that right! I couldn't belevie the crappy quality video on the Apple TV demos the other day at the Novi, MI store. What are they thinking???

As for the Target deal... well, I can't stand Target stores. I try to avoid them at all costs. When I walk in I feel like I'm stepping into the red-xenon-light decontamination room on the movie Andromeda Strain Target needs to re-think their interior design.

 

[mrparet]

I have yet to see an apple store display. I highly doubt that apple would demo a video that is of "poor quality". Maybe you just have way too high of standards.

No, the Apple store demo unit's media looks craptastic. Grainy, pixalated... Not exactly a good way to entice customers. The TV that was streaming content from a near by computer looked great, however.

 

[Tara Davis]

ummm I dont understand how a few of the previous posts can say Apple TV has no place or they cant understand the product.


Simple ... I record all my TV on my Mac in my office at home BUT like 99% of most households when I site down to TV after getting home from work I dont want to stuff about with keyboards and mouse or watch it on my mac.

Whats not to get ????

I dont get why people dont get it

In other words, if you are one of the few people out there who uses a Computer as a PVR (like I do), or store a lot of other video files on your Mac (ditto)...

But you DON'T have that media-center computer hooked up to... you know... a media center.

So TV is a $300 way of doing what a good HDMI cable would do for you, oh and you have to give up surround sound to do it, since the TV outputs stereo only. Yay.

A much better solution:

Buy a computer (the Mac mini is as good a choice as any), hook it up to an HDTV system (or a really big computer monitor if the room is small enough), use bluetooth keyboard & mouse from your comfy recliner.

Now you don't need an TV, nor do you need office furniture, nor do you need a separate TV/Monitor. You just saved a fortune.

"But I want my computer in the office and the TV in the living room"

No problem. Use a MacBook. When you want to watch TV, carry it into the living room and plug it in to your TV set. When you would rather use it as a computer in the den, unplug it from the TV and carry it back to your desk. Done.


Yes, if you MUST keep your iMac (or whatever) in another room and you MUST be able to watch files from THAT computer on your TV set and you DON'T have any media files incompatible with (or poorly performing on) the QuickTime engine and you DO have an HDTV and you DON'T mind that many of the available content is not in high-def and you DON'T mind that your media will not be in true surround... Then congratulations, you are one of the six or seven people in the world for whom the TV is the best possible solution.

For everybody else, the TV is a poor substitute for just plugging a mini into your TV set, and before you start going off about the price of a mini vs. $300... keep in mind that those who own wide-screen TV's are people who are willing to pay more for the better media solution. Hooking up a computer directly is BY FAR the better solution, to the point that somebody with a $5000 TV set at $2000 sound system will not sneeze at paying an extra $400 to do it right.

 

[russellb]

Wrong !!!!

Very Wrong !

"since the TV outputs stereo only" I have Apple TV Optical out to my tuner and get 5.1 sound thank you very much.

What you mean is Itunes only sells Dolby surround up till now, but Apple TV will pass any 5.1 sound straight to your tuner.

I did have my Mac Mini hoked up to my TV and it works fine BUT as you read in my post the average person does not want to bother with a computer, keyboard etc etc

They just want to sit down and watch TV with no fuss.

Thats why Apple TV will succeeed.

Not by catering to the people who want to hook up media centr's and mac mini's etc .. there will wlays be those BUT thats not the masses and thats what apple hopes to cater to.

"Then congratulations, you are one of the six or seven people in the world for whom the TV is the best possible solution."

One of the major things the average person wants is to watch all their TV content and while there is a delay at present exporting from EYETV to Apple TV at least it's all automatic and will improve in speed I am sure.

The average person (the masses) dont rip DVD's , dont have lots of ripped content dumped on media computers. They watch TV , they buy a few programs from Itunes and they record TV... thats what Apple TV caters to.

 

[russellb]

Ps

"Hooking up a computer directly is BY FAR the better solution"

Not at the moment it's not

Thats what I had and juggling remotes, bluetooth mouse and sometimes keyboard is not what I want to do. I want simplicity, so does my family

If you want a media centre PC thats fine .. nothing wrong with that BUT the biggest factor that affects what us guys do in the lounge room is SWMBO (she who must be obayed) She does not want to juggle remotes, does not want to know about configuring things

thats the point of Apple TV simple, easy remote, easy to use. It caters to a market and that market is huge and far bigger compared to those who want fully blown media computers in their lounge...

Who wants to carrty a laptop about just to watch yout TV shows etc.

 

[a456]

I work for a major medical IT company in the region, Windows-based. All the higher ups now use MacBooks for mobile videoconferencing, and I'd seen the front lobby 50" plasma displaying 3D photo slideshows in HD, looked pretty good...just today I saw the cabinet open, and lo and behold, it was being run by an Apple TV.

I was rather shocked to see one made it into the corporate offices. I guess i'm wearing off on them

Interesting stuff, I guess there are a good number corporate uses here. Employees, especially in small media based companies can save their pictures, film or whatever to a public folder and then you can have a boardroom meeting where multiple people can have quick and easy access to presentation material without setting up separate laptops or bringing CDs etc., and no need for even a cheap PC with projector, just an Apple TV and a TV. Maybe this is potentially a bigger market than the home one - an Apple TV in every boardroom.