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Speculation on Apple's Television Set: Range of Sizes, Device Integration, Premium Pricing

Unggoy Murderer said:
Why freak out at twice the price? Almost all of Apple's products are twice the price of their "normal" market sector average, but we don't care! We pay the premium for the incredible quality, fantastic designs, outstanding customer service and support ... which you probably won't get with the cheaper "solution".

$400 for a 32" normal LED Display.
$799 for a 32" Apple LED display.

I honestly wouldn't be phased at paying the additional amount, but I can't speak for others.
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I agree that Apple's displays are expensive, but when compared to similar tech (IPS, etc.) they aren't bad. E.g. Dell's 30" UltraSharp U3011 is about 1,150 from Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/UltraSharp-U3...X0VC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1322694325&sr=8-2

What other products did you have in mind? The iPad, apple TV, iPhone, and iPod (all of which are non-personal computer products, just as a TV would be) are example enough to debunk the sweeping generality that "Almost all of Apple's products are twice the price of their "normal" market sector."
 
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carsteve said:
Why does it have to be a full TV? Why can't they just make another upgrade/evolution to the current AppleTV box? Who's to say you can't do all those things that are being rumored by having an AppleTV box hooked up to a TV itself?
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I think this is an important point; it's easy for us to get hyped up about the release of a television set and we'd all be pretty disappointed if next year they release an Apple TV 3 (think the "iPhone 5" disappointment).

From what I gather, Steve Jobs' comment about "cracking" the TV market never specifically mentioned a TV set.
 
1) Everyone needs to stop living in the pipe dream where Apple giving you pay-per-channel or other similar choices will allow you to cut the cable. How do you think the internets gets to your house? They will merely raise prices on your service to compensate. Honestly, they already do - around Detroit, the two major providers charge about the same for just internet as they do for internet + cable. They are already calling your bluff. They hold the power.

2) It would be a grave mistake to put out an Apple television at twice the price of similar models. TV just isn't cool enough to demand the Apple tax. I see nothing they could do that would make it worth it unless an elf lived inside and came out to clean my living room twice a week.
 
This is called "managing expectations".

It is a huge benefit to Apple to have people expect the televisions to be super expensive and to still be reliant on cable TV providers. Then when they come in under expectations on price and announce content agreements, a la carte channels, or "best of" subscriptions, everyoned is stunned and excited.

Remember before the iPad announcement the consensus "expert" prediction was for a $1000 price point? That made the $499 announcement a huge surprise and boosted excitement, press coverage, and sales.

Expect the actual Apple televisions to be significantly more capable and less expensive than what this article predicts.
 
AidenShaw said:
YMMV - my first one worked fine from the start.
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I had days I have 1 that worked first shot also, your point? I didn't say I didn't have days where it was a problem, but over all they are problems. 1 main issue is a tech will probably do 1 a cable card job once a month, sometimes even longer, so techs aren't exposed to it very often.
 
If they really do double the price, I feel they would be shooting themselves in the foot if they plan on breaking away from a "Hobby" project. TV's are expensive enough ($2500+)....A $5000 Apple branded TV with a little extra functionality won't fly off the shelves like an iPad.
 
gugy said:
Yes, I have a 60" Pioneer Elite plasma and it's one of the best pictures I ever seem in my life. Apple to make me buy a new set will have to come up with something much better. Sorry, some new gimmicks won't get me.
Just focus on a incredible ATV box and new content distribution model. That will be a winner.
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+1

LOVE my Pioneer 151FD. Truly worthy of the "Elite" name.

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something3153 said:
Alright, let's take this slowly. How does the wifi connection get to ABC's server?
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The Internet...

I realize that some of the cable companies offer television an Internet services, but one doesn't influence the other as much as you'd think.
 
The only thing that constitutes "cracking" the TV market is going around the service providers and going straight to the content providers. Jobs said from the beginning that dealing with all the different cable companies etc. was a show stopper. Cutting the cord to whoever is currently charging you for each byte that makes it into your house, now that would be extraordinary.
 
I think Apple should apply it's famous "one size only" stance just like they do with the iPhone & iPad. Just pick one size and that's it. Once in the hands of the public there should be ample feedback.

If they make it 32", while on the small side, they will have room for substantial Apple Tax without being the most expensive set. When others protest, it can be argued that Apples superiority prevents it from being compared. Simple.

The fanbois will offer lots of reasons to defend Apple & it will sell in huge quantities like iOS devices. They've already got plenty of proven slogans for their marketing plan.

Ad in a holographic image of Steve Jobs to keep the iFans happy and it will revolutionize the definition of couch potato.
 
Should be "Mac Blog" material. You'd have better luck getting an accurate prediction from this Munster:
HermanMunster.png
 
omegaphil6 said:
Twice the price?

if i can buy a 55" for $1000 + AppleTV2 for $99

then

True Apple Television needs to be $1100 (maybe $100 more for integration).

Apple's competition here is itself.

No one will pay $2000 for a 55" Television. Period.
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Well, now that depends on what features it comes with, how nice the set looks, and how good the pic quality is, doesn't it? Plenty of people were willing to shell out far more than $2000 for a 50" television when it had the words "Pioneer" and "Kuro" attached to it. If they still made it, lots of people STILL would. And that's without any extra innovative features that make the TV easier to use. Granted they folded, but then again, they never had the marketing power or production efficiency that Apple has in spades.

Why don't we first see what Apple has up their sleeve before we declare we would NEVER pay $2000 for a 55" TV. It's not that Apple never makes a misstep, but before they introduce something as HUGE as an Apple TV set, I would highly doubt they would risk a release unless they were confident they got it right on all fronts - hardware, software, and pricing. Just remember the naysayers before the first iPhone came out.

I find it hard to believe so many readers of MacRumors are SO severely lacking in imagination that they think Apple would merely release just another TV, slap an Apple logo on it, double the price, and expect that people will buy it.
 
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AidenShaw said:
YMMV - no problems here with a Comcast dual-decoder (two channels at once) CableCard in a TiVo HD. Picked up the card at the local Comcast strip-mall office - they put the IDs in the system, took it home a plugged it into the TiVo. The TiVo has two "recording" lights, so I can see that at times it does record on more than one channel.
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The latest cards support something like 6 streams. And the latest Tivo has 4 tuners, plus networking built in. 2 of those would be a nice setup. But pricey.

The Tivos are one of the better cable boxes at this point. It's been the hardware and its firmware that is the problem. Even Tivo had a rocky start with cable cards, IIRC. But now this is definitely the way to go for cable, if you can stomach the double-dipping fees.

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flux73 said:
I find it hard to believe so many readers of MacRumors are SO severely lacking in imagination that they think Apple would merely release just another TV, slap an Apple logo on it, double the price, and expect that people will buy it.
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Well, that is what Bose did. Maybe people are confusing them, again.
 
I really hope apple does not go into tv business. apple tv is fine. NOt TV which runs apple stuff.

TV is not something consumer buys on whim and most people buy tv when their current one breaks(not because they think they want a new one) or it is extremely outdated.

Believe me.. either this article and whoever is thinking of the rumor is just superbly slow and stupid OR apple is about to go down. JUst don't do it.

I am an apple whore.. but I will not buy TV made by apple. I will buy my next tv when it's convenient for me and also my current 52 lcd stop working(or 80 inch becomes the norm and under $1000 bucks.
 
jvmxtra said:
I really hope apple does not go into tv business. apple tv is fine. NOt TV which runs apple stuff.

TV is not something consumer buys on whim and most people buy tv when their current one breaks(not because they think they want a new one) or it is extremely outdated.

Believe me.. either this article and whoever is thinking of the rumor is just superbly slow and stupid OR apple is about to go down. JUst don't do it.

I am an apple whore.. but I will not buy TV made by apple. I will buy my next tv when it's convenient for me and also my current 52 lcd stop working(or 80 inch becomes the norm and under $1000 bucks.
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I agree and people want to buy a cheap TV that works fine. Don't think Apple will do good in sales with a TV.
 
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I don't get all the fuzz about the pricing... Double price - well, double of what? Samsung's premium 40" models are five times the price of their own 40" low price models. Obviously Apple will compete with the premium models of Samsung, Sony, Panasonic etc, not the low price models. It seems noone mentions the fact that Apple has plenty of know-how to kick butt when it comes down to sheer picture quality (which, believe it or not, some people actually do care about when buying a tv...) Most manufacturers are simply not getting what needs to be done to get a high quality picture (which is partly why Kuro's are still considered reference). Apple can give the established business a wake up call, not only in usability, but in PQ as well. And audio quality not least! Tom Holman anyone?
 
I'm holding off on purchases of TV sets for my next home until I hear more about Apple's plans, but there is no way I will pay double the price if the specs are fairly comparable. 10% more, maybe, but that's my limit.

I'd still prefer an improved Apple STB with recording/archiving capabilities (possibly via your Mac or iCloud) and Siri control, because the development of such devices greatly outpaces the development of display technologies. And I don't want to spend upwards of $2k every few years just to get the latest connectivity/recording/control features.
 
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I think we do need to acknowledge though that Apple will not quickly become a major player, although they will probably take up a major profit share (mostly due to everyone else NOT making any). Other than that, business as usual: people will bitch and moan that it's too expensive, too simple, they got it all wrong and noone will buy it, and when it gets out they will sell a ton.
 
HarryKeogh said:
Between my DVR, AppleTV and Verizon fios interface I really don't need my TV to do all that much more.
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As a Verizon FiOS subscriber I would love to see Apple do cable TV right. The FiOS hardware and UI is firmly stuck in the 1990's. I don't see voice recognition as a viable option, but the Apple remote combined with Front Row is waaay better than any of the TV set-top boxes out there.

I could see a multi-touch remote, a la iPod.

If anybody can bring cable TV into the 21st century, it is Apple. If the price is right, I'll bite. Although I do hope they'll stick with the small-format box, rather than forcing us to buy the entire TV.
 
Considering that a 27 inch ACD costs $1000 which is 3 times the amount of other competitors and Apple sells a bunch of them, Im sure a Apple TV that is double the cost of others will still do well. I buy Apple products because they are superior in build quality, technology and customer service. If this new apple TV is like every other apple product, I will be replacing all my Plasma/LED TV sets in my house!
 
the only way this could work is if:

1. the TV has a some storage. "People want to own their music" and Steve Jobs was right. there needs to be some storage capability (internet connections do fail) so we can play out tunes without needing the net.

2. Has to be plug and play with any cable provider. The Apple TV will remove the cable box. All one will need is to download the cable or sat providers app sign in and your good to go

3 Siri integrate it with everything make sure with works perfectly with cable providers app/ or any app the Apple TV uses

4. double the price! LOL then consider the Apple TV DOA. People only buy TV's en masse on: Black Friday/cyber monday, Week Before Superbowl, 4th of July Weekend, and on everyone of those days, TV's are cheap as dirt
 
Unggoy Murderer said:
Why freak out at twice the price? Almost all of Apple's products are twice the price of their "normal" market sector average, but we don't care! We pay the premium for the incredible quality, fantastic designs, outstanding customer service and support ... which you probably won't get with the cheaper "solution".

$400 for a 32" normal LED Display.
$799 for a 32" Apple LED display.

I honestly wouldn't be phased at paying the additional amount, but I can't speak for others.
Click to expand...

To defend Apple, for a change, that Apple display first isn't 32", but 27", and carries a higher density than most things on the market, and is consistently an IPS display. While I bemoan a lot of apple practices, their pricing on many things is competitive and if you actually look at the specs of that monitor that Apple charges an arm and a leg for, you'll see it isn't any more expensive than other solutions with equal specs.
 
BTW, siri integration on apple tv 1/2/(and hopefully 3 and more) hopefully comes in hurry. I am sick of typing w/ remote .. if I want to search on youtube for something, I should be able to speak to it.. rather than typing through the screen... WHEN is that coming?
 
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