First 100,000 Apple TVs to start shipping later this month - report
Inventec Appliances has won the role of original electronics manufacturer (OEM) for Apple's recently introduced Apple TV and will begin shipping the first batch later this month, a published report said Thursday.
Taiwan-based DigiTimes cited industry sources in saying Apple's initial order for the set-top media device totals 100,000 units starting late January.
"Company sources at Inventec said Apple accounted for 70 percent of Inventec Appliances' sales in 2005 and 65 percent in 2006," the publication said.
"The sources said the company plans to reduce the proportion further in 2007 in order to lessen its reliance on a single customer."
It was previously reported that Apple would begin shipping Apple TV -- then known only by the moniker iTV -- in either late January or early February.
In premiering the digital media device at this week's Macworld Expo in San Francisco, Apple committed begin customer shipments "in February." It said customers can start placing pre-orders through its online store.
The $300 multimedia hub streams content over WiFi to big-screen televisions around the home and allows connections for up to five computers. It also includes a 40GB hard disk drive for some local storage.
As an Apple OEM, Inventec has largely been responsible for production of hard disk drive-based iPod digital music players. It declined to comment on the Apple TV report "citing customers confidentiality."
Taiwan-based DigiTimes cited industry sources in saying Apple's initial order for the set-top media device totals 100,000 units starting late January.
"Company sources at Inventec said Apple accounted for 70 percent of Inventec Appliances' sales in 2005 and 65 percent in 2006," the publication said.
"The sources said the company plans to reduce the proportion further in 2007 in order to lessen its reliance on a single customer."
It was previously reported that Apple would begin shipping Apple TV -- then known only by the moniker iTV -- in either late January or early February.
In premiering the digital media device at this week's Macworld Expo in San Francisco, Apple committed begin customer shipments "in February." It said customers can start placing pre-orders through its online store.
The $300 multimedia hub streams content over WiFi to big-screen televisions around the home and allows connections for up to five computers. It also includes a 40GB hard disk drive for some local storage.
As an Apple OEM, Inventec has largely been responsible for production of hard disk drive-based iPod digital music players. It declined to comment on the Apple TV report "citing customers confidentiality."
Comments
But AppleTV really does still strike me as one that only a few people would want. Which is great for those people, and probably is plenty to pay Apple for their R&D. But it's nothing like an iPod or iPhone that has instant appeal to a wide range of consumers.
iTunes can already stream from another Mac/PC, so a Mac Mini hooked to TV sounds better in just about every way: you get the same remote, only now it plays DVDs and CDs too, and you have every app/media player/tuner/PVR that you might want to add: you have a complete Mac platform. You even have on-screen Web and email (especially with Leopard's scalable UI). As for WiFi n, at the moment, my g seems sufficient for streaming everything from iTunes TV shows to movie trailers. And iTunes shows aren't HD (though of course that will happen one day). And when they are, AppleTV doesn't go as high res as some TVs--it only goes to 720p? (Not bad, but still, I enjoy 1080i HDTV sometimes.)
So AppleTV doesn't seem to do much that a Mini can't do already. Except it's cheaper! So it will have some market.
But you can already stream your audio to your stereo with much cheaper things, and there are RF remote controls to handle your skip and volume. You don't get your music listings on your TV, but that's not a feature most people really are clamoring for--not to the tune of $300. So AppleTV's main new thing is streaming of movies and TV bought from iTunes--which are sub-DVD quality (still very good--it's how I watch Galactica) and can be sent to TV with a cable anyway. Why replace that cheap cable with an AppleTV, when the cheap cable is probably fine for iTunes video quality? It makes sense in certain setups where a cable can't be run, but it's not like an iPod which nearly anyone can enjoy. (And in fact, an iPod is yet another way to get your music in your living room--it's what I do. And then I do have visual navigation, just not on the TV itself.)
So it seems like a really nice product... for a really small niche.
I can't help wondering what else Apple might have planned for it, though... and why they would be releasing it BEFORE it does anything else? With such hype, and a teaser pre-announcement? Apple seems to think it's bigger than I understand.
I keep expecting to see some article explain what I'm missing. Any thoughts? What will make this sell to a large market?
(I do think the USB port probably figures into Apple's unspoken plans. Be it for a tuner/PVR, additional storage, or pointing/game devices. USB2 is no Firewire but it can do a lot. Still, I wouldn't want to buy an AppleTV on that vague hope. Nor, if I were Apple, would I want to release the AppleTV before those other features arrive--if they truly ever do. And yet, here it is, with no real surprises since the teaser last year!)
I'm not one of these people who thinks a product is bad just because it's the one some ELSE wants and not me. So when I call this a niche product, don't take it as a flame. There's nothing wrong with that. My iPod Photo was a niche product once upon a time!
But AppleTV really does still strike me as one that only a few people would want. Which is great for those people, and probably is plenty to pay Apple for their R&D. But it's nothing like an iPod or iPhone that has instant appeal to a wide range of consumers.
iTunes can already stream from another Mac/PC, so a Mac Mini hooked to TV sounds better in just about every way: you get the same remote, only now it plays DVDs and CDs too, and you have every app/media player/tuner/PVR that you might want to add: you have a complete Mac platform. You even have on-screen Web and email (especially with Leopard's scalable UI). As for WiFi n, at the moment, my g seems sufficient for streaming everything from iTunes TV shows to movie trailers. And iTunes shows aren't HD (though of course that will happen one day). And when they are, AppleTV doesn't go as high res as some TVs--it only goes to 720p? (Not bad, but still, I enjoy 1080i HDTV sometimes.)
So AppleTV doesn't seem to do much that a Mini can't do already. Except it's cheaper! So it will have some market.
But you can already stream your audio to your stereo with much cheaper things, and there are RF remote controls to handle your skip and volume. You don't get your music listings on your TV, but that's not a feature most people really are clamoring for--not to the tune of $300. So AppleTV's main new thing is streaming of movies and TV bought from iTunes--which are sub-DVD quality (still very good--it's how I watch Galactica) and can be sent to TV with a cable anyway. Why replace that cheap cable with an AppleTV, when the cheap cable is probably fine for iTunes video quality? It makes sense in certain setups where a cable can't be run, but it's not like an iPod which nearly anyone can enjoy. (And in fact, an iPod is yet another way to get your music in your living room--it's what I do. And then I do have visual navigation, just not on the TV itself.)
So it seems like a really nice product... for a really small niche.
I can't help wondering what else Apple might have planned for it, though... and why they would be releasing it BEFORE it does anything else? With such hype, and a teaser pre-announcement? Apple seems to think it's bigger than I understand.
I keep expecting to see some article explain what I'm missing. Any thoughts? What will make this sell to a large market?
(I do think the USB port probably figures into Apple's unspoken plans. Be it for a tuner/PVR, additional storage, or pointing/game devices. USB2 is no Firewire but it can do a lot. Still, I wouldn't want to buy an AppleTV on that vague hope. Nor, if I were Apple, would I want to release the AppleTV before those other features arrive--if they truly ever do. And yet, here it is, with no real surprises since the teaser last year!)
I'm very much in agreement with your sentiments. You forgot to mention the fact that Apple made that niche even smaller by making the AppleTV only work with widescreen TV's. That leaves me out of the market unless I want to invest in a new TV (which I do, but not solely for this product; I'd love to start enjoy the full high-def potential of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray)
I hope there are some hidden features to the AppleTV, otherwise I'm content to keep hooking my iPod into my home theater to watch the limited selection of TV shows I buy on iTunes (which will probably be down to zero if/when I get Tivo) or watch them on my 20" iMac. The number of movies I expect to ever buy from iTunes will remain at zero so long as they don't offer the same features as DVD (5.1 sound, commentaries, bonus features, etc.). And I just bought the Airport Express so I can already stream music to my TV without the AppleTV.
As for the USB port, Apple may have thoughts of using it but whether they do or not remains up in the air. There have been plenty of electronics with additional ports that only rarely got used. Nintendo's game systems come to mind; several of them had additional connection ports that didn't get used (or at the very least never made it from Japan to North America). The DVR I had from one cable company had USB ports. Sites covering the box said one intention was to allow USB hard drives to be attached. I think it could also be used to read SD memory cards to upload photos to the machine. Whether or not Apple chooses to use the USB port for anything is in question.
So AppleTV doesn't seem to do much that a Mini can't do already. Except it's cheaper! So it will have some market.
Much like all of us with 80GB iPods wonder why anyone would buy a Nano when, for $50 more, they could get tons more storage and capabilities in an HD based iPod. "Surely it can't just be for joggers worried about messing up the hard drive, can it?"
As much as I'd prefer a dedidicated Mac mini for my just purchased Sharp Aquos 32" LCD HDTV, it's hard to justify $600 for one. I might as well spend a few hundred bucks more and get the HD TiVo. I love my TiVo, but since I got this HDTV, suddenly I am willing to give up TiVo for an HD solution that doesn't cost $800.
Currently, I'm thinking an Elgato EyeTV hybrid (w/Toast 8 for $150 right now, MacWorld special) and the Apple TV would be an okay bet. Downside, that a mini would solve: I probably can't be recording HDTV to my back bedroom iMac while I'm doing Final Cut Pro video editing or DVD encoding. Thus, a dedicated machine would make sense...
I'd also say "we're all going to have to replace our TV sets in a year or so anyway, or get a converter box" but since most people aren't like me (rabbit ear antenna and TiVo for free TV), having Cable or Satellite means you won't have to change a thing.
We'll see. If it just had a tuner, and TiVo-like capabilities (maybe with scheduling being part of .mac subscription)...
I'm very much in agreement with your sentiments. You forgot to mention the fact that Apple made that niche even smaller by making the AppleTV only work with widescreen TV's. That leaves me out of the market unless I want to invest in a new TV (which I do, but not solely for this product; I'd love to start enjoy the full high-def potential of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray)
I hope there are some hidden features to the AppleTV, otherwise I'm content to keep hooking my iPod into my home theater to watch the limited selection of TV shows I buy on iTunes (which will probably be down to zero if/when I get Tivo) or watch them on my 20" iMac. The number of movies I expect to ever buy from iTunes will remain at zero so long as they don't offer the same features as DVD (5.1 sound, commentaries, bonus features, etc.). And I just bought the Airport Express so I can already stream music to my TV without the AppleTV.
I thought you just needed component video. I certainly hope so, cause I pre-orderd mine on tuesday.
Would a TV like this work? http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1099392081842
According to Apple's site, that brand isn't listed. But what's to stop it from working?
I wouldn't buy it right now because it will take at least standard DVD-quality video to get me to give up a real DVD player, even a Mac Mini as DVD player, in favor of streaming video from iTunes. iTunes can't rip a DVD so removing the DVD player from my entertainment system would make my existing DVD collection useless. I don't want that. I will require a dedicated DVD player of some kind until my DVDs can be ripped by iTunes for storage on a hard drive and accessed through iTunes for playback.
Would I like to have one? Sure, but there's no way I'd pay $300 for what little this thing does. A Mac Mini has replaced nearly every other component in my entertainment system. I have a receiver, a DirecTiVo, and Mini. If I had an Apple TV, I'd still need the Mini or I'd have to put a dedicated DVD player back in the mix. Why would I want to spend $300 to do that? It just makes no sense to/for me.
Hopefully, additional features will be announced. More likely, as is typical Apple style, the 1st generation device has about 1/20th of the features they have planned, but you'll have to re-buy to get any new features. (This style of Apple's is why the iPhone drops my jaw. I can't believe all of the features that little 1st generation baby has packed into it.)
I'm not one of these people who thinks a product is bad just because it's the one some ELSE wants and not me. So when I call this a niche product, don't take it as a flame. There's nothing wrong with that. My iPod Photo was a niche product once upon a time!
But AppleTV really does still strike me as one that only a few people would want. Which is great for those people, and probably is plenty to pay Apple for their R&D. But it's nothing like an iPod or iPhone that has instant appeal to a wide range of consumers.
iTunes can already stream from another Mac/PC, so a Mac Mini hooked to TV sounds better in just about every way: you get the same remote, only now it plays DVDs and CDs too, and you have every app/media player/tuner/PVR that you might want to add: you have a complete Mac platform. You even have on-screen Web and email (especially with Leopard's scalable UI). As for WiFi n, at the moment, my g seems sufficient for streaming everything from iTunes TV shows to movie trailers. And iTunes shows aren't HD (though of course that will happen one day). And when they are, AppleTV doesn't go as high res as some TVs--it only goes to 720p? (Not bad, but still, I enjoy 1080i HDTV sometimes.)
So AppleTV doesn't seem to do much that a Mini can't do already. Except it's cheaper! So it will have some market.
But you can already stream your audio to your stereo with much cheaper things, and there are RF remote controls to handle your skip and volume. You don't get your music listings on your TV, but that's not a feature most people really are clamoring for--not to the tune of $300. So AppleTV's main new thing is streaming of movies and TV bought from iTunes--which are sub-DVD quality (still very good--it's how I watch Galactica) and can be sent to TV with a cable anyway. Why replace that cheap cable with an AppleTV, when the cheap cable is probably fine for iTunes video quality? It makes sense in certain setups where a cable can't be run, but it's not like an iPod which nearly anyone can enjoy. (And in fact, an iPod is yet another way to get your music in your living room--it's what I do. And then I do have visual navigation, just not on the TV itself.)
So it seems like a really nice product... for a really small niche.
I can't help wondering what else Apple might have planned for it, though... and why they would be releasing it BEFORE it does anything else? With such hype, and a teaser pre-announcement? Apple seems to think it's bigger than I understand.
I keep expecting to see some article explain what I'm missing. Any thoughts? What will make this sell to a large market?
(I do think the USB port probably figures into Apple's unspoken plans. Be it for a tuner/PVR, additional storage, or pointing/game devices. USB2 is no Firewire but it can do a lot. Still, I wouldn't want to buy an AppleTV on that vague hope. Nor, if I were Apple, would I want to release the AppleTV before those other features arrive--if they truly ever do. And yet, here it is, with no real surprises since the teaser last year!)
I couldn't agree more. In fact, your observations are similar to mine back on Monday. In Canada, there are no available movies or TV shows available on iTunes which defeats (somewhat) the purpose of Apple TV up here. Short of ripping your own movies and syncing them (as well as music, photos...) to the Apple TV, its use is limited. I also don't own a widescreen TV and have no intention of purchasing one anytime soon (which is an apparent requirement). On that note, how many downloadable movies, shows and music videos are widescreen? On the other hand, a Mac mini will hook up to my present television, allow me to store any and all of my media locally (and still make it available to my office iMac), allow me full internet access, can replace my old DVD player and, if desired, I can literally take it elsewhere and use it as a computer where the necessary peripherals exist. It's more expensive, of course, but a more complete solution. Apple TV has potential but it won't be on my list of purchases for some time to come. I just wish that Apple would upgrade the Mini soon!
Personally, I don't think that you're missing much, if anything. I don't see it as a mass market product yet although that could change in the not so distant future. The original iPod was similar when it first debuted. A commonly expressed desire from what I've been hearing and reading is to include DVR functionality. As it stands now, however, I think its appeal will be mostly limited to higher tech American households as the rest of the world waits for their respective Apple offices to get in step with the mothership.
As for the USB2 port, it is listed on Apple's spec sheet as used for 'service and diagnostics'. I suppose that could change with a future incarnation of the product but it will probably mean nothing to the end user initially. I suppose we'll only know for sure after it ships and is put to the test.
I also watch podcasts alot. Like MacBreak. I'd much rather watch them on a TV than my laptop. That way I can continue working on my computer at the same time I'm watching the podcasts.
Photos are another big reason. Whenever my family and I go on vacation we like to show off our photos, and we all end up crowding around the computer. It's very annoying.
As pointed out above, you could use a cable for all of this, and I used to have a DVI to RCA converter I would just plug in and then run a cable across the room to the entertainment center. But we changed our setup and that's harder to do now. And it was a pain having to set it up that way each time I wanted to show something from the computer.
And not only that I would have to run an AUDIO line over as well in addition to the video cable because quicktime doesn't work through air tunes (on our airport express). I bought Airfoil but it's no good if you're trying to use it on video, because of a delay.
The Mac mini solution is out for me as well. It could work for some people, but I don't want to store all my media on a computer across the room. I want it on my laptop! So I can use it too. That, and it's also too expensive to waste on a simple TV setup.
Apple could have made this product better by:
A) Allowing you to plug your iPod into it and play content off of that (think of going over to your friends house with your iPod and showing him the latest TV show or whatever) -- or wirelessly with the iPhone.
C) 1080i at least. C'mon.
Those features alone, in my opinion, would have made the device more interesting.
Secondly, for TV shows like Lost, the season pass is almost twenty dollars cheaper than if you buy the season on DVD five months later...
And I know many are obsessed with Tivo, but there is a significant monthly charge associated with this product and one must still fast forward through commercials...
This is personally a much more practical device for my uses than the iPhone will ever be...
I was able to snag one last night!! I'm quite excited!!
Re music navigation on TV - I agree, it is cool. I have long wished that my iPod would output its UI to the video-out, and not just slideshows.
Re wanting media on your laptop, not not on a Mac Mini: you don't have to have your library on the Mini. The Mini can share your latop's library, and access it via Front Row. It doesn't even have to keep a local copy. But you might want to have a local copy: then you can access your library when the laptop is unavailable. If you want that (like AppleTV) you can do that.
Price remains a factor, I know. AppleTV is cheaper than any Mac. It's perfect for some people's uses even if most people don't need it. And if that's all it ever turns out to be, that's OK.
PS: How cool would it be if the iPhone can send its UI to TV? We know the docking connector on it can send digital video (see the keynote--Jobs explains the cord coming out of his). And composite video probably comes out of the headphone jack for slideshows, just like any other iPod. It may be that making an external display adapter would be a simple matter even for a third party. (And I wouldn't say no to CoverFlow on my TV with a $10 analog video cable on the headphone jack either.)
I've been interested in something that will easily play my music and photos on the HDTV that I plan on getting. The movies are a bonus as I'm going to dedicate most of my watching to HD DVD and 720p downloads just don't cut it. However it'll be nice to take some of my own content and stream to the ATV.
It is expensive but no more than what Dlink and Netgear are charging for their boxes. The best deal going right now honestly is an Xbox 360 running something like connect360. That may play out for me as well considering there are strong rumors that an HDMI Xbox 360 is coming this year.
I love the idea of having a relatively clean system. I want to get an AVR with hopefully 4 HDMI inputs so that I can link every device with one cable. Right now it'd be
HD DVD
Xbox 360 potentially
Apple TV potentially
Leaving me with one more HDMI port.
Hitachi is talking about announcing a 5 platter 1TB drive soon for less than $500. The wheels are turning regarding how much of my entertainment I can store on a server and stream to my TV. The goal is to have a universal remote control that ties my system together nicely where my content is always on demand. $300 is a small price for doing that well. But my goals are very niche'y and many other simply don't care about having the same level of integration.
Re wanting media on your laptop, not not on a Mac Mini: you don't have to have your library on the Mini. The Mini can share your latop's library, and access it via Front Row. It doesn't even have to keep a local copy. But you might want to have a local copy: then you can access your library when the laptop is unavailable. If you want that (like AppleTV) you can do that.
Somehow I think streaming Video to a mac mini wouldn't be very smooth. It's going over a G wireless network and running on a computer that has intel graphics.
This is one of the lamest products I've seen from Apple in a while. I would like to have seen it marketed as 'Airport Extreme Video' with a slightly higher ($50 more) price than Airport Extreme (which is overpriced itself IMHO). Then it would have seemed like a great improvement to an existing product (like Airport Express) rather than a lame new product.
Why would they do that. None of the Airports have ever had hard drives in them. You're talking about Apple charging $50 more for this product but how is that possible.
Apple TV has
HDMI which requires licensing
40GB hard drive which requires the drive and controller
A processor strong enough to decode 720p HD video
It seems like your chief complaint is money as you really haven't supported your hypotheses that the Apple TV is lame. In fact I really haven't seen any of these streamers offer much more features for even the same price.
Apple doesn't whore their product out. If your an Apple user you know there will be a slight premium but the demands are high that the product functions correctly and looks good.
So AppleTV doesn't seem to do much that a Mini can't do already. Except it's cheaper! So it will have some market.
[...]
So it seems like a really nice product... for a really small niche.
Well, that said, using a Mac mini to just hook up to a TV is an even more niche product than the Apple TV.
I agree though, this device is just too specialized to sell much. It is perfect for one group only, people who are buying TV programs and movies through the iTunes Store. Maybe to a slightly lesser extent people who want to access their music in iTunes through the home theatre/stereo.
Outside of that though, limited codecs exclude the interest of many. Eliminated, TVs without component or HDMI which excludes the vast majority of TVs out there. On the high end, people with 1080p or even 1080i TVs are likely to be disappointed that it maxes out at 720p.
So, basically this is for people with 480p TVs and up that mainly want to watch 720p, 24fps video or less bought through the iTunes Store (assuming they sell it). The question basically then is, if there are around 100,000 people out there in that category who will buy this. Because, at $299 a unit, guessing they $50 each off these, that's still $5 million. Not too shabby.
Then again, Apple is also going to have to deal with all the support calls about why my DiVX, etc. video won't play on it. People who know their stuff probably aren't going to buy into this, while Apple's going to have to deal with all the "it'll play in iTunes, but I can't get it to play on my Apple TV calls". Hope they've done a good job planning out all the support calls they are going to get for this, plus all the returns when people figure out what it won't do.
Maybe I'll be able to pick up a cheap return/refurb in a year.
If this thing doesn't work on my big 30" tube TV with the component video. I'll be very upset. I don't think Apple is officially supporting it because it's not widescreen and I'll probably get black bars. But I see no reason why it won't work.
It works
http://www.apple.com/appletv/specs.html
TV compatibility
* Enhanced-definition or high-definition widescreen TVs capable of 1080i 60/50Hz, 720p 60/50Hz, 576p 50Hz (PAL format), or 480p 60Hz