Return to the Grid, and thoughts about Apples's TV.
I'm still piecing some of this together, but I figured I'd get some of this thought into the forum so it could be discussed. 
A long long time ago apple introduced the "grid." It was Apple's product strategy that had a consumer side, a professional side, a top half for home products and a bottom for portables. It worked great for a while but Apple began growing out of that model. The G4 Cube, the iPod, and more recently the iPhone, MacBook Airs, iPad, AppleTV etc.
But today, Apple announced OS X Mountain Lion. It was missing the Mac (if you look at the Lion page, it's been gone there too since last year, but now it's official) Apple is changing the name of Mac OS because they want the word Mac to represent that hardware category which makes perfect sense if you zoom out and look at the big picture. Mac's are the device! They said so when they introduced iCloud. Apple has four product categories once again. Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, with iCloud linking them all together, and great products within those categories that fit certain needs and uses.
Mac is your traditional computing experience for consumer and pro use
iPod is your media consumption platform, for music, videos, games, photos, and more.
iPhone is your portable communications platform.
iPad is your Post-PC platform that's still being defined.
So when you think about Apple's TV it could only really fit into one category, iPod.
That's where the AppleTV sits today. So to take that theory to one step further, I believe Apple will call their TV the iPod TV. After all this really is the next step for the iPod, not any other device. iPod is defined as the ultimate media device, and media is the high order bit of a good Television. Now they would also make sense for Apple to split this off from iPod to define a new category. But it would still fit perfectly into this idea of apple making device categories and products that fill those silos.
Ultimately, I think the Apple TV needs to be wonderful at getting new content from iTunes, Media Apps from the App Store and allow you to access your content from iCloud or directly via AirPlay.
And that's all I've got right now.
A long long time ago apple introduced the "grid." It was Apple's product strategy that had a consumer side, a professional side, a top half for home products and a bottom for portables. It worked great for a while but Apple began growing out of that model. The G4 Cube, the iPod, and more recently the iPhone, MacBook Airs, iPad, AppleTV etc.
But today, Apple announced OS X Mountain Lion. It was missing the Mac (if you look at the Lion page, it's been gone there too since last year, but now it's official) Apple is changing the name of Mac OS because they want the word Mac to represent that hardware category which makes perfect sense if you zoom out and look at the big picture. Mac's are the device! They said so when they introduced iCloud. Apple has four product categories once again. Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, with iCloud linking them all together, and great products within those categories that fit certain needs and uses.
Mac is your traditional computing experience for consumer and pro use
iPod is your media consumption platform, for music, videos, games, photos, and more.
iPhone is your portable communications platform.
iPad is your Post-PC platform that's still being defined.
So when you think about Apple's TV it could only really fit into one category, iPod.
That's where the AppleTV sits today. So to take that theory to one step further, I believe Apple will call their TV the iPod TV. After all this really is the next step for the iPod, not any other device. iPod is defined as the ultimate media device, and media is the high order bit of a good Television. Now they would also make sense for Apple to split this off from iPod to define a new category. But it would still fit perfectly into this idea of apple making device categories and products that fill those silos.
Ultimately, I think the Apple TV needs to be wonderful at getting new content from iTunes, Media Apps from the App Store and allow you to access your content from iCloud or directly via AirPlay.
And that's all I've got right now.
Comments
I'm still piecing some of this together, but I figured I'd get some of this thought into the forum so it could be discussed.
...
But today, Apple announced OS X Mountain Lion. It was missing the Mac (if you look at the Lion page, it's been gone there too since last year, but now it's official) Apple is changing the name of Mac OS because they want the word Mac to represent that hardware category which makes perfect sense if you zoom out and look at the big picture. ...
It sounds like you put "2" and "2" together and got "22." This is the same nonsense that people said last year when Apple introduced OS X Lion. The Mac was gone. Apple did not refer to it as MacOS X 10.7--surely a sign of the Apocalypse. Well, Lion was still MacOS X 10.7--Mac, version numbers, and all.
Now one scant year later, Apple introduces OS X Mountain Lion without "Mac" and without version numbers ... as with Lion last year. However, a quick at bottom of Apple's Mountain Lion webpage shows ">MacOS X>Mountain Lion." In act, its URL is http://www.apple.com/macosx/mountain-lion/.
My advice to you is to hold off on your explanations about why Apple eliminate the "Mac" from the name of OS X Mountain Lion. It can be really embarrassing to give a detailed and logical explanation for something that did not happen.
My advice to you is to hold off on your explanations about why Apple eliminate the "Mac" from the name of OS X Mountain Lion. It can be really embarrassing to give a detailed and logical explanation for something that did not happen.
Yah... but... you kept reading, right? I'm trying to point out a greater theory to Apple's vision, not doom and gloom over a name change. Y'know to spark discussion. I'm not worrying about Apple changing their products for better or worse, I'm highlighting a clearer definition of Apple strategy. So it sounds like You read "22," and came up with "47." I was trying to put a logical explanation behind something that did happen.
For the past seven months Apple has been demoting the Mac to be another device. (OS X Mountain Lion seems to put that in stone) So it's on the same page as an iPad or iPhone. And iCloud is now the center of their strategy. I'm trying to promote logical thinking about where future Apple products could go, given the reality of where their products are. I'm actually really excited they dropped the Mac name, along with all the other announcements today. Yearly updates along with iOS, Airplay Mirroring, etc.
What Apple's TV needs to be is this: have all the content people want in an subscription package, thus giving people what they want and subsidizing the thing they make their money off; the hardware. Next up it needs to have great sound, great picture, great design and great software; they are experts in these areas so we'll assume they wouldn't make a TV unless it had these things. And thirdly, it needs to do all of this in an all-in-one package that just works. One TV that does everything you need made by Apple controlled by a single minimal bluetooth 4.0 remote. That's what their TV needs to be.
Doing all these things is difficult, but that's why no TV on the market like that exists at this point. One will someday, and the way I see it Apple is the company best positioned to make it happen.
Mumbo jumbo.
What Apple's TV needs to be is this: have all the content people want in an subscription package, thus giving people what they want and subsidizing the thing they make their money off; the hardware. Next up it needs to have great sound, great audio, great design and great software; they are experts in these areas so we'll assume they wouldn't make a TV unless it had these things. And thirdly, it needs to do all of this in an all-in-one package that just works. One TV that does everything you need made by Apple controlled by a single minimal bluetooth 4.0 remote. That's what their TV needs to be.
But I don't see a TV having real build in surround sound or a GOOD woofer.
But I don't see a TV having real build in surround sound or a GOOD woofer.
The Pioneer Kuro with the chin speaker has sound great enough for any household. I own one. It should be at least as good as that. Audio snobs can plug in an optical audio cable if they like.
Here I just snapped a photo, the speaker is practically invisible, but the sound is very good in my opinion. Several people who have watch this TV have commented on the sound of their own free will.
I'm still piecing some of this together, but I figured I'd get some of this thought into the forum so it could be discussed.
A long long time ago apple introduced the "grid." It was Apple's product strategy that had a consumer side, a professional side, a top half for home products and a bottom for portables. It worked great for a while but Apple began growing out of that model. The G4 Cube, the iPod, and more recently the iPhone, MacBook Airs, iPad, AppleTV etc.
But today, Apple announced OS X Mountain Lion. It was missing the Mac (if you look at the Lion page, it's been gone there too since last year, but now it's official) Apple is changing the name of Mac OS because they want the word Mac to represent that hardware category which makes perfect sense if you zoom out and look at the big picture. Mac's are the device! They said so when they introduced iCloud. Apple has four product categories once again. Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, with iCloud linking them all together, and great products within those categories that fit certain needs and uses.
Mac is your traditional computing experience for consumer and pro use
iPod is your media consumption platform, for music, videos, games, photos, and more.
iPhone is your portable communications platform.
iPad is your Post-PC platform that's still being defined.
So when you think about Apple's TV it could only really fit into one category, iPod.
That's where the AppleTV sits today. So to take that theory to one step further, I believe Apple will call their TV the iPod TV. After all this really is the next step for the iPod, not any other device. iPod is defined as the ultimate media device, and media is the high order bit of a good Television. Now they would also make sense for Apple to split this off from iPod to define a new category. But it would still fit perfectly into this idea of apple making device categories and products that fill those silos.
Ultimately, I think the Apple TV needs to be wonderful at getting new content from iTunes, Media Apps from the App Store and allow you to access your content from iCloud or directly via AirPlay.
And that's all I've got right now.
Clever call on the name. Liked your ideas.
iPod TV. I like that. Makes tvs a bit more 'groovy?'
Not sure Apple will. I'm sure they'll go with ATV as they've invested in the brand name already. But it's an interesting idea of of the tv being just a big screen extension for media consumption.
In that respect the pod, phone and pad can all do that.
The ATV just needs apps. With iOS mirroring and 'airplay' the aTV already kind of is the thing you're describing. ATV can just body snatch the host tv set as is.
...but will it morph?
...into a full blown atv set? Who knows. I bet they have one in their labs. Either way, I'll be getting an atv3.
Lemon Bon Bon.
The Pioneer Kuro with the chin speaker has sound great enough for any household. I own one. It should be at least as good as that. Audio snobs can plug in an optical audio cable if they like.
Here I just snapped a photo, the speaker is practically invisible, but the sound is very good in my opinion. Several people who have watch this TV have commented on the sound of their own free will.
Like I said to you before, Kuro is a legend in the TV industry. Nothing comes close at consumer price points nowadays.
I'm currently quite happy with my cheapo (for the industry) KRK Rockit5's ~ some faint humming when no sound is going through, but very good for the price *when* there is sound going through.
I'm a snob in that way, I can only have reference/monitor-type speakers from here on in, not so much for TV or Xbox, but mainly for music I like, I need to listen to it at "reference" levels etc, not coloured.