Email from Steve Jobs reveals Apple TV 'magic wand,' other future product ideas

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  • Reply 101 of 112
    chipsychipsy Posts: 287member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post





    A couple things:

     
    1) TV Monitors need to come in types and sizes that range much higher than Apple wants to deal with.



    2) TV monitors aren't changed as often as "computer" HW and that's exactly what Apple will be selling you with a "smart" box that connects to your TV.



    For these reasons I fully expect the Apple TV to be a fully separate device but perhaps Apple can create a standard in which their box can plug in to the back of any number of display types and sizes from any number of vendors that will transmit power, data and video back and forth. This means Apple can then make the Apple TV an annual product with new HW and SW features.



    The problem is for this to work Apple will need to get with at least a couple of the major ones to create the standard. Luckily, they've worked with phone carriers and now automobile manufactures so that shouldn't be tough. The biggest hurdle I see may be having to make it "open" so that other vendor's media appliances can be attached in the same way. This, unfortunately, is where Apple historically has plenty of hubris, but the silver lining is that CarPlay isn't going to exclude other mobile OSes on the cars that support it so perhaps they can find a solution that finally brings the living room into the 21st century.



    The only way I see Apple releasing something like an Apple TV is by releasing a TV with upgradeable modules. Kind of like Samsung's smart TV's work nowadays. No one is going to buy a new TV every year right :s? So sell a TV that is compatible with the modules and then every year bring out a new module (which includes a new SoC and such). And maybe even upgrade the TV (better color reproduction or so) for new customers.

    But I have to say that I don't think Apple will ever release a TV.

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  • Reply 102 of 112
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,772member
    chipsy wrote: »

    The only way I see Apple releasing something like an Apple TV is by releasing a TV with upgradeable modules. Kind of like Samsung's smart TV's work nowadays. No one is going to buy a new TV every year right :s? So sell a TV that is compatible with the modules and then every year bring out a new module (which includes a new SoC and such). And maybe even upgrade the TV (better color reproduction or so) for new customers.
    But I have to say that I don't think Apple will ever release a TV.

    Hmmm. . . Project Ara for a set-top box?
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  • Reply 103 of 112
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,772member
    Marvin wrote: »
    Another feature I wanted Apple to have back here in 2012:

    http://forums.appleinsider.com/t/154837/tim-cook-hints-that-apple-plans-to-redefine-the-television-set/160#post_2246282

    before Google stole it! Good to know it's available somewhere though. It might be best for movie producers to implement this like a subtitles track. They'd just have cast and producer ids and then mark characters in each scene.

    IIRC it's not the first good idea you've posted here that became reality either. Google certainly deserves a lot of praise for listening and building so quickly.. Just 90 days after you mentioned it Google engineers were able to create a way to offer you the feature. Proof of just how talented they are.. ;)
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  • Reply 104 of 112
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,759member

    Wanna know what's "magic"?

     

    iMessage and FaceTime. 

     

    I've been using both of these now on a regular basis (that is, VERY regularly), and they've practically melted into the background to the degree that I just take both of them for granted now. I could be on iMessage on my Mac, and my iPhone simply knows I'm reading iMessages on my Mac. The level of syncing here works beautifully. Across all devices. So well that it's all pretty much invisible. 

     

    THAT is magic: the way software and hardware interact in order to allow for conveniences that work so well that you barely notice them after a while. 

     

    A little off-topic, but I felt like mentioning it. 

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  • Reply 105 of 112
    singularitysingularity Posts: 1,328member
    quadra 610 wrote: »
    <p>Wanna know what's "magic"?</p><p> </p><p>iMessage and FaceTime. </p><p> </p><p>I've been using both of these now on a regular basis (that is, VERY regularly), and they've practically melted into the background to the degree that I just take both of them for granted now. I could be on iMessage on my Mac, and my iPhone simply knows I'm reading iMessages on my Mac. The level of syncing here works beautifully. Across all devices. So well that it's all pretty much invisible. </p><p> </p><p>THAT is magic: the way software and hardware interact in order to allow for conveniences that work so well that you barely notice them after a while. </p><p> </p><p>A little off-topic, but I felt like mentioning it. </p>
    so does fb messenger. Has it stolen Apple magic or is it just what is expected for a messenger app. It is also cross platform which is more than I message so it must be more magical!!
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  • Reply 106 of 112
    lorin schultzlorin schultz Posts: 2,771member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chipsy View Post

     
    Just shows you that Apple is a company like any other, looking at what the competition does and catch up where necessary and if possible improve it.


     

    I agree with you completely. In the case of Android though, I think it was more than just careful monitoring of the competition. I think it was a personal mission for Mr. Jobs. I get the impression that he didn't care for seeing others reap the rewards of his visions, whether it be a graphical UI for personal computing or a touch screen handheld. The former got him steaming mad at Bill Gates/Microsoft and the latter at Google. That's why the Samsung litigation doesn't surprise me at all. It's a matter of principle.

     

    I just hope the current iteration of the ?TV isn't the final embodiment of his vision for that device and that enhancements are yet to come.

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  • Reply 107 of 112
    lorin schultzlorin schultz Posts: 2,771member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post

     

    Wanna know what's "magic"?

     

    iMessage and FaceTime. 

     

    I've been using both of these now on a regular basis (that is, VERY regularly), and they've practically melted into the background to the degree that I just take both of them for granted now. I could be on iMessage on my Mac, and my iPhone simply knows I'm reading iMessages on my Mac. The level of syncing here works beautifully. Across all devices. So well that it's all pretty much invisible. 


     

    I use the Messages app all the time too, but for me it isn't yet blending seamlessly into my flow of existence. Are you not finding that messages on the Mac still often appear out of order?

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  • Reply 108 of 112
    chipsychipsy Posts: 287member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lorin Schultz View Post

     

     

    I agree with you completely. In the case of Android though, I think it was more than just careful monitoring of the competition. I think it was a personal mission for Mr. Jobs. I get the impression that he didn't care for seeing others reap the rewards of his visions, whether it be a graphical UI for personal computing or a touch screen handheld. The former got him steaming mad at Bill Gates/Microsoft and the latter at Google. That's why the Samsung litigation doesn't surprise me at all. It's a matter of principle.

     

    I just hope the current iteration of the ?TV isn't the final embodiment of his vision for that device and that enhancements are yet to come.


    I agree with you more or less on the touchscreen handheld, but to be correct one should state a 'capacitive touchscreen handheld' as there were already touchscreen handhelds out there but most were resistive touchscreens. Though in the case of the GUI he was inspired by the work of Xerox Parc. You have to give him credit though for immediately realizing that this was going to be the future and for going all in on it. So in that case it wasn't necessarily his vision but he did play a major part in getting it out there (as in showing people that it was the way to go).

    But you have to give it to him, he had this knack of knowing what was going to be the next big thing.

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  • Reply 109 of 112
    Marvinmarvin Posts: 15,587moderator
    gatorguy wrote: »
    IIRC it's not the first good idea you've posted here that became reality either. Google certainly deserves a lot of praise for listening and building so quickly.. Just 90 days after you mentioned it Google engineers were able to create a way to offer you the feature. Proof of just how talented they are.. ;)

    Yeah, it's nice they actually implemented it. They should brand these features better though. They call them "info cards" but that's too generic. They let you find out songs used in the movie (saves using something like Shazam and it could link to purchase options if it doesn't already), character bios, movie info and related movies. It doesn't even have to be a word that automatically associates itself with what it does. People know Shazam is a music search now.

    They do this in Google search, they have search by image but I had to find out for myself they had it. I use it all the time. I find an image somewhere and it's too low res so I just hit image search, and hit the "search by image" button and it shows matching content. It would be good if they did it for movies too e.g search Youtube or other online movies for a matching screencap. I don't know why they have multiple search boxes, the image icon can sit in the main Google box as well as a movie icon and allow you to search for images or movies. There can be a maps icon and translate so you don't have to keep jumping to another page to use the search.
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  • Reply 110 of 112
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,759member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Lorin Schultz View Post

     

     

    I use the Messages app all the time too, but for me it isn't yet blending seamlessly into my flow of existence. Are you not finding that messages on the Mac still often appear out of order?


     

     

    Yes, but very rarely. For me, at least, it's not to any degree that cuts into the experience. 

     

    I guess I simply rely on it a lot these days and it's really come through. 

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  • Reply 111 of 112
    adamcadamc Posts: 583member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by dnd0ps View Post





    Does it vibrate?

    Lol, you said it better.

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  • Reply 112 of 112
    lorin schultzlorin schultz Posts: 2,771member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post

     
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lorin Schultz View Post

     

     

    I use the Messages app all the time too, but for me it isn't yet blending seamlessly into my flow of existence. Are you not finding that messages on the Mac still often appear out of order?


     

     

    Yes, but very rarely. For me, at least, it's not to any degree that cuts into the experience. 

     

    I guess I simply rely on it a lot these days and it's really come through. 


     

    Yeah, I still use Messages regularly in spite of the bug, but I do find it really irritating to sometimes have to hunt through the transcript to see where Messages has dropped the new bubble THIS time. It happens twice, maybe three times a day here (I'm in Vancouver if that makes any difference).

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