Apple TV 4K sells out at Amazon hours after launching

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iPod + iTunes + AppleTV
Customers hoping to get an Apple TV 4K before Christmas have one less option, as Amazon completely sold out of the set-top box only hours after it began sales of the device, reflecting years of demand that grew from a dispute between the two companies.





Amazon officially resumed direct sales of the Apple TV earlier Wednesday, selling the new 4K model in both 32- and 64-gigabyte storage sizes. But just hours after sales kicked off, the online mega-retailer showed that both models are "temporarily out of stock."

The sell-out comes a few weeks after Apple itself completely sold out of the 64-gigabyte model. As of Tuesday, new orders for the Apple TV 4K in 64 gigabytes won't ship for 4 to 5 weeks, well after Christmas.

Apple still has some retail availability of the 32-gigabyte model for same-day pickup. But new orders of the lower capacity won't be delivered until after Christmas, on Dec. 28 at the earliest.

However, AppleInsider partners Adorama and B&H both have the 32-gigabyte Apple TV 4K in-stock and ready to ship, with no tax outside of New York and New Jersey. The 64-gigabyte models are on backorder.




Best Buy, meanwhile does have the 64-gigabyte Apple TV 4K in stock to arrive before Christmas, with expedited shipping. Other options can be found in the AppleInsider Price Guide.

Amazon withdrew both the Apple TV and Google Chromecast on Oct. 29, 2015, after it claimed that Amazon Prime Video compatibility was necessary for the company to sell set-top boxes to avoid "customer confusion." Amazon could have made that happen with a channel in the third-generation device, or an app for the fourth-generation, but at the time it chose not to do so.

That all changed this year, when Apple announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June that Amazon Prime Video would be coming to the third-, fourth- and fifth-generation Apple TV units. The free app, which requires login with a paid Prime membership subscription, launched on Dec. 6.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    philboogiephilboogie Posts: 7,675member
    "Fire sale"
  • Reply 2 of 16
    gmgravytraingmgravytrain Posts: 882member
    All ten units sold out that quickly? /s
    stompymacxpress
  • Reply 3 of 16
    christopher126christopher126 Posts: 4,366member
    My how things change...first it's a hobby, then mainstream item and now 'out of stock' due to high demand! :) My next TV will be 4K and will upgrade my ATV, also. Good for Apple.

    Hoping to be able to watch Formula One next season (March) w/o cable. The YouTube service looks promising. Hulu was too expensive and a lousy interface! :)
    edited December 2017
  • Reply 4 of 16
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,727member
    All ten units sold out that quickly? /s
    You beat me to it!  Although not sure the /s is needed.  ;)
    edited December 2017 pscooter63
  • Reply 5 of 16
    thinkman@chartermi.net[email protected] Posts: 174member
    Typical sad-ass trolls flocking to anything to do with Apple.
  • Reply 6 of 16
    harry wildharry wild Posts: 809member
    Cannot keep Apple TV in stock!  When will supply catch up to demand?  Maybe in 2019?
  • Reply 7 of 16
    goodbyeranchgoodbyeranch Posts: 246member
    "Reflecting years of demand"? Oh please. It was widely available EVERYWHERE ELSE until recently
    ronnScot1tokyojimujdb8167equality72521SpamSandwich
  • Reply 8 of 16
    bloggerblogbloggerblog Posts: 2,464member
    I wonder what deal Apple had to cut with Amazon. Either they get some privileged statistics or some sort of a profit cut.
  • Reply 9 of 16
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,054member
    Don’t know why people spend $179 to get a 32GB version while they can have it for $140 with 4 month free streaming! Am I missing something? I got mine thru DirecTV Now promotion just now.
  • Reply 10 of 16
    drdaviddrdavid Posts: 90member
    fallenjt said:
    Don’t know why people spend $179 to get a 32GB version while they can have it for $140 with 4 month free streaming! Am I missing something? I got mine thru DirecTV Now promotion just now.
    Yes you are missing something. A couple things actually. 1. Not everyone has, or wants, DirecTV  2. Not everyone who does have DirecTV is aware of the offer. 
  • Reply 11 of 16
    lorin schultzlorin schultz Posts: 2,771member
    christopher126 said:
    My how things change...first it's a hobby, then mainstream item and now 'out of stock' due to high demand! :) My next TV will be 4K and will upgrade my ATV, also. Good for Apple.

    Hoping to be able to watch Formula One next season (March) w/o cable. The YouTube service looks promising. Hulu was too expensive and a lousy interface! :)
    How are you planning to watch F1 without cable next year? I HATE commercials during the race — even in side-by-side — and would love to find an OTT alternative. I don’t mind paying for it as long as the price is reasonable.
  • Reply 12 of 16
    christopher126christopher126 Posts: 4,366member
    My how things change...first it's a hobby, then mainstream item and now 'out of stock' due to high demand! :) My next TV will be 4K and will upgrade my ATV, also. Good for Apple.

    Hoping to be able to watch Formula One next season (March) w/o cable. The YouTube service looks promising. Hulu was too expensive and a lousy interface! :)
    How are you planning to watch F1 without cable next year? I HATE commercials during the race — even in side-by-side — and would love to find an OTT alternative. I don’t mind paying for it as long as the price is reasonable.
    Hi Lorin, I think the new YouTube service includes NBCSports which last season covered F1 (here in USA). That's all I have right now. :)
    edited December 2017
  • Reply 13 of 16
    lorin schultzlorin schultz Posts: 2,771member
    christopher126 said:
    My how things change...first it's a hobby, then mainstream item and now 'out of stock' due to high demand! :) My next TV will be 4K and will upgrade my ATV, also. Good for Apple.

    Hoping to be able to watch Formula One next season (March) w/o cable. The YouTube service looks promising. Hulu was too expensive and a lousy interface! :)
    How are you planning to watch F1 without cable next year? I HATE commercials during the race — even in side-by-side — and would love to find an OTT alternative. I don’t mind paying for it as long as the price is reasonable.
    Hi Lorin, I think the new YouTube service includes NBCSports which last season covered F1 (here in USA). That's all I have right now. :)
    Thanks Christopher! I'm in Canada so I guess I'll have to find my own solution. Maybe I'll contact TSN (the broadcaster that carries F1 in Canada) and see if they have any commercial-free alternatives. I won't be holding my breath though! I keep hoping the FIA will come up with its own online offering, but that would probably cut into their TV revenue, snd I suspect they prefer a fixed and known revenue stream from broadcasters over gambling on online subscribers.
  • Reply 14 of 16
    christopher126christopher126 Posts: 4,366member
    Yep, I think you hit the proverbial nail on the head....TV revenues.

    This is the YouTube TV service I was referring too. Looks like only select US cities right now. Sorry.

    https://tv.youtube.com/welcome/


    FYI: It looks like the 2018 is going to be televised on ESPN/ABC Sports instead of NBC Sports. If that helps. :)

    https://www.autoblog.com/2017/10/04/espn-formula-one-us-broadcasting-rights-espn2-abc/
    edited December 2017
  • Reply 15 of 16
    mavemufcmavemufc Posts: 326member
    As a UK customer, the Apple TV 4K is actually cheaper on the Apple website than Amazon, £179.99 on Apple, £189.99 on Amazon.
  • Reply 16 of 16
    mimacmimac Posts: 872member
    Amazon's own Firestick is great value and extremely functional. It was heavily discounted on Black Friday and in the past week or so. I'd hazard a guess at which sold more units.  Just sayin'...
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