Apple's Television

written by Michael J. Tomlin

The Reasoning

Apparently television sets are getting long in the tooth and the device needs a little reworking. And which company has the best record of redefining markets and consumer devices - at least this century? That's right, Apple! It's been speculated ad nauseam that Apple is working on a television and it's supposed to be released in the near future. In fact the entire industry made a big splash at CES Expo 2012 in Las Vegas to try and beat Apple to market with their own versions of these so called, "Smart TVs". Even Google CEO, Eric Schmidt, proclaimed that by mid-2012 over half the TVs sold will run a version of Android.

The problem these companies seem to have, is that they can't think outside the box and I mean that literally. It's not that they are short-sighted or unable to innovate, their reach doesn't go beyond the device they're building. Panasonic doesn't go "into talks" with TimeWarner Cable when they want to build a new TV. They just build it, throw some features on it and assume the consumer will provide the connection for the content. Google's failure was thinking people wanted to turn their TV into a computer - why not buy a cheap computer and do that - running mobile apps on a TV just doesn't sound very appealing.

Biggest Obstacle: Cable

Apple is not going to enter this market unless they have a major advantage over competitors - at least at first. That advantage just may be having the "cable box" built in, meaning you'll be able to ditch the extra box currently required to access "premium" channels. I believe all the rumors of Apple in talks with cable companies has nothing to do with content, Apple may be working with them to define a standard protocol for allowing dynamic devices to reconfigure themselves depending on which operator the customer is subscribed to. The protocol would describe compression, encryption, channels, frequencies, service level, etc. Upon initial set up, the TV would download a "settings" file that is appropriate for whichever cable operator and level of service the customer is currently signed up for.

This is a fairly huge obstacle to overcome and initially the TV may only be available for certain cable operators and may very well be US/Canada only, but I believe they will try to reach a majority of cable subscribers by targeting the larger cable companies, such as Time Warner, Comcast, Cox, AT&T, etc. Like I mentioned above, Apple will be first to do this, but other TV manufacturers will come sometime afterwards with their own.

You might be asking, "Why?" Well just as with phones, Apple will want to control the experience. This will allow them to stand apart from everyone else. Everything will pass through Apple's hardware and software and allow them to create an extremely elegant and simple user experience that we've never seen from cable.

The Basics

Size: Most speculation on the matter is Apple will go with 50" and up because bigger is the trend and it's also the place where larger margins can be realized. But, as of December 2012 the best selling models are in the 40"+ and 50"+ range, so I believe this is where Apple will want to enter the market. The majority of prices for these sets are still within mass market appeal between $1000 and $2000. So, I'm expecting to see a 46" model and 55" model to start. (Although I'd really like to see a model in the 30's.)

Connectivity: Save maybe a Thunderbolt port, Apple's TV will have all the standard connections as most modern TVs do today although I don't think it will have an SD Card slot or functional USB port - these are rarely used gimmicks sold as advanced features. WiFi and Bluetooth will be built-in as well as the standard IR receiver for "primitive" remote control functions. (More on the remote control later.)

Video & Audio: After all the brouhaha regarding Sharp lately, it's not a stretch to guess Apple will contract Sharp to build the display panels for them. The panels will of course be LCD with LED backlighting and have a wide viewing angle (IPS). However, I do believe Apple will avoid the 3D "craze" and not add that particular feature to their TV. They are known for leaving out seemingly popular features that are more gimmicky than practical.

As far as an audio feature, the Apple TV will provide built-in support for 3rd party Bluetooth speakers for surround sound and subwoofers - they will sell a few 3rd party models in their stores.

Style: With a few possible structural design changes to accommodate the larger sizes, I don't think we have to look much further than the new iMac to see what an Apple TV might look like: It'll be made from glass and aluminum, have edge to edge glass, have a similar "chin", but perforated for louder speaker output. They'll try and keep the edges very slim and gradually bulge out towards the center to make room for the internal hardware required to drive it.

The "Smarts"

Apparently, all that's required for labeling your device as "smart" is to support "Apps" and Internet features such as web browsing and social networks. Not exactly sure where that came from, but I'll go out on a limb and say the term as well as the definition was borrowed from the mobile phone market. I really don't understand how these things are considered smart? They have more features, but that doesn't make them smarter. To me anything smart would be something that could problem solve or carry out a requested task. In mobile phones, that didn't happen until Apple introduced Siri and I think Siri will make its way into Apple TV that will take the experience to the next level.

Consider the following…


You: "Turn it to the Yankees game."

Siri: "The New York Yankees game doesn't start until 3:30pm. Should I set a reminder?"


You: "Record next episode of Walking Dead."

Siri: "Sorry, You have already scheduled to record 'Some Show' that overlaps the next showing of 'Walking Dead'. Should I can cancel the previous request or leave it scheduled?"


You: "Play the last Simpsons episode."

Siri: "Playing, 'Episode Title' aired on (date)…"


You: "What college football games are on right now"

Siri: "Here's a list of College Football games currently in play…"


If a TV could do these things for you, then to me that would qualify as being "smart" and I think that's why Apple has a great advantage in Siri - on mobile phones, computers, and consumer electronics in general. It's not about the voice recognition, it's about the comprehension within context that sets it apart.

Intelligence also comes from knowledge as well and Apple will work hard at building a database (or partnering with another company) of channels and program scheduling, show info and credits. Even if you don't have cable, only local broadcasting, simply enter your zip code, and the TV will download local data for your area, enabling all the features that currently only exist with cable.

Back to My TV

Imagine recording your favorite TV show and being able to watch it on your iPad or iPhone while you're away from home.

Controlled by the Remote

The remote control that Apple includes with the TV will be touch screen based, possibly look something like an iPod nano or even an iPod touch. All controls and settings will be accessible through the remote's screen - meaning the menu will not be over laid on the TV's screen, interfering with what's being watched underneath. Same goes for displaying show info or even the program guide.