It seems that this year Apple has updated anything at all, you can update: iOS and OS X, iPad and iPhone, Mac Pro, MacBook, iWork, iLife... However, kupertinovtsy cheated their attention to one small, but very important device - Apple set-top box TV. It has not received its development and we did not see a full-fledged TV from Apple, nor the upgraded "boxes". What kind of future awaits this category Apple devices?
About this in his article on Macgasm reasons Spencer Kellegen who genuinely do not understand why kupertinovtsy so sluggish behavior in the segment of home entertainment and television. We are confident that the theme of the long-awaited breakthrough in the television industry of Apple's interest to many, so we have prepared a translation of the article. So, what are the prospects for Apple in the field of television and home entertainment?
I spend a lot of money on Apple products and fully accept Apple ecosystem. Apple for the past 10 years has made me a big profit, but there is a small device that repays and me: Apple TV.
Apple TV - a small black box that does not receive enough attention. Despite the large amount of speculation around the Apple TV update, it has not received any improvements in hardware and functionality. Maybe experts and exaggerating the scale of innovation, but the fact that the next generation did not cause me to doubt, and I was certain that Apple TV be sure to update.
Not. Nothing.
It is believed that Apple deliberately overstated the price of their products and it does not match the value that these products give customers. And yet, when it comes to Apple the TV, I am inclined to believe that its value is much higher than the money that Apple asks for this little black box. For me, Apple TV as a good thing that I convinced my parents to buy 3 of these consoles. Of course, to make the Apple TV is really useful thing in your home should be a lot of apple company devices. In this sense, Apple TV is seen as an addition to the gadgets running on iOS and OS X, because in itself Apple TV can not so much.
It seems that Apple TV - a kind of Trojan horse for living room: small, cheap, harmless device that hints at the future. Okay, wait a minute, it's the complete opposite of this Trojan horse. Some with a certain degree of skepticism look at the future of Apple TV, but in my opinion, is the main platform that in the future it is necessary to win. Despite all the development of smart phones and tablets, television occupies a central place in any home. TV is preferred when you want to see anything in the company of several people and the Apple ecosystem simplifies this process. Everyone is talking about the imminent demise of the traditional TVBut no one questioned that TV It will be the center of your digital entertainment.
Apple TV has received so little attention that Steve Jobs, a supporter of design and symmetry, would never allow to make Apple TV «a little more than just a hobby," and would not make him "The fourth" pillar its ecosystem. However, the time for improvements is running out. It was a lot of discussion about how good performance in the current Apple TV, and what to do next Apple: to improve the Apple TV set-top box or the like to release a full-fledged TV.
There is an argument that the cost of living and full TV series - too high a price to Apple's, to start production of such a device. Nevertheless, the release of the new Mac Pro, Apple has shown that it is ready to enter the high-priced segment of the market. And though I never owned a Mac Pro, I'll bet that in certain circles, the demand for such a computer is very high. The problem is not that Apple can not make a profit with such a product.
Televisions, computers and mobile devices - all converge into a single plaformu. And why Apple should suit that of competitors devices - Samsung, Sony and LG in the living rooms of ordinary people feel much better kupertinovskoy "boxes". The truth is to recognize that the Apple TV is now copes with all of its functions. However, with it you will never be able to make a call by FaceTime, control your TV with gestures and voice commands. And the last line of Samsung SmartTV from allows you to do these things. Manage gestures and voice, video calls - it's all available. No matter how good was not Apple TV in its current form, it will not have the same large number of various sensors, cameras and microphones as the TV panel. Some suggest using the iPad and iPhone for remote control of the TV or as the "eyes" and "ears» Apple TV, but this combination is hardly elegant and comfortable.
Throw in the fact that next year will be released Xbox One and PlayStation 4, which are equipped with cameras, sensors, thereby providing direct user interaction with the console. Apple And at the same time remains for a blank wall "blind" and "dumb" black box. Of course, from Sony and Microsoft devices require the installation of all these gaudy accessories but manufacturers have made sure that it was all built right into the screen.
Every time Apple rethinks the technological paradigm, it discards too much from the past and simplifies the user experience. Regardless of how expensive will cost a TV from Apple, it is difficult to imagine the future of this project with a lot of wires and a remote control. It does not correspond to the standard Apple - Elegant and smart design.
If even these less ambitious companies such as LG, Samsung and Sony could mass produce televisions and receive from this income, then there are no prerequisites that Apple will not be able to do the same. Apple could completely change their production system for the release of Mac Pro - Product for specialized professionals, so why they can not do television - rod "living room strategy '("Living Strategy" - Home Entertainment, Home TV - Approx. Ed.)? In the meantime, Apple has not made it, my poor old Apple TV will continue to work, hold somewhere between the TV and the wall.
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And what do you think - in which direction should go Apple, to become a leader in the TV market? Kupertinovtsy whether to do a full-fledged television set and, if so, why? How should it be? I would buy it myself and you for any money? We welcome your responses and opinions in the comments. Let's talk iTV!