There are more rumors going around that might indicate something around a "real" Apple TV this November. I previously reported about Apple talking to LG about 55 and 65" UHD panels. Now Economic Daily News from Taipei (see Google translation here) reports that “Apple has held talks in the US with representatives of Corning, Foxconn, and G-Tech Optoelectronics for the purpose of getting Corning to share some of its Gorilla Glass expertise with G-Tech.” The resulting 55 and 60 inch screens would ostensibly be produced by Hon Hai/Foxconn and use Innolux panel technology.
The other interesting part is that Apple just bought (and shut down) Matcha, a video discovery app. Matcha provided “smart aggregation and personalized recommendations around 250,000 titles from the most popular video services such as Netflix, iTunes, HBO GO, Hulu, Amazon Prime and more.” The app was in the top 15 in the entertainment category on the Apple App Store and had seen a spike in user growth after rigorous refinement of its proprietary software.
We all know that Apple wouldn't just do a TV with their logo on it. There would have to be something more, something that Job's would refer to as the "experience". This is why the Samsung Smart TV is not yet really smart. Waving your hand in front of a carousel of selections is only as good as those suggestions. A lot of the attention about the Apple TV or iTV has been about the explicit interactions (voice, gesture, etc.) that Steve Jobs said he had “cracked,” but it may turn out that the implicit interactions that set the parameters of selection are even more crucial to the user experience.
One thing that I haven't been hearing about the Apple TV is anything around picture quality and accuracy. If it is only going to be an experience, like the iPhone and iPad are experiences, then I think I will just stick with my iPad....
The other interesting part is that Apple just bought (and shut down) Matcha, a video discovery app. Matcha provided “smart aggregation and personalized recommendations around 250,000 titles from the most popular video services such as Netflix, iTunes, HBO GO, Hulu, Amazon Prime and more.” The app was in the top 15 in the entertainment category on the Apple App Store and had seen a spike in user growth after rigorous refinement of its proprietary software.
We all know that Apple wouldn't just do a TV with their logo on it. There would have to be something more, something that Job's would refer to as the "experience". This is why the Samsung Smart TV is not yet really smart. Waving your hand in front of a carousel of selections is only as good as those suggestions. A lot of the attention about the Apple TV or iTV has been about the explicit interactions (voice, gesture, etc.) that Steve Jobs said he had “cracked,” but it may turn out that the implicit interactions that set the parameters of selection are even more crucial to the user experience.
One thing that I haven't been hearing about the Apple TV is anything around picture quality and accuracy. If it is only going to be an experience, like the iPhone and iPad are experiences, then I think I will just stick with my iPad....
