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How Apple Could Revolutionize The TV - And Why You'll Never Own One

This article is more than 10 years old.

The 2nd generation Apple TV. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Yes, I'm taking about Apple again, and specifically the Apple TV.

The other day I got an email in from a reader challenging me to come up with solid suggestions as to what a real Apple TV -- that's a proper television set with the Apple logo on the front, not that little black box that you may have connected to your existing TV -- might bring to the market.

I like a challenge, so here goes!

Cool features

The problem with a lot of the commentary related to the Apple TV is that it essentially never looks beyond the technology.

If I were to summarize the dream Apple TV that most pundits seem to be dreaming about, it's basically a flat-panel device that, into which, Apple has thrown every bit of cool technology that it has come up with over the past few years. Stuff like high pixel density LCD screens, apps, iCloud, FaceTime, cameras, voice control and so on.

Put another way, what most pundits are predicting is that an Apple TV will be a scaled-up version of the iPhone or iPad.

It's hard to argue with this. After all, if you can cram this stuff into an iPhone which sells for a few hundred bucks -- that's the unsubsidized price -- then there's no reason why you couldn't cram the same stuff into a television that would sell for a couple of thousand dollars. It's a no brainer, right?

Problem is, when it comes to fantasizing about the technology you're going to cram into a TV, you do have to be a little discerning. Some stuff makes sense, while other stuff doesn't. For example, a FaceTime camera built into a TV makes perfect sense. People sit in front of their TVs, so what better place to put a camera for them to communicate with friends and family than in a TV.

Genius.

Siri voice control on the other hand makes little sense. I know that the idea of talking to your TV might appeal to some people, but I don't think that these people have put much thought into how this is supposed to work in a multiuser environment that TVs usually occupy. Also, why should we assume that a TV would come with Siri built into it when the feature still missing from the iPad?

ICloud (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The screen

Apple is making quite a big name for itself in the world of high pixel density LCD panels. First debuted on the iPhone, and then on the iPad, it is widely anticipated that Apple will incorporate a Retina display panel in the next refresh of the MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air line.

Makes sense that an Apple TV would have a super-duper LCD panel, right?

Well, maybe not ...

First, there's no proof that anyone can make high pixel density LCD panels much bigger than about 15-inch in size in the quantities required for a mass market product. And even if the manufacture of such panels was possible, the price tag for the panel alone would be ridiculous.

Ease of use

One of the most underestimated and least appreciated effects that Apple had had on technology is in making it easy to use. Apple is a company that took the concept of the user manual and reduced it into a single sheet for most devices.

Apple has managed to do this not by leaving users in the dark  when it comes to features, but by building products and services that are easy enough to use that they don't need a user manual.

And if there's one area of technology that could use this Apple treatment, it's TVs, in particular internet-connected TVs.

According to a study carried out by the Leichtman Research Group, 38 percent of U.S. homes already have an Internet-connected TV, but only 4 percent of those TVs are actually connected to the internet.

There's a clear market for an easier to use solution to the current internet TV offerings. Apple is one company that could deliver such a solution.

(Image credit: Getty Images North America via @daylife)

Integration

Integration is a big part of what makes Apple products what they are. Though technologies such as iCloud, AirPlay, iTunes and the App Store, diverse products can come together and work together.

Any TV from Apple would build on these integration technologies that Apple has bought to the market, helping to sell TVs to those people who already own Apple products, and Apple products to those who buy an Apple TV.

Ecosystem

One of the things that never fails to amaze me about Apple products is the enormous ecosystem of accessories that exists around products, especially iOS devices, and in particular the iPhone. This allows third parties to provide features for a product that Apple don't want to do, such as a macro lens for the iPhone.

People like Apple products, but people also like making their product unique and special to them, which is why the accessories market for product is so huge.

I would expect that an Apple TV would offer huge potential for third-parties to come up will all sorts of add-ons and accessories for the set that would offer features and functionality beyond what was offered by the core product.

But ...

I've spent a few hundred words telling you some of the great things that an Apple TV would bring to the table. Now let me tell you why you you'll never be able to own one, no matter how good it might be. I'm going to be brief about this because I've covered most of them before.

First off, price. Apple products command a premium price, and the company doesn't enter into a market that doesn't offer solid profit margins. High-end TVs -- non 3D -- in the 40-inch range are around $1,000. That doesn't offer much in the way of wriggle-room for Apple to push prices to the point where it could pull in double-digit profit margins.

Then there's competition. Sony, Sharp, LG, Samsung and so on. These companies have saturated the market with TVs so much that these big players themselves are losing money on TVs. Doesn't sound like a market for Apple to get into given how badly companies like Sony are doing.

The part that concerns most people when it comes to a TV is the screen. The screen for any TV that Apple made would be manufactured by the likes of LG or Sharp -- companies that are already making TVs. What would an Apple TV bring to the table that these companies couldn't in terms of the part that people care about the most?

There's not a shred of evidence that Apple is working on a TV. The only hint that Apple has every given TVs a thought comes from  Walter Isaccson biography of Steve Jobs’ in which he says that the late Apple CEO would ‘like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use’ that would ‘seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud.‘ Jobs also claimed to have ‘finally cracked’ the user interface problem to make the whole package easy to use.

These are just some of the reasons why I believe that you will never own a real Apple television.