Apple TV

There were few surprises at Apple's annual music event Wednesday, but as usual there are new iPods for the holiday season and a new version of Apple TV.

Here's a quick recap of what Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced Wednesday in San Francisco. Check here for a replay of our live coverage of the event from earlier in the day.

• Apple released a new version of iOS--iOS 4.1--that fixes bugs and brings the previously announced Game Center API for developers to use in building social-networking games. Also, iOS 4.2 will be released later this year, which … Read more

The next generation of Apple TV will feature the Netflix streaming-movie service, according to a report from the Bloomberg news service.

According to the Bloomberg report, Apple will debut the new feature along with the upgraded Apple TV during a media event the company has scheduled for Wednesday.

Apple TV users would need to pay Netflix's subscription rental fees to acquire the service, according to the report, which also said Apple will release a $99 version of Apple TV, $130 less than the current model.

This isn't much of a surprise. Netflix has worked closely to provide the … Read more

Long before the iPhone, the iPod was the device that helped transform Apple from computer company into a consumer electronics company.

But today, the ubiquitous music player has become less relevant to the company that essentially owns that product category. Apple still sells three-fourths of all MP3 players sold, but multifunction gadgets like the iPhone and iPad are getting the most attention from Apple customers, not to mention the rest of the electronics industry, and bringing in more revenue than iPods these days.

So when Apple convenes a special event in San Francisco to discuss music this Wednesday--as it has … Read more

Apple's big September music event, coming on the first day of next month, is less than a week away. But that still gives us plenty of time to wax philosophical on the whats and wherefores of the company's plans, as many techophiles are already doing.

This year, it's widely expected that Apple will add the "Retina" display and front-facing camera of the iPhone 4 to the iPod Touch. There's also been talk of changes afoot for Apple TV, including a scaled-down device, a much lower price tag of $99, and access to the App … Read more

We're hearing a lot about what might be announced by Apple at its now-annual September music event--but when will it be held?

On Tuesday, in a story about forthcoming 99-cent TV show rentals on iTunes, Bloomberg reported that Apple would hold an event September 7.

"Apple plans to hold a San Francisco event September 7, two weeks ahead of the start of the new prime-time TV season," according to the report, "to unveil the service and a refreshed line of entertainment products."

That's the same week Apple usually holds the event, but there's … Read more

Apple could be on the verge of giving users the option to rent television shows from its iTunes Store.

Citing "people familiar" with discussions between Apple and News Corp., Bloomberg reported Tuesday that 99-cent TV show rentals are being talked about. Users would have to watch the shows within 48 hours of purchasing the rental, according to the report.

The rental system sounds very similar to the one Apple uses for movie rentals on the iTunes Store, where users have a specified amount of time to watch the rented media before it expires.

Bloomberg also says Apple is … Read more

The Apple TV might soon be called the iTV. But U.K. television network iTV won't be happy about it.

Speaking to Pocket-Lint in an interview, Mike Large, iTV acting group director of communications, said his company values the iTV brand and has "vigorously defended" it in the past. He stopped short of saying iTV would go to court with Apple, but indicated his company plans on being the only firm to use the iTV name.

"iTV has a very strong brand, and a highly valued IP," Large told Pocket-Lint. He went on to say … Read more

That revamped Apple TV we heard about a few months ago? It might be headed our way shortly.

Apple TV has long been a "hobby" for Apple, a project the company considers a work in progress, not a flagship product like the iPhone or Mac. As such, there have been few changes to the video-streaming set-top box since its introduction in 2008.

In June, Engadget was told by some unnamed sources that a makeover for the device was coming--including a smaller footprint, iOS 4, the A4 chip, 1080p playback, 16GB of storage, and a $99 price tag.

On Wednesday, Engadget released updated expectations, citing the same sources, reporting that the same features are planned, with the exception of 1080p playback. The new Apple TV will not upgrade to 1080p, after all, but will continue to output 720p video, which matches the current capabilities of iTunes video. An iTunes-streaming service is expected to accompany its introduction.

But the report also includes some other interesting tidbits: that the device will have access to apps, like the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, something long been rumored and expected.

Perhaps more intriguing: Apple TV is getting a new name, according to the report. Well, an old new name. Apparently, Apple is rechristening the device iTV, which was the original name for Apple TV when it was first introduced.

Apple declined to comment.

While it's safe to say it's unusual for Apple to be so noncommittal on the name of a product that's already been shipped, Apple TV is a special case/"hobby." … Read more

A new Apple TV featuring 99-cent television show rentals is currently in the works, a report from GigaOm blog, NewTeeVee, claims.

According to NewTeeVee, which cited unnamed sources, Apple is currently trying to coax television studios into allowing the company to offer TV rentals for just 99 cents each on the as-yet announced new version of the Apple TV. Currently, Apple offers consumers the chance to buy television shows on its Apple TV set-top box for $1.99 for standard-definition episodes, and $2.99 for high-definition episodes.

Although details from NewTeeVee's sources are scant at this point, the blog … Read more