iTV: Is It Going to Revolutionize TV?

Posted by Rod_Ramos on January 15, 2012 06:37 pm 36

The latest magical and revolutionary device that will come out of Cupertino is supposed to come in the form of a TV. Many people have discussed and gave their profesional opinions about it. Along with the opinions and comments have raised many questions and concerns about the iTV. Steve Jobs might have finally cracked it, but it does not mean it will become a hit. The main problems that most critics point out are: price, screen size and its main feature that it`s supposed to be the voice assistant called Siri. Honestly, all of them are valid points. Its future does not look as a check-mate at all, considering what Apple has under its sleeve.

Let me tell you something about Apple in relation with screens, they do not come with an accessible price. For example, the 30 Apple display costs over 2000 dollars without a vast array of ports; heck it does not even have a TV receiver. Talking about ports, I dare you to guess the number of ports it will have, if it comes to the market. Answer: few and some of them exclusive to the brand like display port. Anyway, this gives an idea about pricing of what Apple TV sets might cost. The most popular TV sizes start from 32-46 inches. Some studies show that the average screen size for Americans is 38. For the record, Apple has never done anything bigger than 30 inches before. Will Apple do large screens to sell to the masses at a competitive price like it did with the iPad? I doubt it because the iPad was the device that declared tablets popular to the general consumers, when most people had no idea what a tablet was.

TV sets with computer capabilities are not new and many companies have already started selling them to people quite well. People are not blown away by them. They all have good features and are backed by Google, which competes directly with Apple on the software side. I have no idea of how Apple can amaze a market that it`s already known. Not to mention that the PS3, Xbox 360 and other small boxes have been making old TV smart for a couple of years now. Besides, Apple already entered the TV market with Apple TV back in 2007 which was far from a hit. It did not offer anything new to the market. It was just a Apple branded TV box with a hard drive. Then in 2010, it cut the prices to compete in the market and stop being a hobby for the company. It kind of accomplished its objective, but was far from revolutionary. I bought one when it launched and honestly it was just another Netflix box hooked to my TV. The promise of apps is unfulfilled as of today. This just shows how Apple really needs to do magic if it wants to cannibalize the competition as it did with the iPad.

Many critics fear that price won`t allow the iTV to enter the house of a large percent of American, perhaps, it`s going to be a product for iFanboys. Screen size might be iTV worst enemy. Or maybe, it`s intended for the bedroom not the living room. But that`s why we have the 27 inch iMac and the incredibly expensive Thunderbolt display. I say expensive because Apple sells the 21.5 inch iMac for just 200 dollars more which is a great computer with all you need to start computing in the same box. Don`t make me mention other monitors that compare to the Thunderbolt display in everything, well except in price. I don`t imagine a 55 inch TV coming from Apple without a price as high as the sky. Americans don`t go back in time, they just ask for more. I mean TV size. I still remember when a 27 inch screen was the boom and now it looks like miniature comparing to an average TV. The average screen size in America in 38. Mind you, a 32 inch TV with the price that you can buy two 42 inch TV sets. Please don`t use the arguments of the success of the iPhone because the iPhone was like nothing else in the market in term of everything or the iPad because it was kind of cheap for what it was at the time. Besides, the iPad was the concept of a tablet done right . Competition still struggles to compete with the iPad in all aspects.

I have an iPhone 4s, which main feature is Siri. From my experience, I can tell you that I feel kind of stupid talking to my phone and expect it to understand me and act when I just can click one icon and get my results. For example, why would I ask Siri what`s the weather like, when I can just touch the weather app and look at the weather in seconds. I don`t see myself having a conversation with a TV. It just does not feel natural for me. Not to mention that this is far from discrete as it happens with the iPhone. It`s like if everybody has to know what I am about to do all the time. If you have used Siri on the bus, you will know what I am talking about. Even in the Apple store people feel kind of strange doing it. Siri: "I`m not sure what you said." But you sure know what I mean if you happen to have an iPhone 4s.

Getting things done with Siri is slower than with the normal processes for almost everything. For example, I am the kind of user who as many of you who changes his mind quickly. Siri would be a burden for me. I can be watching something on Netflix and jump to Hulu instantly with pressing a few buttons. This is how It will be with Siri, "siri close Netflix and go to Hulu and then play Betty the Ugly." This is just an example. This takes much longer than pressing a few buttons, not to say that it is slower and kind of embarrassing. You have to press the middle button for a few seconds for Siri to appear and then you expect her to understand you. It just kind of silly. Honestly, I use Siri sometimes for fun. But it`s not something I can say I can`t go back without her. If Apple, includes Siri as the main feature on the iTV, I won`t simply buy it. I feel kind of cheated because Siri feels like a trick, heck, even Apple acknowledges Siri is in beta stage. Even when Siri is in final version, it will be just the same thing but improved. But guess what? They are selling iPhone 4S like hotcakes. I am not saying that Apple will sell TVs magically because of it, all I mean is that people will feel tricked because they won`t be using Siri as they expected which is supposed to be one of the main reasons to buy the mysterious iTV.

Just future can tell is the iTV can become the new ground-breaking product for Apple, and a new product on The Verge carousel of the stuff you just must buy immediately. Nobody knows for sure, maybe Apple can fulfill all the promises that both Apple TVs did not with this new device and add a few new cool tricks to convince people to spend their money on something they don`t need.