iPanel on the way...

[Lesser Evets]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveschaefer/2012/04/05/jefferies-raises-apple-target-sees-ipanel-launch-in-late-2012-forget-itv-says-jefferies-analyst-peter-misek-apples-much-anticipated-television-could-be-called-ipanel-to-reflect-its-po/

Assuming this is true, it seems this thing will be for gaming. Wild! Well, I wonder how the gaming will be.

I'd love it if there would be a way to easily hitch onto video streams for the TV, free video streams off of the internet, so one could get some worthy content instead of the pap-o-ganda from the letter networks.

 

[Interstella5555]

Considering I already own a 42" HDTV, can do everything described there on my PS3 with A) Better Games and B) better files support, I'm not sure what the appeal would be in buying a new (likely) $1500+ tv.

 

[Lesser Evets]

Considering I already own a 42" HDTV, can do everything described there on my PS3 with A) Better Games and B) better files support, I'm not sure what the appeal would be in buying a new (likely) $1500+ tv.

That's what I've been saying for the last months. My PS3 blows me away: you throw a large drive in there and you can have a complete media center with further streaming audio and video through a WiFi connection from your Mac.

 

[Interstella5555]

That's what I've been saying for the last months. My PS3 blows me away: you throw a large drive in there and you can have a complete media center with further streaming audio and video through a WiFi connection from your Mac.

Totally, I still need to throw a bigger HDD in there, but even so I can just plug my external 500GB in there and it will play 98% of the stuff that I throw at it. It's great at the games as well, but the multimedia capabilities make it one of the best tech purchases I've ever made.

 

[Lesser Evets]

Totally, I still need to throw a bigger HDD in there, but even so I can just plug my external 500GB in there and it will play 98% of the stuff that I throw at it. It's great at the games as well, but the multimedia capabilities make it one of the best tech purchases I've ever made.

I just upgraded to a Scorpio Blue 1TB and have tons and tons of stuff in there and still have room for more. I must have 400 hours of video easy on that thing. And there are 30,000 songs. The speed of play and resolution is fantastic. I recommend you upgrade to internal ASAP. Using an external USB was OK, but not as nice.

And I figured out how to put radio stations into the PS3 Media Server software, so I can listen to all sorts of live broadcasts.

The only thing the PS3 doesn't do which would be nice is to access the Apple Store. However, the Apple Store is still quite limited.

 

[steve-p]

I doubt there's a huge market for an Apple television because it's a big ticket item that most people don't replace all that often. However it makes sense to offer something if it has a lot of commonality with a cheap set top box like ATV. That gives people who don't want a new television yet a way in, and those people might consider a television with ATV integrated next time round. So it could be a long game rather than the instant win of other iDevices.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Yeah, I already have a pretty new 55" LED TV so I'm hoping that Apple will include most/all functionality for the "iPanel" in the Apple tv.

I'm thinking that Apple will include most functionality in the apple tv for a quick adoption rate, but also include one or two key features limited to the iPanel. That way when it's time to get a new tv you'll go with the iPanel.

 

[Moonjumper]

I wonder if they are going with the iPanel name (assuming they are of course) to signify that it is also set up as a good quality monitor, which probably would mean a Thunderbolt / DisplayPort connection. Most TVs only have VGA as the dedicated connecter, which cannot even do 1080p, and have too much signal processing to give a good computer image when using HDMI. This might also mean a 4K panel so that it can do HiDPI.

All conjecture, but wouldn't it be nice?

 

[314631]

Consumers definitely want iPanel. It will sell a lot. I'm definitely buying a few when they are available. No television will be able to compete with iPanel.

 

[TwinMonkeys]

I don't want to throw $1,000 - $2,000+ into a new TV only 2 years after buying a brand new big screen, but I think the potential that Apps will have on TV will be amazing.

Without Apps, I can't see myself paying for a new TV quite so soon. But with Apps, that might be really worthwhile.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

When I first heard iPanel a couple days ago I thought it sounded so dumb and would be such a bad idea... but now I'm really started to work my way into the idea. I mean it will be so much more than a TV, it's like calling the iPhone a "phone".

It will simply be a giant screen (or panel if you will) which allows to do just about anything you could imagine. Be your computer, iPad, iPhone screens... Play games... Display an infinite number of apps... access your collection of music, photos, videos... Be one more connection to your database of iCloud and Siri functionalities... oh yeah and also you can watch TV on the thing.

iPod
iPhone
iPad
iPanel

 

[darster]

Only diehard apple enthusiasts will fork out a ton of money for iPanel. This isn't a $199 subsidized iPhone, or a $500-$700 iPad. This will be closer to $2000 for a 42 inch screen. Considering you can get a really good 70 inch Sharp TV for $2000 to $3000 with apps such as netflix, Vudu, etc, Apple will be hard pressed to make a dent in the market that is losing money because $1000 to $3000 for a tv is still a major expense for most consumers, that they keep far longer than a computer. If Apple wants to make an impact, they need to wow the consumer with size. Minimum 60 inch screen, better yet 70 inch, for less than $3000.

 

[liquidsuns]

I always thought iScreen would be the best possible name for something like this. I never did like iTV, it just doesn't roll off the tongue. I didn't like iPanel at first either, but after hearing/reading it a few times, it's starting to grow on me a bit.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Only diehard apple enthusiasts will fork out a ton of money for iPanel. This isn't a $199 subsidized iPhone, or a $500-$700 iPad. This will be closer to $2000 for a 42 inch screen. Considering you can get a really good 70 inch Sharp TV for $2000 to $3000 with apps such as netflix, Vudu, etc, Apple will be hard pressed to make a dent in the market that is losing money because $1000 to $3000 for a tv is still a major expense for most consumers, that they keep far longer than a computer. If Apple wants to make an impact, they need to wow the consumer with size. Minimum 60 inch screen, better yet 70 inch, for less than $3000.

I was right there with ya till I got to that part in bold... That doesn't make any sense. People won't want to spend a lot of money on an Apple branded TV so lets make it bigger and more expensive?? Plus a lot of people just don't want/need 60-70" screens. I have a 55" and that is big enough. This iPanel rumor referenced the price being $1,250, so if that's true that would be a much easier pill to swallow.

But I agree that it would be difficult to get non apple fanboys to bite on the iPanel at least for a while. iPad was a new product, Phones are replaced every couple years anyway, but not a lot of people are going to drop everything to go purchase an iPanel when their current TV works great. That's why the Apple TV will serve as a crucial "gateway drug" to the iPanel.

This is what I would advise (assuming this iPanel rumor is correct for a May/June production cycle with a release in time for the holiday season)

At WWDC in June iOS 6 is announced, which includes a huge upgrade to Apple TV complete with an App Store and many other features which will be major selling points for the still unannounced iPanel.

July/August Apple holds a media conference to announce the iPanel. It will include all the functionality of the Apple TV while adding a few major additions (Siri, facetime, motion controlled, etc)

iOS 6 (along with new iPhone) is released first week in october

iPanel is released in early November.

 

[Yujenisis]

This will be closer to $2000 for a 42 inch screen.

Holy crap, Tim Cook has an account here?

Seriously, nobody knows how much the Apple-branded TV will cost. This is an interesting question because of two conflicting forces at work within Apple:

• Apple's unmatched economy of scale on parts and manufacturing
• Apple's desire to build profitable margins into all products

No doubt, it will be more expensive than cheaper televisions and Apple will buck the trend of the race to the bottom that defines the current industry. But what the markup will be nobody knows. I doubt even Tim Cook knows for sure right now.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Seriously, nobody knows how much the Apple-branded TV will cost. This is an interesting question because of two conflicting forces at work within Apple:

• Apple's unmatched economy of scale on parts and manufacturing
• Apple's desire to build profitable margins into all products

I find issue with your first bullet. Sure they have been able to do this great with iPhones and iPads.... but probably not TV's. They are too expensive and will take a while to start selling a lot of them, even under a best case scenario

 

[Yujenisis]

I find issue with your first bullet. Sure they have been able to do this great with iPhones and iPads.... but probably not TV's. They are too expensive and will take a while to start selling a lot of them, even under a best case scenario

Can you explain how the high cost of televisions mean that somehow a fundamental law of economics does not apply?

Five years ago Apple didn't make a single touch screen device and now they own a commanding presence in that technology. Why would the same not be possible with television components?

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

Can you explain how the high cost of televisions mean that somehow a fundamental law of economics does not apply?

Five years ago Apple didn't make a single touch screen device and now they own a commanding presence in that technology. Why would the same not be possible with television components?

I said "because it will take a while to start selling a lot of them"

iPhone's caught on when they became $200. Majority of iPads sell for $500. Plus these are both products that typically could be replaced every two years.

iPanel would cost $1,250 minimum (most would argue) and due to no urgent need to upgrade will take a while for people to initially purchase, and then again to repurchase. So my argument is that iPanel wouldn't be the fast seller that we have seen from iPhone and iPad

 

[Yujenisis]

I said "because it will take a while to start selling a lot of them"

Why would Apple not leverage their 82 Billion dollars to assure consistent locked in prices going into the future?

Apple is a company that has consistently worked to buck price fluctuations within the component industry. After the flooding in Thailand, hard drive prices went up in price almost 180%, and yet Apple never changed their prices.

Why? Because a cornerstone for their strategies has been building long-term investments with manufacturers and in return locking in multi-year contract pricing.

In the end, you may be spot on with your price estimates. I don't think your numbers are too far off, either. I do have issue with your reasoning because I think it ignores Apple's established practices.

 

[animatedude]

first, if there's an iPanel in the works then that's great, i actually predicted this name a few weeks ago....but please don't be gullible thinking it will be out this year.

second, i don't understand why ppl compare the iPanel to the iPad or iPhone in terms of the price....think of your iPanel as your iMac, most of us don't change our desktops for many years sometimes 5-7 years and this is the same life cycle of TVs too, i think....and correct me if i'm wrong but iMac is the most successful Desktop right now.

it will be just interesting to see what choices Apple will make on this product IF they are actually working on one.

 

[darster]

I said "because it will take a while to start selling a lot of them"

iPhone's caught on when they became $200. Majority of iPads sell for $500. Plus these are both products that typically could be replaced every two years.

iPanel would cost $1,250 minimum (most would argue) and due to no urgent need to upgrade will take a while for people to initially purchase, and then again to repurchase. So my argument is that iPanel wouldn't be the fast seller that we have seen from iPhone and iPad

Agree. Also don't forget the iPad can sell for $500 to $700 because Apple was the first to come out with a good tablet, and second, the android tablets are selling at the same price. Apple in order to be competitive will have to sell at or less than current tv's on the market. How long has apple been selling computers? They still have less than 5% marketshare because most people do not wish to shell out $500 more than a pc.

 

[darster]

I was right there with ya till I got to that part in bold... That doesn't make any sense. People won't want to spend a lot of money on an Apple branded TV so lets make it bigger and more expensive?? Plus a lot of people just don't want/need 60-70" screens. I have a 55" and that is big enough. This iPanel rumor referenced the price being $1,250, so if that's true that would be a much easier pill to swallow.

My point was that if you can get a 70 inch tv for $2000 to $2500, 50 inch tv's for less than $1000, why shell out $1200-$1500 for something that is 50 inches or smaller? It's not any different than computers. Most people pay less than $1000 for a new PC, while few will shell out $1200 for the lowest end iMac. Same will be true with tv's. Apple made their money with the iPhone and iPad, not computers, because they revolutionized the phone and tablet industry. That is why their macs still wallow in a sub 5% marketshare after all these years. I think Apple believes they can slap their name on a tv and it will turn to gold. Will they sell a few million the first few weeks like the iPad? Most likely. Will they be a major player in the first 5 years. Probably not. Samsung, LG and Vizio are so far ahead, and the only ones making money.

 

[Moonjumper]

Seriously, nobody knows how much the Apple-branded TV will cost.

Very true. Many were expecting the iPad to be $1000 in the run up to the announcement.